2022 Libera Awards

The 2022 Libera Awards was held on June 16, 2022, to recognize the best in independent music presented by the American Association of Independent Music. The ceremony streamed live on YouTube.

2022 Libera Awards
Date	June 16, 2022
Location	Webster Hall
Most awards	Japanese Breakfast (4)
Most nominations	Japanese Breakfast (7)
Website	liberaawards.com
← 2021 · Libera Awards · 2023 →

The nominations were announced on March 23, 2022, led by indie pop band Japanese Breakfast with seven.^[1] New award categories, Self-Released Record of the Year and Best Pop Record, were added. The Best Dance/Electronic Record category was divided into two categories: Best Dance Record and Best Electronic Record, bringing the total number of categories to 36. The Best Metal Record was renamed Best Heavy Record.^[2]

The awards ceremony took place on June 16, 2022, held in New York City at Webster Hall.^[3] With four awards, Japanese Breakfast was the most awarded artist.^[4]

Winners and nominees

Record of the Year	Self-Released Record of the Year
Jubilee – Japanese Breakfast Collapsed in Sunbeams – Arlo Parks Georgia Blue – Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit Hey What – Low New Long Leg – Dry Cleaning Valentine – Snail Mail	Deadpan Love – Cautious Clay Half God – Wiki A New Child – Jackson Wooten Ready Is Always Too Late – Sinéad Harnett Rebecca Black Was Here – Rebecca Black Yellow – Emma-Jean Thackray
A2IM Humanitarian Award	Best Alternative Rock Record
Common for work with A Rebirth of Sound Margo Price for work with Farm Aid Recording Artists and Music Professionals with Disabilities (RAMPD) Rev. Moose for work with National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) Secretly Group – SC25 - Every Light On This Side of The Town Hopeless Records / Sub City Records – Songs That Saved My Life	Jubilee – Japanese Breakfast HEY WHAT – Low If I Could Make It Go Quiet – Girl in Red New Long Leg – Dry Cleaning Things Take Time, Take Time – Courtney Barnett Valentine – Snail Mail "Wildfire" – Cautious Clay
Best Americana Record	Best Blues Record
History of a Feeling – Madi Diaz Another Side – Leo Nocentelli Georgia Blue – Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit Leftover Feelings – John Hiatt with The Jerry Douglas Band Other You – Steve Gunn The Pet Parade – Fruit Bats Quietly Blowing It – Hiss Golden Messenger	662 – Christone "Kingfish" Ingram I Be Trying – Cedric Burnside "Can't Stop the Rain" – Neal Francis Dear America – Eric Bibb Promenade Blue – Nick Waterhouse Rose-Colored Glasses, Vol. 1 – Teresa James & the Rhythm Tramps
Best Classical Record	Best Country Record
Impermanence/Disintegration – Bryce Dessner, Australian String Quartet and Sydney Dance Company All the Unknown – Grandbrothers Canadiana – Canadian Brass Our Flashback Wedding – Vitamin String Quartet Piano Piano – Jeremiah Fraites Sunbathing Through a Glass Screen – Theo Alexander	The Ballad of Dood and Juanita – Sturgill Simpson American Siren – Emily Scott Robinson Own Side Now (Deluxe Anniversary Edition) – Caitlin Rose Reckless – Morgan Wade Sayin' What I'm Thinkin' – Lainey Wilson Southern Curiosity – Fancy Hagood
Best Dance Record	Best Electronic Record
Loving in Stereo – Jungle DJ-Kicks: Disclosure – Disclosure "Loose Your Mind" – Dawn Richard "Original Classic" – Keys N Krates "Stay High again.." (Fred again.. & Joy Anonymous Remix) – Brittany Howard You've Got the Whole Night to Go – Logic1000	Before I Die – Park Hye Jin Kick III – Arca Second Line – Dawn Richard Yasuke – Flying Lotus "You Can Do It" – Caribou
Best Folk/Bluegrass Record	Best Heavy Record
Fun House – Hand Habits Local Valley – José González Broken Hearts & Dirty Windows: Songs of John Prine, Vol. 2 – Various artists Geist – Shannon Lay Ignorance – The Weather Station The Way Back Home – Aisha Badru	Infinite Granite – Deafheaven 10 Babymetal Budokan – Babymetal Distant Populations – Quicksand Eternal Blue – Spiritbox Radical – Every Time I Die
Best Hip-Hop/Rap Record	Best Jazz Record
Sometimes I Might Be Introvert – Little Simz Broken Hearts and Beauty Sleep – Mykki Blanco By the Time I Get to Phoenix – Injury Reserve Elephant in the Room – Mick Jenkins Off the Yak – Young M.A "Your Heart" – Joyner Lucas & J. Cole	Talk Memory – BadBadNotGood The American Negro – Adrian Younge Daring Mind – Jihye Lee Orchestra "Qadir" (BadBadNotGood Remix) – Nick Hakim Septet – John Carroll Kirby Space 1.8 – Nala Sinephro
