By Cape Breton Post

Cape Breton musician Kyle Mischiek is among the finalists for Casino Nova Scotia’s artist in residence 2015.

Jurors made the selection following interviews last week. There are five candidates, plus a wild card pick, moving onto the performance round of the selection process June 12.

Music lovers and fans will have their chance to vote from June 1 – June 5 during the online voting, which counts towards the selection of the finalist. Go to www.musicnovascotia.ca to vote. The public is welcome to come to the Showcase on June 12 at Casino Nova Scotia. Free admission.

The finalists are Mischiek, Arsoniste (Halifax – electronic/pop), Like a Motorcycle (Halifax – alternative/rock), Samantha Power (Timberlea – country), Shannon Quinn (Halifax – Celtic/folk/roots), Reeny Smith (North Preston – pop/R&B).

“This is an exciting line-up,” Ken Murray, assistant general manager of Casino Nova Scotia, said in a news release. “We are very pleased to have received strong presentations from artists from a variety of musical genres, as it highlights the diverse interests and talents of artists in Nova Scotia. There’s such a great mix of genres that really highlight the amazing talent of emerging artists from our province. As we were reviewing the applications and interviewing the artists, we were blown away by the incredible talent, direction, and passionate determination from such young musicians.”

Music Nova Scotia Executive Director, Scott Long reported that the jury, which also includes: Asif Ilyas, Carmen Townsend and Ian McKinnon unanimously agreed based on very strong artist submissions and interviews to add the wild card pick, Like a Motorcycle. The live showcase will help the judges make their final assessment.

The Casino Nova Scotia Artist in Residence program will provide the selected musician or group with $20,000 in funding to assist with developing their career through recording, marketing, and live performance opportunities. Music Nova Scotia is working with Casino Nova Scotia to administer the program.

For more information on Casino Nova Scotia’s Artist in Residence Program go to:

www.casinonovascotia.com/air/ or www.musicnovascotia.ca