Junos
The 2024 Juno Awards looked to the future of Canadian music, while also honoring its history.A quartet of acts who’ve had major breakthroughs this year won the major awards given out on the CBC-televised broadcast on Sunday night (March 24) live from Halifax, Nova Scotia.Punjabi-Canadian global star Karan Aujla won the TikTok Fan Choice award, the only fan-chosen award of the ceremony. “Sometimes I can’t believe I’m that same kid who lost my parents when I was in India, made my way to Canada, and now I’m here!” said the B.C.-based artist, one of Billboard Canada’s inaugural cover stars. “If you are dreaming, make sure you dream big.”Charlotte Cardin won album of the year for her album 99 Nights. The 2023 album has propelled the Montreal-based artist to new crossover heights, hitting No. 3 on the Billboard Canadian Albums chart, while its popular single “Confetti” reached the top 10 of the Canadian Hot 100 and spent 35 weeks on the chart. It also earned her first American chart hit, and it is currently on the Adult Pop Airplay chart. Cardin later performed the infectious earworm while actual confetti rained from the ceiling.The Beaches, meanwhile, won group of the year. Accepting the award from Nova Scotia’s own Anne Murray, who holds the record for most Junos ever with 25, the Toronto band dedicated their speech to the next generation of rockers. “To all the young girls watching, go start bands with your best friends!” They later closed the festivities with a rendition of their major breakthrough single “Blame Brett.”Both Cardin and The Beaches won awards at the 2024 Juno Opening Night Awards the night before (March 23) for pop album of the year and rock album of the year, respectively.In a white fur cape, TALK had a rock star moment performing his epic single “Run Away to Mars,” which went to No. 1 on the Adult Alternative Airplay chart last year. The Ottawa-born artist, who’s had over 400 million global streams, later took home the award for breakthrough artist of the year. In his speech, he talked about the importance of arts funding, just after Canadian Heritage Minister Pascale St.-Onge announced the government would increase the Canadian Music Fund.A number of the night’s performances motioned toward the increasingly diverse and global future of Canadian music. Dressed in a spiffy white outfit with a four backup dancers in red, Aujla performed early on, playing pop hits “Admiring You” and “Softly.” Both came from his album Making Memories, which made history as the highest-charting Punjabi debut ever on the Canadian Albums chart. Ikky, who made the album with Aujla, acted as hype man on an elevated platform.In the BillboardPunjabi Wave cover story, AP Dhillon talked about his performance at the 2023 Junos ceremony and how he lobbied to ensure majorly popular Punjabi music would have a prolonged platform at the awards. Evidently, they’ve kept their word.This year’s Junos also had the most Indigenous nominees in award history. Anita Landback, Tanas Sylliboy, Sarah Prosper set the stage with a land acknowledgment that intersected with a performance by Juno winner Jeremy Dutcher in Wolastoqey, who then joined in a duet with Elisapie on an Inuktitut version of Blondie’s “Heart of Glass.” Along with Aujla and others, it meant performances featured at least six different languages, including English and French.The Junos has struggled with star power in recent years — Drake has boycotted the last half decade, while chart-topper Tate McRae was not in attendance to accept her two awards this year — they have made up for it with improved representation of what makes Canadian music unique.This year, they also paid tribute to the country’s music history.The ceremony was hosted by pop star Nelly Furtado, who opened the ceremony with a rapid-fire medley of her multiple decades of hits: “Say It Right,” “Maneater,” “Promiscuous,” “Give It To Me,” “I’m Like A Bird” — all from the 2000s and her new one with Dom Dolla, “Eat Your Man.”Kardinal Offishall inducted “our rap Prime Minister” Maestro Fresh Wes into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame. The hip-hop hero had the first Canadian rap record to ever chart on the Billboard Hot 100 with “Let Your Backbone Slide,” was the first winner of the rap album of the year at the 1991 Junos for Symphony in Effect, and is currently amidst a wave of recognition for his place in the country’s music history. A pre-taped video featured contributions from this year’s winner, TOBi, legacy Canadian artists like Snow and American legends like Chuck D of Public Enemy. “Now, this music we love won’t ever be underestimated,” he said. He later performed a medley of his hits, including “Backbone.”A special performance honoured a handful of Canadian legends who died this year. Neo-classical Quebecois artist Alexandra Streliski paid tribute to Karl Tremblay of Les Cowboys Fringants with an instrumental piano performance. Then Allison Russell, Aysanabee, William Prince, Shawnee Kish, Logan Staats, Julian Taylor all joined together for beautiful renditions of Gordon Lightfoot’s “If You Could Read My Mind” and The Band’s “The Weight” for the late Robbie Robertson.And actor Elliot Page presented the humanitarian award to Tegan and Sara, stressing the importance of the Canadian Quin sisters’ Tegan and Sara Foundation’s important work for young queer people at a time when the rights of 2SLGBTQ+ people are under threat, including from the Alberta government. “If the world were not so hostile to 2SLGBTQ+ we would see ourselves purely as musicians,” they said, adding “we love being gay. So gay.”Here’s our report on all the winners from Saturday’s Opening Night Juno Awards.Here are the nominees in the categories that were presented on the live telecast, with winners checked.
