Buffy Sainte-Marie asks 'Where are the women?' among 2016 Juno nominees

Despite winning the Polaris Prize and earningthree 2016 Juno nominations for her latest record,Power in the Blood, legendary artistBuffySainte-Marieis calling out the industry awards for what she says is alack of female nominees.

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"Where are the women? Hello? There aren't a whole lot of women there," she said of the 2016 Junos.

"What? All the other women who are making records, their records sucked? What?" she asked.

"The industry awards aren't what the public thinks they are. They're kind of the record companies giving each other awards, and making great shows that everybody loves.

"I'm not putting it down at all, but you shouldn't expect it to be fair, or free of influence," she said.

For half a century,Sainte-Mariehas written, sung, and spoken about controversialpolitical and environmental issues.

That was certainly the case when she sat down withCBC'sRob Brown for an interview ahead of her Thursday performance in Calgary atJunoFestIndigenous Showcase.

After pointing to the lack of female Juno nominees, Sainte-Mariehurledsharp remarks at the oilsandsindustry,before expressing optimism about the future of Aboriginal reconciliation in Canada.

Watch the entire interview above.