Best Latin Record	Best Outlier Record
Far In – Helado Negro El Alimento – Cimafunk Kick II – Arca La Cruzada – Alejandro Escovedo Looking Back – Los Retros Una Rosa – Xenia Rubinos	Fatigue – L'Rain Black Encyclopedia of the Air – Moor Mother Inside (The Songs) – Bo Burnham Colourgrade – Tirzah Entertainment, Death – Spirit of the Beehive
Best Pop Record	Best Punk Record
Collapsed in Sunbeams – Arlo Parks Ashlyn – Ashe How Long Do You Think It's Gonna Last? – Big Red Machine KIDS – Noga Erez WINK – CHAI	"Racist, Sexist Boy" (Live at Los Angeles Public Library) – The Linda Lindas Comfort to Me – Amyl and the Sniffers Let Me Do One More – Illuminati Hotties The Mutt's Nuts – Chubby and the Gang Spare Ribs – Sleaford Mods
Best R&B Record	Best Re-Issue
Mood Valiant – Hiatus Kaiyote Alpha – Charlotte Day Wilson Deacon – Serpentwithfeet Jaime (Reimagined) – Brittany Howard Last Year Was Weird, Vol. 3 – Tkay Maidza Private Space – Durand Jones & The Indications	Kid A Mnesia – Radiohead 77-81 – Gang of Four Buena Vista Social Club (25th Anniversary Edition) – Buena Vista Social Club The Golden Age of Apocalypse (Ten Year Anniversary Edition) – Thundercat The Good, the Bad, and the Funky – Tom Tom Club Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space – Spiritualized
Best Rock Record	Best Spiritual Record
Crawler – Idles Capitol Cuts (Live at Studio A) – Black Pumas The Comeback Special – The The Drunk Tank Pink – Shame Sympathy for Life – Parquet Courts	"I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free" – The Blind Boys of Alabama featuring Béla Fleck "Don't Worry Bout It" – Wande featuring Porsha Love Front Porch Singin' – The Oak Ridge Boys Mercy – Natalie Bergman O Come, All Ye Faithful – Hiss Golden Messenger
Best Sync Usage	Best World Record
"I Know the End" – Phoebe Bridgers for Mare of Easttown (Episode 6) "Caravan of Fools" – John Prine for Yellowstone (Season 4, Episode 3) "Chaise Longue" – Wet Leg for Gossip Girl (Season 1, Episode 5) "Colors" – Black Pumas for the Concrete Cowboy trailer "Hello" – Adele for NFL/Tom Brady's Return "She's a Rainbow" – The Rolling Stones for Ted Lasso (Season 2, Episode 5) "Zombie" – Fela Kuti for the Gucci 100 promo campaign	Afrique Victime – Mdou Moctar João Donato JID007 – João Donato Legacy+ – Femi Kuti and Made Kuti The Return of Pachyman – Pachyman Yol – Altın Gün
Breakthrough Artist/Release	Creative Packaging
Wet Leg – "Chaise Longue" Black Country, New Road – For the First Time Girl in Red – If I Could Make It Go Quiet Japanese Breakfast – Jubilee Mdou Moctar – Afrique Victime	Japanese Breakfast – Jubilee Buzzcocks – Complete UA Singles 1977-1980 Erroll Garner – Liberation in Swing: Centennial Collection Fela Kuti – Box Set #5 Co-Curated by Chris Martin & Femi Kuti Gang of Four – 77-81 Gary Numan – 45x15 The Singles Collection 1978-1983
Independent Champion	Label of the Year (Big)
Bandcamp FUGA Light in the Attic Distribution Redeye Worldwide SoundExchange	Matador Records Mom + Pop Music ATO Records Merge Records Ninja Tune Polyvinyl Record Co. Third Man Records
Label of the Year (Medium)	Label of the Year (Small)
Sacred Bones Records City Slang Hopeless Records New West Records Saddle Creek Records Yep Roc Records	Oh Boy Records Don Giovanni Records Innovative Leisure Sargent House Sundazed Music
Marketing Genius	Video of the Year
Japanese Breakfast (Dead Oceans) – Jubilee Bicep (Ninja Tune) – Isles Death Row Records – Death Row Records 30th Anniversary Eyedress (Lex Records) – Mulholland Drive Helado Negro (4AD) – Helado Negro Ice Cream Tricycle King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard (ATO Records) – Official Bootlegger Series	Wet Leg – "Chaise Longue" Danny Elfman – "True" Idles – "Car Crash" Japanese Breakfast – "Savage Good Boy" Sharon Van Etten & Angel Olsen – "Like I Used To" Yves Tumor – "Jackie"
Best Live/Livestream Act	Special awards[4]
Mdou Moctar – Live at the Niger River Amyl and the Sniffers – Live on KEXP at Home Black Pumas – "Colors" at Celebrating America Japanese Breakfast – "Be Sweet" at The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit – "Driver 8" Live from Athens, Georgia St. Vincent – "At the Holiday Party" at the Austin City Limits Music Festival	Excellence in advocacy – Dionne Warwick Congressional independent music guardian – Congresswoman Linda Sánchez (D-CA) Innovation in sustainability – IMPALA Sustainability Task Force