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TikTok Juno Fan Choice
Charlotte Cardin, Cult Nation*The Orchard
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Daniel Caesar, Republic*Universal
DVBBS, Ultra*Sony
Josh Ross, Universal
WINNER: Karan Aujla, Warner
Shubh, Mass Appeal*The Orchard
Tate McRae, RCA*Sony
The Weeknd, XO*Universal
ThxSoMch, Elektra*Warner
Walk off the Earth, Golden Carrot*The Orchard
Album of the Year
Néo-Romance, Alexandra Stréliski, Secret City*F.A.B.
WINNER: 99 Nights, Charlotte Cardin, Cult Nation*The Orchard
NEVER ENOUGH, Daniel Caesar, Republic*Universal
Mirror, Lauren Spencer Smith, Universal
Lord of the Flies & Birds & Bees, TALK, Capitol*Universal
Group of the Year
Arkells, Arkells Music*Universal
Loud Luxury, Armada*Sony
Nickelback, BMG*Warner/ADA
WINNER: The Beaches, AWAL*Independent
Walk off the Earth, Golden Carrot*The Orchard
Breakthrough Artist of the Year
Connor Price, Independent
Karan Aujla, Warner
LU KALA, LVK/Amigo*AWAL
Shubh, Inrependent
WINNER: TALK, Capitol*Universal
This article originally appeared in Billboard Canada.
Tate McRae won both major awards she was nominated for at the 2024 Juno Opening Night Awards, which was livestreamed from the Halifax Convention Centre on Saturday (March 23). The Calgary-born breakout superstar continued her big year both in Canada and internationally, one that included a major Billboard chart hit and appearing on the cover of Billboard. She won single of the year for “greedy” and artist of the year, though the California-based singer was not in attendance to accept either award.
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McRae performed at last year’s ceremony and was nominated for five 2023 awards but didn’t win any of them, but 2024 brought her to even bigger heights with the release of her album Think Later. She’s also nominated for the TikTok Juno Fan Choice Award on the main Juno Awards telecast on Sunday (March 24), which gives her the chance to win four this year.
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Several breakout Canadian stars earned accolades at the Opening Night Awards. According to Allan Reid, President & CEO of the Juno Awards, 2024 had the most submissions in Juno Awards history, which led to 90 first-time nominees.
Aysanabee won for both songwriter of the year and alternative album of the year for Hear and Now, and talked about his rags-to-riches journey. “I grew up in a trailer in North Ontario without electricity or running water,” he said. “And now I’m here.”
Until recently, it was rare for Indigenous musicians to win Junos outside of the Indigenous category, but that’s begun to change as First Nations artists have made a major impact in the country’s music industry. Aysanabee shouted out Amanda Rheume and ShoShona Kish, who founded the female and Indigenous-owned label Ishkodé Records. He recognized that this was the most Indigenous artists who had ever been nominated, and invited them all to stand up.
Despite his two wins, he actually lost in the contemporary Indigenous artist or group of the year category to Quebec’s Elisapie, whose album Inuktitut reimagines classic pop and rock hits in the title language. Peguis First Nation singer-songwriter William Prince’s Stand in the Joy won for contemporary roots album of the year.
The Beaches and Charlotte Cardin both had their first American chart hits since last year’s Junos, and both won major awards this year. The Beaches won for rock album of the year for Blame My Ex, while Cardin won for pop album of the year for 99 Nights. The Montreal-based Cardin led all artists for most nominations this year and will have a chance to win two more on Sunday for the popular-voted fan choice and for the year’s biggest award, album of the year. “This is so cool!” she said, accepting the award.
New West won for breakthrough group of the year and joked that they were a “very very famous TikTok band.” Co-hosts Aba Amuquandoh and Damhnait Doyle, both CBC personalities, earlier commented that being an artist in 2024 often meant becoming a TikTok star or being rediscovered by a new generation, but that Canadians “punch above our weight” because of both hustle and support from government arts funding. That’s under the microscope in the industry right now during an updating of the Broadcasting Act. The event also recognized this year’s Walt Grealis Special Achievement Award to music executive, author and lawyer Chip Sutherland, one of the architects of the Radio Starmaker Fund, which helps launch emerging Canadian artists with support from radio.
Winning electronic album of the year for INFINITY CLUB, Bambii talked about the unparalleled strength of Toronto’s underground scene, “the real Toronto,” and implored journalists and industry stakeholders to “do your research” and dig deeper.
