Music Resource Group, publisher of The Musician’s Atlas, today announced the Finalists of the 8th annual Independent Music Awards (IMA). “From seasoned professionals, to emerging newcomers, this is the most diverse group of nominees the program has recognized,” said Martin Folkman, IMA program director. “The level of talent is extraordinary and reflects the vast talent pool found in the indie scene.”

This year's Finalists cover every level of experience and include a variety of seasoned veterans. Martin Sexton is nominated for Solo, his career-spanning retrospective in the Live Performance Album category. Other veterans who received nominations include banjo virtuoso Tony Trischka, nominated for his release Territory; Dan Zanes, who received a nomination in the Children’s Album category for the album Nueva York; John Sebastian & David Grisman in the Americana Album category for their collaboration, Satisfied; and the late Blues guitarist Jeff Healey who is nominated in the Blues Album category for his record, Mess Of Blues.

These artists are joined as Finalists by past IMA Winners & Finalists who have returned as nominees for new works released within the eligibility period for this 8th edition of the IMAs. These artists include Duane Andrews and Marco Benevento, who are each nominated in the Jazz album category; Amy Speace and Rebecca Martin who are each nominated in the Folk/Singer-Songwriter album category; Rachael Sage for the Film/TV/Gaming song category; Sean Patrick McGraw for Country song; and Muza who’s a Finalist in both the Latin album and song categories and a new category that honors artistic interpretations of Cover Songs.

All these musicians are joined by an array of indie artists who represent a geographic diversity as vast as their talent. The U.S., Canada, Australia, Cuba, China, Mongolia, Republic of Guinea, Italy, France, and Sweden are just some of the countries represented by artists named as Finalists in this year’s Independent Music Awards.