Multiple nominations

Nominees with more than two nominations.^[5]

Artists

Nominations	Artist
7	Japanese Breakfast
3	Black Pumas
	Cautious Clay
	Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit
	Mdou Moctar
	Wet Leg
2	Amyl and the Sniffers
	Arca
	Arlo Parks
	BadBadNotGood
	Brittany Howard
	Dawn Richard
	Dry Cleaning
	Fela Kuti
	Gang of Four
	Girl in Red
	Helado Negro
	Hiss Golden Messenger
	Idles
	Low
	Snail Mail

Record labels

Nominations	Record label
12	ATO Records
9	Dead Oceans
8	Matador Records
7	Merge Records
6	Ninja Tune
	Thirty Tigers
5	4AD
	Domino Recording Co.
	XL Recordings
4	AWAL
	Epitaph Records
	Oh Boy Records
	Partisan Records
	Sub Pop
3	Anti-
	BMG
	Cautious Clay
	City Slang
	Hopeless Records
	Mom + Pop Music
	[PIAS]
	Saddle Creek Records
	Transgressive Records
	Warp
2	Brainfeeder
	Fat Possum Records
	INgrooves
	Innovative Leisure
	Jagjaguwar
	Jazz Is Dead
	Knitting Factory Records
	Light in the Attic Records
	New West Records
	Rough Trade Records
	Sargent House
	Single Lock Records
	Southeastern Records
	Stones Throw Records
	Third Man Records
	Yep Roc Records