Several Juno winners have also done well in the U.S. market. R&B star SZA won for international album of the year for SOS, while Shawn Everett won for both producer of the year and recording engineer of the year for his work with Miley Cyrus and Brittany Howard. Daniel Caesar won in the contemporary R&B recording of the year category for Never Enough, while long-running singer-songwriter Feist won adult alternative album of the year for Multitudes. And Nashville-based Allison Russell’s video and its director Ethan Tobman won music video of the year for “Demons.”
A total of 42 awards were presented in rapid-fire succession at the Opening Night Awards. Performers included Aqyila, LU KALA, Begonia, Jah’Mila and Lili-Ann De Francesco.
Four more awards will be presented on the televised broadcast on Sunday night at 8 p.m. ET on CBC TV, CBC Gem, CBC Radio One, CBC Music, CBC Listen, and globally at CBCMusic.ca/junos and CBC Music’s Facebook, YouTube and Twitter pages.
Here’s the complete list of winners at the 2024 Juno Opening Night Awards.
Single of the Year
“Confetti,” Charlotte Cardin, Cult Nation*The Orchard
“Always,” Daniel Caesar, Republic*Universal
“Pretty Girl Era,” LU KALA, LVK/Amigo Records*AWAL
“A Little Bit Happy,” TALK, Capitol*Universal
WINNER: “greedy,” Tate McRae, RCA*Sony
International Album of the Year
Gettin’ Old, Luke Combs, River House/Columbia*Sony
HEROES & VILLAINS, Metro Boomin, Boominati*Universal
One Thing At A Time, Morgan Wallen, Big Loud/Republic*Universal
WINNER: SOS, SZA, Top Dawg/RCA*Sony
1989 (Taylor’s Version), Taylor Swift, Taylor Swift*Universal
Artist of the Year
Charlotte Cardin, Cult Nation*The Orchard
Daniel Caesar, Republic*Universal
Lauren Spencer Smith, Universal
Shania Twain, Republic*Universal
WINNER: Tate McRae, RCA*Sony
Breakthrough Group of the Year
Busty and the Bass, Arts & Crafts*Universal
Crash Adams, Warner
Good Kid, Good People*The Orchard
Men I Trust, Independent
WINNER: New West, Republic*Universal
Songwriter of the Year
Allison Russell, Publisher: PO GIRL MUSIC / CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING
WINNER: Aysanabee, Publisher: SELF PUBLISHED
Charlotte Cardin, Jason Brando & Lubalin, Publisher: BIG BOY ED
Nicholas Durocher & Connor Riddell, Publisher: SUMMER CAMP MUSIC PUBLISHING LTD. / ARTHAUS MEDIA INC. / PEER MUSIC CANADA INC.
William Prince, Publisher: SELF PUBLISHED
Country Album of the Year
The Compass Project – South Album, Brett Kissel, Big Star*Universal
Right Round Here, Dean Brody, Starseed*Stem
Do It Anyway, Jade Eagleson, Starseed*Stem
WINNER: Ahead Of Our Time, James Barker Band, RECORDS/Columbia*Sony
Spillin’ My Truth, Tyler Joe Miller, MDM*Universal
Adult Alternative Album of the Year
Powder Blue, Begonia, Birthday Cake*The Orchard
WINNER: Multitudes, Feist, Universal
Are We Good, Hayden, Arts & Crafts*Universal
Motewolonuwok, Jeremy Dutcher, Secret City*F.A.B.
