Jeff Oster, a founding member of the ensemble FLOW, accepted the IMA honor live at Lincoln Center’ alongside fellow honorees in a wide array of music genres. The event’s judges included Tom Waits and Kathleen Brennan, Slayer, Bakithi Kumalo, Michael W. Smith, Amy Lee of Evanescence, and Sepultura.
New York, NY (April 5, 2018) — Established artists and rising stars from around the world packed Lincoln Center’s David Rubenstein Atrium on Saturday, March 31st to celebrate the vitality of the indie music community at The 16th annual Independent Music Awards (IMAs) and Independent Music Party. FLOW flugelhorn and trumpet player, Jeff Oster, accepted the group’s Independent Music Award for Best New Age Album for its eponymous debut album, FLOW, produced by Will Ackerman and Tom Eaton, and released by LMB Music.
“This honor is so appreciated, and the timing couldn’t be better as we prepare for our May 2018 tour,” Oster said, adding “Hopefully, some of the new friends we’ve made here today will join us on The Arrival Tour to experience FLOW live in concert; it’s a beautiful thing.”
FLOW is a fresh ensemble comprised of four innovative, critically-acclaimed and highly-awarded independent artists: legendary GRAMMY®-winning guitarist Will Ackerman, pianist/singer Fiona Joy, acoustic guitarist Lawrence Blatt and trumpet and flugelhorn player Jeff Oster. The group debuted live to a sold-out crowd at Carnegie’s Weill Hall last October 2017 and is slated to perform May 10, 2018 at The New Orleans Jazz Museum, and at the 14th Annual Zone Music (ZMR) Awards at Roussel Hall in New Orleans on May 12th, before commencing on their West Coast dates including Seattle, Novato, CA (near San Francisco) and Los Angeles’ famed GRAMMY® Museum. FLOW is nominated for two Zone Music Awards (Album of the Year and Best Contemporary Instrumental Album) and has enjoyed two months at #1 on the ZMR Top 100 Radio Airplay Chart, an appearance on nationally-syndicated PRI radio show ECHOES and multiple “Best of 2017” honors. See all tour dates and ticket info at https://www.flowthegroup.com/thearrivaltour/
IMA Executive Director Martin Folkman says the influential Independent Music Awards – now in its 17th year – honor the year’s best music projects by self-released and indie label talent. The winning projects were selected by esteemed artist and industry judging panels which included: Tom Waits and Kathleen Brennan, Slayer, Bakithi Kumalo, Michael W. Smith, Amy Lee (Evanescence), Sepultura, and many others; as well as press and talent buyers from the Americas, Europe and Pacific Rim.
Oster added that FLOW was honored to win the award alongside such a diverse mix of new music, video and design projects from indie label artists including Nik West, Reeve Carney, Karim Baggili, Sofia Rei, Air Traffic Controller, John McEuen, Rozina Pátkai, Jake La Botz, Esprit D’Air, Eh440, Anish Sood, and The Bankesters. The 4-hour ceremony featured award presentations in 94 music and visual arts categories, and performances by 10 nominated acts. More than 54,000 online fan votes determined The IMA Vox Pop Winners in Song and Video categories. The complete list of The 16th IMA Winners, including FLOW, is available at: http://independentmusicawards.com/16th-independent-music-awards-winners/
The IMA’s better-known winners and nominees from past seasons include: …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead, Amy Lee, Band of Skulls, Ben Kweller, Bright Eyes, Camila Meza, Flying Lotus, Jackson Browne, Killer Mike, Lacuna Coil, Macy Gray, Melissa Ferrick, JD McPherson, Meghan Trainor, Passenger, Radio Radio, RuPaul, Speech, Valerie June, Fiona Joy and Yemi Alade.
Press contact for the IMA Awards: Jude Folkman, jude@IndependentMusicAwards.com, or 977.767.1800. More details available at www.IndependentMusicAwards.com
Press contact for FLOW: Beth Ann Hilton, bethhilton@thebcompany.com.