It took her awhile to find her footing in Halifax, but once she did, her music career took off. In the last year, the Toronto expat Jill Barber joined the ranks of best local record label, Dependent Music, recorded her new EP, Oh Heart, at the CBC and took her music to larger audiences across eastern Canada. “I found a community of musicians here that I feel I settled into pretty nicely,” Barber says. “I think that’s a good thing.” The best is yet to come: Oh Heart was released mid-March and soon the smoky, jazz-voiced Barber heads back to Toronto to pursue her rising career with the lessons she learned during her stay in the Maritimes. “I’ve only felt better about playing in Halifax as time has gone on,” she says. “I’ve lived here for a year-and-a-half, so it feels good that I’ve reached out to the folks in Halifax.”

Runner-up: Amelia Curran