Revolution, Shawnee Kish, Amelia*Symphonic
Alternative Album of the Year
WINNER: Here and Now, Aysanabee, Ishkōdé*Universal
Dizzy, Dizzy, Royal Mountain*Universal
To Learn, Leith Ross, Republic*Universal
See You In The Dark, Softcult, Easy Life*The Orchard
Lord of the Flies & Birds & Bees, TALK, Capitol*Universal
Pop Album of the Year
WINNER: 99 Nights, Charlotte Cardin, Cult Nation*The Orchard
Mirror, Lauren Spencer Smith, Universal
Saturn Return, Rêve, 31 East*Universal
Queen Of Me, Shania Twain, Republic*Universal
Lost In Translation, Valley, Universal
Rock Album of the Year
Fearless, Crown Lands, Universal
Formentera II, Metric, Metric Music*Thirty Tigers/The Orchard
WINNER: Blame My Ex, The Beaches, AWAL*Independent
Pretty Monster, The Blue Stones, MNRK*Outside
Glory, The Glorious Sons, TGS*Warner
Vocal Jazz Album of the Year
Songwriter, Alex Bird & Ewen Farncombe, Independent
You’re Alike, You Two, Caity Gyorgy & Mark Limacher, La Reserve*Independent/The Orchard
Little Bit a’ Love, Denielle Bassels, Independent
WINNER: Our Roots Run Deep, Dominique Fils-Aimé, Ensoul*F.A.B./Believe
Your Requests, Laila Biali, Empress*Independent/Believe
Jazz Album of the Year (Solo)
WINNER: Day Moon, Christine Jensen, Justin Time*F.A.B./Nettwerk
Walls Made of Glass, Gentiane MG, TPR*Propagande/A-Train
Sonic Bouquet, Jocelyn Gould, Independent
Twelve, Noam Lemish, TPR*Independent/A-Train
The South Detroit Connection, Russ Macklem, TQM*Independent/IDLA
Jazz Album of the Year (Group)
Migrations, Allison Au with the Migrations Ensemble, Independent
Septology-The Black Forest Session, Canadian Jazz Collective, HGBS Blue*MIG/Proper/UMV/MVD/Independent
WINNER: Cry Me A River, Hilario Duran and His Latin Jazz Big Band, Alma*Universal
Recent History, Mike Murley & Mark Eisenman Quartet, Cornerstone*Outside/The Orchard
Convergence, Nick Maclean Quartet feat. Brownman Ali, Browntasauras/Independent
Instrumental Album of the Year
Néo-Romance, Alexandra Stréliski, Secret City* F.A.B.
WINNER: When we were that what wept for the sea, Colin Stetson, 52 Hz
Calibrating Friction, Haralabos [Harry] Stafylakis, New Amsterdam*Naxos
Fourth Album, Markus Floats, Constellation*Secretly
Tesseract, Meredith Bates, Phonometrograph*Independent
Francophone Album of the Year
Zayon, FouKi, Disques 7ième, Ciel*Believe
Dans la seconde, Karkwa, Simone*Sony/The Orchard
WINNER: En concert avec l’Orchestre symphonique de Montréal (sous la direction du chef Simon Leclerc), Les Cowboys Fringants & l’Orchestre symphonique de Montréal, Les Disques de La Tribu*Propagande/Believe
À boire deboutte, Salebarbes, Productions Grand V.*The Orchard
Non conventionnel Souldia, Disques 7ième Ciel*Independent/Believe
Children’s Album of the Year
Big Words, ABC Singsong, Independent/The Orchard
Going Back: Remembered and Remixed Family Folk Songs, Vol. 1, Ginalina, Independent
Love-a-By, Splash’N Boots, Independent/The Orchard
WINNER: Welcome to the Flea Circus, The Swinging Belles, Independent
Maestro Fresh Wes Presents: Young Maestro, Stick To Your Vision For Young Athletes, Young Maestro, Independent
Classical Album of the Year (Solo Artist)
Infinite Voyage, Barbara Hannigan, Alpha Classics*Naxos/Independent
WINNER: Nielsen: Violin Concerto, Symphony No. 4, James Ehnes, Chandos*Naxos/The Orchard
Fauré: Nocturnes & Barcarolles, Marc-André Hamelin, Hyperion*Universal
De Hartmann: Cello Concerto, Matt Haimovitz, Pentatone/Naxos
mouvance, Suzie LeBlanc, Centrediscs*Canadian Music Centre/Naxos
Classical Album of the Year (Large Ensemble)
Bekah Simms: Bestiaries, Cryptid Ensemble, Ensemble Contemporain de Montreal, Centrediscs*Canadian Music Centre/Naxos
WINNER: Maxime Goulet: Symphonie de la tempête de verglas, Orchestre classique de Montréal, conducted by/dirigé par Jacques Lacombe, ATMA*Universal
Sibelius 3 & 4, Orchestre Métropolitain, conducted by/dirigé par Yannick Nézet-Séguin, ATMA*Universal
Mahler: Symphony No. 5, Orchestre Symphonique De Montreal, conducted by/dirigé par Rafael Payare, Pentatone*Naxos
Rachmaninoff: Symphonies Nos. 2 & 3; Isle of the Dead, The Philadelphia Orchestra, conducted by/dirigé par Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Deutsche Grammophon*Universal
Classical Album of the Year
Mythes, Andrew Armstrong & James Ehnes, Onyx*The Orchard
Portrait: Alex Baranowski, Angèle Dubeau & La Pietà, Analekta*Naxos/The Orchard
