Laura Niquay (born 1982) is an

Atikamekw The Atikamekw are the Indigenous inhabitants of the subnational country or territory they call ('Our Land'), in the upper Saint-Maurice River valley of Quebec (about north of Montreal), Canada. Their current population is around 8,000. One o ...

singer-songwriter from

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

,Anne-Marie Yvon
"Laura Niquay, la messagère atikamekw"
Ici Radio-Canada Espaces Autochtones, April 29, 2021. whose album ''Waska Matisiwin'' was a longlisted nominee for the

2021 Polaris Music Prize The 2021 edition of the Canadian Polaris Music Prize was presented on September 27, 2021. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada, the award was presented in a livestreamed virtual event hosted by Angeline Tetteh-Wayoe of CBC Music. The longlist ...

. Originally from

Wemotaci Wemotaci (designated as Weymontachie 23 until 1997) is a First Nations reserve on the north shore of the Saint-Maurice River at the mouth of the Manouane River in the Mauricie region of Quebec, Canada. Together with the Obedjiwan and the Coucou ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, Niquay participated in the recording of her uncle Arthur Petiquay's 2005 album ''Awacic''. She released her own debut album, ''Waratanak'', in 2015, and followed up with ''Waska Matisiwin'' in 2021. ''Waska Matisiwin'' won the

Félix Award The Félix Award (french: Trophée Félix or Prix Félix) is an award, given by the ''Association du disque, de l'industrie du spectacle québécois'' (ADISQ) on an annual basis to artists working in the music and humor industry in the Canadian p ...

for Indigenous Language Album of the Year, and Niquay won the award for Indigenous Artist of the Year, at the

44th Félix Awards The 43rd Félix Awards were held on November 6, 2022 to honour achievements in Quebec music. The gala was hosted by Louis-José Houde, and televised by Ici Radio-Canada Télé. The advance ceremony announcing the winners in categories not se ...

in 2022.Léa Larouche
"Gala de l’ADISQ: Laura Niquay remporte le Félix de l'album autochtone de l'année"
'' Le Nouvelliste'', November 6, 2022.

References

1982 births 21st-century Canadian women singers 21st-century First Nations people Canadian women singer-songwriters Canadian singer-songwriters First Nations musicians First Nations women Singers from Quebec Atikamekw people Living people Félix Award winners {{Canada-singer-stub