2025 ECMA Awards

The 37th East Coast Music Awards: Festival & Conference, hosted by the East Coast Music Association (ECMA), was held in St. John’s, NL, in May.

Ghislaine Cormier received the Stompin’ Tom Award for PEI, which honours individuals from each of the ECMA’s five geographical regions who have made long-term contributions to the East Coast music industry and helped pave the way for today’s successful artists. Cormier is the Executive Director of the Fédération culturelle de l’Île-du-Prince-Édouard, where she leads cultural and artistic development for the Acadian and Francophone community. As a producer of Festival Route 11 and a champion of professional and export development, she works to amplify the cultural vitality of PEI’s Francophone artists and organizations.

PEI singer-songwriter Noah Malcolm earned the 2025 ECMA for Pop Release of the Year for his song “January.”

Vishtèn Connexions brought home three 2025 ECMA Awards, winning Folk Release of the Year and Fusion Release of the Year for “Kouma,” and Album of the Year for Expansion, a major achievement and a first for an Acadian and francophone band.

In 2022, the PEI Acadian band Vishtèn suffered an immense loss with the death of group co-founder Pastelle LeBlanc. In the wake of this tragedy, the other two band members, Emmanuelle LeBlanc and Pascal Miousse, launched Vishtèn Connexions, a project dedicated to completing and sharing Pastelle’s unfinished compositions. This project honoured her musical vision while opening the door to new collaborations and artistic evolutions.

The musicians who collaborated on the album are De Temps Antan, Catherine MacLellan, 6 Hearts, Cédric Dind-Lavoie, Julie Pellissier-Lush, Seckou Keita, Catrin Finch, Rowen Gallant, and Jesse Périard.

The full list of 2025 ECMA winners is available at ecma.com.