Portrait, Cheng² Duo, Centrediscs*Canadian Music Centre/Naxos
WINNER: Il Ponte di Leonardo, Constantinople, Glossa*Naxos
Basta parlare!, Les Barocudas, ATMA*Universal
Classical Composition of the Year
Simulacra, Amy Brandon, Independent
Portrait of an Imaginary Sibling, Dinuk Wijeratne, Centrediscs*Canadian Music Centre/Naxos
…and the Higher Leaves of the Trees Seemed to Shimmer in the Last of the Sunlight’s Lingering Touch of Them…, Emilie Cecilia LeBel, Redshift
Shāhīn-nāmeh, for Voice and Orchestra, Iman Habibi, Analekta*Naxos/The Orchard
WINNER: Don’t Throw Your Head in Your Hands, Nicole Lizée, Redshift
Rap Album of the Year
bag or die, bbno$, Independent*Stem
Spin the Globe, Connor Price, Independent
Crying Crystals, Haviah Mighty, Mighty Gang*Foundation Media
KAYTRAMINÉ, KAYTRAMINÉ, Independent
WINNER: PANIC, TOBi, RCA*Sony
Dance Recording of the Year
“Eat Your Man,” Dom Dolla & Nelly Furtado, Three Six Zero*Sony
“Crew Thang,” DVBBS, Jeremih & Sk8, Ultra*Sony
WINNER: “Need Your Love,” Felix Cartal & Karen Harding, Physical Presents*Fontana North
“I Go Dancing” (feat. Ella Henderson), Frank Walker, Ultra*Sony
“Next To You” (feat. Kane Brown), Loud Luxury & DVBBS, Armada*Sony
Contemporary R&B Recording of the Year
“For the Better,” Aqyila, Sony
WINNER: “Never Enough,” Daniel Caesar, Republic*Universal
“Heartbreak Hill,” Jon Vinyl, Vinyl*Foundation Media
“When It Blooms,” Nonso Amadi, Universal
FACETS, Shay Lia, AWAL
Reggae Recording of the Year
“Stir This Thing,” Ammoye, Donsome*Ingrooves/Virgin
“Feel Like Home,” Exco Levi, Penthouse*High Priest/ONErpm
“Roots Girl,” Jah’Mila, Independent
WINNER: “Dread,” Diamond & Finn, Independent
“Rush Dem” (feat. 4Korners, Haviah Mighty), Omega Mighty, Independent*Foundation Media
Contemporary Indigenous Artist or Group of the Year
Here and Now, Aysanabee, Ishkōdé*Universal
Scream, Holler & Howl, Blue Moon Marquee, Independent*IDLA
WINNER: Inuktitut, Elisapie, Bonsound*Sony/The Orchard
Revolution, Shawnee Kish, Amelia*Symphonic
Bekka Ma’iingan, Zoon, Paper Bag*Fontana North
Contemporary Roots Album of the Year
The Returner, Allison Russell, Fantasy*Universal
We Will Never Be The Same, Good Lovelies, Outside
Beyond The Reservoir, Julian Taylor, Howling Turtle*Warner
A Light in the Attic, Logan Staats, Red Music Rising*Believe
WINNER: Stand in the Joy, William Prince, Six Shooter*The Orchard
Traditional Roots Album of the Year
Paint Horse, Benjamin Dakota Rogers, Good People*The Orchard
WINNER: The Breath Between, David Francey, Independent
Roses, Jackson Hollow, Mountain Fever*Syntax Creative
Second Hand, James Keelaghan, Borealis*Universal/IDLA
Resilience, Morgan Toney, Ishkōdé*Universal
Blues Album of the Year
SoulFunkn’BLUES, Blackburn Brothers, Electro-Fi*Isotope Music/The Orchard
WINNER: Scream, Holler & Howl, Blue Moon Marquee, Independent/IDLA
One Step Closer, Brandon Isaak, Independent
The Big Bottle of Joy, Matt Andersen, Sonic*Warner
Gettin’ Together, Michael Jerome Browne, Borealis*Universal/IDLA
Contemporary Christian/Gospel Album of the Year
Glory To God, Brooke Nicholls, Independent
ALL YE LEPERS, Joshua Leventhal, Independent
WINNER: Arrow, K-Anthony, Independent
Where I’m Meant to Be, Stirling John, Independent
Alive, Tuzee, Independent
Global Music Album of the Year
Donte sann yo, Bel and Quinn, Independent
Kizavibe, Kizaba, Disques Nuits d’Afrique*Believe
SMS for Location Vol. 5, Moonshine, Moonshine/FORESEEN*MNRK
WINNER: Okantomi, OKAN, Lulaworld*Symphonic
Soap Box, Waahli, Wyzah Musk*Lemont
Jack Richardson Producer of the Year
Hill Kourkoutis
Jason Brando, Lubalin, Mathieu Sénéchal & Sam Avant
Joel Stouffer
WINNER: Shawn Everett
“Used To Be Young” (co-producers/coproducteurs Michael Pollack, Miley Cyrus)
ENDLESS SUMMER VACATION – Miley Cyrus Columbia*Sony
“What Now” (co-producer/coproducteur Brittany Howard)
WHAT NOW – Brittany Howard Island*Universal
Wondagurl
Recording Engineer of the Year
Denis Tougas
George Seara
Matty Green
Serban Ghenea
WINNER: Shawn Everett
“Used To Be Young” (co-producers/coproducteurs Michael Pollack, Miley Cyrus)
ENDLESS SUMMER VACATION – Miley Cyrus Columbia*Sony
“What Now” (co-producer/coproducteur Brittany Howard)
WHAT NOW – Brittany Howard Island*Universal
Album Artwork of the Year
