Verde Prato wins the Etxepare Award for the Best Album in Basque at the MINs

Verde Prato clinched the Etxepare Basque Institute Award for Best Album in Basque at the MIN Independent Music Awards. The awards ceremony took place at the Navarra Arena in Pamplona last night in a festive atmosphere that brought together some 3,000 spectators. The finalists competing for the Etxepare Basque Institute Award for Best Album in Basque – Chill Mafia, Idoia, Liher and Gaur – were also at the event.

The jury acknowledged the album ´Kondaira eder hura´ (2021), for its minimalist themes using keyboards and vocals. Ana Arsuaga (Tolosa, 1994), known as Verde Prato, sings in Basque bringing Basque oral tradition to life. Arsuaga was presented the award by singer Izaro Andres.

The other artists who reach the semi-finals after the people’s choice vote were Amak, Bulego, Ezpalak, Huntza, Ibil Bedi, Jon Maia, Joseba Irazoki eta lagunak, Maite Larburu, Olatz Salvador and Ruper Ordorika.

Many of these musicians were also semi-finalists in other categories, including awards for different musical styles (best jazz album, best flamenco album, best rock album, etc.), languages (Basque, Catalan, Galician), as well as other broader categories (best album, best video clip, best song...).

Hosted by comedian Carolina Iglesias, the event featured performances of different songs, including ´Argia´, the new track by Izaro with Amaral, as well as live performances by Chill Mafia, Baiuca, Maria Arnal i Marcel Bagés and Ilegales.

Zahara was one of the biggest winners of the evening, taking home a total of six awards, including the Orchard Award for Album of the Year. Rigoberta Bandini´s ´Ay mamá´ won the Radio 3 Song of the Year Award; Rigoberta Bandini also received the Amazon Music Award for Best Artist; and the Galician band Tanxugueiras won the AIE Award for Best New Artist.

MIN Awards

The MIN Awards were created in 2009 by the non-profit association of independent music companies, Unión Fonográfica Independiente (UFI), to highlight the creation, cultural diversity and artistic quality of independent productions made in Spain. The UFI promotes music published by independent labels as well as self-published works on a national and international level.

The Etxepare Basque Institute has sponsored the award for the Best Album in Basque since 2014 to shine a spotlight on the Basque language and culture. In previous editions Zetak, Niña Coyote eta Chico Tornado, and Ruper Ordorika, among others, are previous winner of the award.

You can consult the winners in all categories here.