Canadian Songwriter Billy Grima And Seattle Folk Duo March To May Win Akademia Awards

akademia awardMTS Management Group is proud to announce Canadian pop/americana singer/songwriter Billy Grima and Seattle folk-pop duo, March To May are winners at the Akademia Music Awards. Billy Grima’s song, “Pleasure To have Met You” was named Best Pop/Rock Americana Song for August 2015, while March To May’s single, “Embers” was named Best Pop/Singer-Songwriter Song . Winners are determined by the general voting process held by an expert panel of six judges, who are all former senior executives and industry veterans, from some of the largest record companies. Past winners include country rocker, Chase Allan; teen sensation,Temara Melek; Swedish country singer/songwriter, Hicks; and Canadian pop rocker, Davo. For a complete list of winners, visit http://www.theakademia.com/winners/ and http://www.theakademia.com/winners2.

akademia award“Pleasure To Have Met You” was written by Billy Grima.  It is the first single release from his album, Sugar & Cream. “Embers” was written by Darren Guyaz and Elizabeth Wesche of March To May.  It is the first single release from their debut EP, The Water’s Edge.

Located in Los Angeles, California, The Akademia Music Awards is dedicated to recognizing excellence in music throughout the world and supporting musicians interested in receiving a higher degree of market exposure and professional recognition for their work. www.theakademia.com

Billy Grima is an award-nominated singer/ songwriter living in the Caledon Hills of Ontario, Canada. Born in Blacktown, NSW Australia, Billy started writing at a very young age and was singing in a church choir by the age of 8 years old. At 15, Billy moved to Canada and settled in Toronto.   Like classic singer/songwriters of the seventies, life’s daily realities and everyday events are a source of Billy’s inspiration, while his smooth and soulful sound have drawn comparisons to current contemporaries.  Sugar & Cream has received airplay on more than 100 AM/FM stations across North America and more than 500 stations around the world.  Billy is a Josie Show Awards nominee, an Akademia Awards Winner, and a three-time 2015 International Music and Entertainment (IMEA) Award nominee.

 March To May’s Darren Guyaz (guitar, vocals, keyboard) and Beth Wesche (Celtic harp, vocals)  first met in December 2012.  By March 2013, the folk/indie/Americana duo had co-written their first two songs, by April they had a paid gig under their belts, and by May they had a name and shows booked out into the months ahead. Before settling in Seattle, Washington, where the act is now based, both Darren and Beth had traversed the Western Hemisphere separately.  Darren migrated from the northern Appalachians to his birth-state of Montana, before heading on a South American adventure across the Andes mountain range, eventually falling in love with Seattle and the Pacific Northwest.  The daughter of a US Foreign Service Officer, Beth also spent time in the Andes, as well as a host of US states on both coasts, before moving to Seattle, just blocks from where her beloved Celtic harp had been created, years before.    March to May is a Josie Show Awards nominee and an Akademia Awards Winner. The Water’s Edge is the debut release from March To May, out April 25th, 2015. It features the #1 Yallwire video single, “Embers.”