Carolyne De Bellefeuille (Art Director/Directeur artistique), Jessica Ledoux (Designer & Illustrator/Concepteur & Illustrateur), Mali Savaria-Ille (Designer & Illustrator/Concepteur & Illustrateur), Veronique Lafortune (Designer & Illustrator/Concepteur & Illustrateur), Leeor Wild (Photographer/Photographe); INUKTITUT – Elisapie, Bonsound*Sony/The Orchard
Heather Goodchild (Art Director/Directeur artistique), Colby Richardson (Designer/Concepteur), Colin Fletcher (Illustrator/Illustrateur), Sara Melvin (Photographer/Photographe), MULTITUDES – Feist, Universal
Kit King (Illustrator), Vanessa Heins (Photographer/Photographe), THE LOVE STILL HELD ME NEAR – City and Colour, Dine Alone*The Orchard
WINNER: Nicolas Lemieux (Art Director/Directeur artistique), Mykaël Nelson (Designer & Illustrator/Concepteur & Illustrateur), Albert Zablit (Photographer/Photographe), RIOPELLE SYMPHONIQUE – Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, GSI*Independent
Quinton Nyce (Art Director/Directeur artistique), Brodie Metcalfe (Designer/Concepteur), Davis Graham (Illustrator/Illustrateur), Kaylee Smoke (Photographer/Photographe), I’M GOOD, HBU? – Snotty Nose Rez Kids, Independent*Fontana North
Music Video of the Year
“Of Woods and Seas,” Andrew De Zen, Alaskan Tapes, Nettwerk*Amped
WINNER: “Demons,” Ethan Tobman, Allison Russell, Fantasy*Universal
“onetwostep” (feat. juicelover), Jordan Clarke, des hume des hume*Independent
“DAMN RIGHT,” Sterling Larose, Snotty Nose Rez Kids, Distorted Muse*Fontana North
“feral canadian scaredy cat,” Sterling Larose & Zachary Vague, young friend Nettwerk
Electronic Album of the Year
WINNER: INFINITY CLUB, Bambii, Innovative Leisure*Red Eye
Birds, Bees, The Clouds & The Trees, Harrison, Last Gang*MNRK
Creatures of the Late Afternoon, Kid Koala, Envision*Amplified/Believe
Synthetic Season 2, Rich Aucoin, We Are Busy Bodies*Redeye
No Highs, Tim Hecker, Sunblind/Kranky*The Orchard
Metal/Hard Music Album of the Year
WINNER: As Gomorrah Burns, Cryptopsy, Nuclear Blast*AEC/Believe
Electric Sounds, Danko Jones, Sonic Unyon*Universal
Goliath, Kataklysm, Nuclear Blast*AEC/Believe
VOID, KEN mode, Artoffact*MVD/The Orchard
Morgöth, Tales, Voivod Century*Sony
Adult Contemporary Album of the Year
WINNER: Heavy Lifting, Amanda Marshall, Metatune*The Orchard
I Wish I Was Flawless, I’m Not, BANNERS, Nettwerk*Amped
To Be Loved, Vol. 1, Josh Sahunta, Independent*Believe
Run Where the Light Calls, Luca Fogale, Amelia*Symphonic
Wildflower, Steph La Rochelle, Independent
Comedy Album of the Year
Life of Leisure, Derek Seguin, Independent
Never Was, Graham Clark, Independent
WINNER: A Lylebility, Kyle Brownrigg, Independent
Sexiest Fish in the Lake, Laurie Elliott, Howl & Roar*Independent
SAP, Mae Martin, Independent*Netflix
Traditional R&B/Soul Recording of the Year
WINNER: “Hello,” Aqyila, Sony
“Unbreakable,” Jhyve, Independent
“Where To Find Me,” Katie Tupper, Arts & Crafts*Universal
“9 to 5,” Luna Elle, Hot Freestyle*Independent/Believe
“Real World,” RealestK, Columbia*Sony
Rap Single of the Year
“American Nightmare,” Belly, XO/Roc Nation*Universal
“Spinnin” (feat. Bens), Connor Price, Independent
“Honey Bun,” Haviah Mighty, Mighty Gang*Foundation Media
“Minimum Wage,” Pressa, RCA*Sony
WINNER: “Someone I Knew,” TOBi, Same Plate/RCA*Sony
Underground Dance Single of the Year
WINNER: “Call My Name,” BLOND:ISH, Warner
“Mad Mess,” DJ Karaba, DJ Karaba*The Orchard
“Could Be Wrong,” LOSTBOYJAY, Universal
“Eclipse,” Peach, Psychic Readings*One Eye Witness/Music Deli
“Concorde Groove,” Smalltown DJs, Fool’s Gold*Virgin Music
Traditional Indigenous Artist or Group of the Year
WINNER: Sing. Pray. Love., Joel Wood, Independent
LFS5, Nimkii & the Niniis, Independent
Mitòòdebi (For My Relatives), The Bearhead Sisters, Independent
Reverie, The Red River Ramblers, Independent
Drum Nation, Young Scouts, Independent
The death of Robbie Robertson on Wednesday (Aug. 9) has put a spotlight on The Band, the ground-breaking group in which he teamed with Rick Danko, Levon Helm, Garth Hudson and Richard Manuel. The Band was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1989 and received a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 1989. […]
By winning five Juno Awards this year, The Weeknd has upped his career total of Juno wins to 22. Only one artist in Juno history has won more awards: That’s the great Anne Murray, who has picked up 25 over the years.
