1. Baroque Betty (Bettreena Jaeger), Instagram.com/baroque_betty.

2. Halie Loren, HalieLoren.com.

3. Amiia Nectar, Instagram.com/amiianectar.

After landing in the top three for many years, Bettreena “Betty” Jaeger takes first place in the Best Singer-Songwriter category, and if you’ve ever heard her darkly beautiful indie folk songs, you know the honor is a long time coming. Over the years, she’s lent her haunting voice to several projects in town, mostly recently Baroque Betty, featuring Jaeger’s singing voice against acoustic guitar and luxuriant string arrangements. Jaeger’s lyrics, she says, “are written with the whimsy of literary antiquity, with themes of grief, grit and dreamlike dissociation from a sordid reality.” And she describes her sound ranging from “organic minimalism” to “swooping orchestral ballads.” Baroque Betty aside, Jaeger sometimes performs solo under her own name or with The Wax Poetry Revue burlesque and variety show, which she produces at various venues in town and around the state. To stay up to date, search Baroque Betty on social media or email BaroqueBetty@gmail.com. On winning Best Singer-Songwriter, Jaeger says, “I feel honored by our community for recognizing me for the title in the category!”