Award nominations roll in for self-isolating Tim Hicks
Country star Tim Hicks has a rule about music awards: He never wants to know the day nominations come out.
That way, if he’s nominated, it’s a genuine surprise. Which happens more often than not: On Wednesday, the Niagara Falls singer nabbed four nominations for the Country Music Association of Ontario Awards, to go with the 24 he’s had since 2014.
“On purpose, I keep those sort of things off of my radar,” he says. “It makes me anxious waiting for those days … it’s a little bit nerve-racking. I like being in the dark, then if someone phones me up and goes, ‘Guess what? You’re nominated,’ it’s like ‘Great!’ But if you’re waiting for it, it can mess with you mentally.”
Hicks nabbed nominations for single of the year (“What a Song Should Do”); songwriter of the year (“What a Song Should Do,” with co-writers Emma-Lee and Karen Kosowski); male artist of the year and fans’ choice.
He has been nominated for male artist of the year four times previously, winning in 2014, 2016 and 2019.
Of this year’s nominations, however, songwriter of the year means the most to Hicks.
“Just because, as I’ve found out amongst my peers, not everybody realizes I write all my songs,” he says. “That to me is really cool, to be recognized for that end of it.”
The nominations were welcome news as Hicks and his family self-isolate at home, time he has spent writing a batch of new songs — including one co-written by his wife
Amanda.
Some people in the music industry believe live music won’t resume until fall 2021. For a singer addicted to the stage like Hicks, it’s agony.
“We were watching the Taylor Swift documentary last night and every scene that had concert footage, I was just dying inside,” he says. “Like, ‘I just want to get out there and make some noise.’
“If you have to restrict large gatherings, that certainly puts a damper on my plans. But in the meantime, there’s other things we can be doing. Working on new music, although it’ll be a while before we can catch a flight to Nashville. Everything’s changed.”
Shortly after the lockdown began, Hicks released a cover of “The Night Patty Murphy
Died” for St. Patrick’s Day with Great Big Sea’s Alan Doyle. The response was “through the roof,” as was a March 17 livestream concert he did from his home.
“I couldn’t believe the number of people that tuned in for that,” he says. “There is a need for entertainment. People are looking for that when they go online.”
The Country Music Association of Ontario Awards are tentatively scheduled for Oct. 4 at Centennial Hall in London.