Watching The Weeknd close in on Murray’s long-held record echoes the way Beyoncé closed in on – and this year surpassed – classical conductor Sir Georg Solti’s record as the all-time Grammy Award winner. Even if Murray’s record is eventually toppled, the fact she has held it so long speaks volumes. (The artists who are next up on the Juno leaderboard are also global superstars: Bryan Adams is in third place with 21 Junos, while Celine Dion is in fourth place with 20.)
Murray’s collection of Junos includes back-to-back awards for both album of the year and single of the year for 1980-81. She took the album awards with New Kind of Feeling and Anne Murray’s Greatest Hits, and the single prizes with “I Just Fall in Love Again” and “Could I Have This Dance.”
Murray was one of the top pop/country crossover artists of the 1970s and ’80s. She topped the Billboard Hot 100 once (with “You Needed Me” in 1978) and the Hot Country Songs 10 times. She won a Grammy for best female pop vocal performance with “You Needed Me” and for best female country vocal performance three times, with “Love Song,” “Could I Have This Dance” and “A Little Good News.”
Murray was best known for ballads, such as the exquisitely sad “Broken Hearted Me,” but she also had some midtempo hits, including covers of The Beatles’ sassy “You Won’t See Me” and The Monkees’ endearing “Daydream Believer.”
Murray also had a wonderfully dry sense of humor in concert. When a fan would yell out a request, she would counter with a dry “Not yet. First, I want to work you up to feverish pitch.”
Here are nine things to know about Anne Murray.
She made the top 10 on the Hot 100 with her first charted hit.
“Snowbird” made No. 8 in September 1970. It brought her two Grammy nominations – best contemporary vocal performance, female and best new artist. She lost both awards (to Dionne Warwick and the Carpenters, respectively), but she went on to win four Grammys. And she landed a performance slot on that first live Grammy telecast in March 1971, where she sang James Taylor’s song of the year nominee, “Fire and Rain.”
She had three Hot 100 hits with covers of Beatles songs.
She reached the chart with versions of the Fab Four’s “You Won’t See Me,” “Day Tripper” and “I’m Happy Just to Dance With You.” The acts were Capitol Records labelmates, though The Beatles broke up in 1970, just as Murray’s career took off.
Kenny Loggins wrote two of her biggest hits.
Loggins wrote “Danny’s Song,” which Murray took to No. 7 on the Hot 100 in April 1973. He co-wrote “Love Song,” which was a No. 12 hit for Murray in March 1974. Murray later had a country hit with Kenny’s cousin, Dave Loggins. Their collab, “Nobody Loves Me Like You Do,” topped Hot Country Songs in December 1984.
She is one of just four women to win Grammys in both pop and country solo vocal performance categories.
She followed Olivia Newton-John and Linda Ronstadt in accomplishing the feat, and preceded k.d. lang.
She prevailed over a strong field of nominees to win a Grammy for “You Needed Me.”
The other nominees for best pop vocal performance, female were Olivia Newton-John for “Hopelessly Devoted to You,” Donna Summer for “MacArthur Park,” Carly Simon for “You Belong to Me” and Barbra Streisand for her solo recording of “You Don’t Bring Me Flowers” (which was released before her duet version with Neil Diamond). So was Murray’s Grammy win a huge upset? Not at all: “You Needed Me” was the only single by a woman to receive a record of the year nomination that year. Murray competed with Billy Joel (who won), Bee Gees, Gerry Rafferty and Chuck Mangione.
She had one of the biggest hits from the Urban Cowboy soundtrack.
“Could I Have This Dance” topped the Hot Country Songs chart in November 1980 and reached No. 33 on the Hot 100. It was the third No. 1 country hit to emerge from the soundtrack, following Mickey Gilley’s remake of “Stand by Me” and Johnny Lee’s “Lookin’ for Love.” The soundtrack topped Top Country Albums for eight weeks. The soundtrack and the John Travolta/Debra Winger film didn’t exactly do for country music what Travolta’s Saturday Night Fever and the Bee Gees-dominated soundtrack had done for disco in 1977-78, but it got partway there. If Fever was a home-run as a cultural phenomenon, this was at least a base hit.
In 1984, she won both album of the year and single of the year at the CMA Awards.
She won both awards with “A Little Good News” and the album of the same name. It was her second single of the year nod, following “You Needed Me.”
She had a 1981 album with a title that was similar to that of a 2019 blockbuster.
The title of Murray’s 1981 album posed the philosophical question, Where Do You Go When You Dream. Nearly four decades later, the title of Billie Eilish’s debut album posed a similar question, When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? Sometimes great artists – even from different generations and genres – think alike.
Avril Lavigne, Lauren Spencer-Smith and Jessie Reyez are among the presenters set for the 2023 Juno Awards, which will air Monday, March 13. Reyez will also perform on the show, as will Nickelback, Tate McRae, Tenille Townes and more.
Lavigne, a nine-time Juno winner, is nominated for five more awards this year. Spencer-Smith is a three-time nominee.
This year’s show, hosted for the second year in a row by actor Simu Liu, will broadcast live from Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta.
The 2023 Junos will follow the Grammys’ lead and include a spotlight on the 50th anniversary of hip-hop. Kardinal Offishall, who had a top five hit on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2008 with “Dangerous” (featuring Akon), will co-host the celebration with Haviah Mighty, who last year became the first woman to win the Juno Award for rap album/EP of the year.
Performers in the hip-hop segment include four-time Juno winner Choclair, two-time Juno winner Maestro Fresh Wes, 2021 Juno winner TOBi, Toronto rap duo Dream Warriors and hip hop pioneer Michie Mee, with veteran entertainer DJ Mel Boogie spinning. The track was produced by recording artist Rich Kidd.
“The history of hip hop around the world is incredibly rich, with so many distinct voices contributing to the narrative,” Offishall said in a statement. “It’s an honour to be able to help tell this story through a distinctly Canadian lens and celebrate this important cultural milestone at The 2023 Juno Awards.”
Offishall, a four-time Juno winner and Global A&R at Def Jam Records, wrote and produced the segment with writer and actress Jemeni, with involvement from ADVANCE, Canada’s Black Music Business Collective and the Juno Rap Music Advisory Committee.
Actor Ryan Reynolds will make a virtual appearance to honor Nickelback for their contributions to Canadian music. The band is being inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame. Connor McDavid, NHL All-Star and Edmonton Oilers’ captain, will be on hand to honor the band in-person. Nickelback will perform a medley of their hits.
The show will air on Monday, March 13 at 6 PM MT/8 PM ET on CBC TV, CBC Radio One and CBC Music. The show will also stream live on CBC Gem, CBC Listen, globally at CBCMusic.ca/junos, and on CBC Music’s Facebook, Twitter and Youtube pages.
Tickets for the 2023 Juno Awards start at $49 and are available for purchase at www.ticketmaster.ca/junos, by phone and in-person at the Rogers Place box office.
For more information, visit CBCMusic.ca/junos.
Here are all the performers and presenters for the 2023 Juno Awards:
Performers
Alexisonfire
AP Dhillon
Banx & Ranx with Preston Pablo and Rêve
Jessie Reyez
Nickelback
Northern Cree with Aysanabee
Tate McRae
Tenille Townes
50th anniversary of hip-hop segment: Choclair, DJ Mel Boogie, Dream Warriors, Haviah Mighty, Kardinal Offishall, Maestro Fresh Wes, Michie Mee, TOBi.
Presenters
Avril Lavigne
Lauren Spencer-Smith
Andrew Phung
Jessie Reyez
KallMeKris
Pablo Rodriguez
Pierre Kwenders
Tyler Shaw
Nickelback lifetime achievement award segment: Ryan Reynolds, Connor McDavid
The Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the organization that bestows the Juno Awards, has defended its decision to nominate Arcade Fire for group of the year in light of accusations of sexual misconduct that have been levied against frontman Win Butler. The 2023 Juno nominations were announced on Tuesday, and the awards will be presented on March 13.
“We look at Arcade Fire’s nomination for group of the year as one for the entire band,” the Academy wrote in a statement to CBC Music. “While we take the allegations very seriously, in this situation we are also honouring the rest of the band for their success. We hope the allegations against Butler will not detract from the achievements of the other group members.”
The Junos are the Canadian equivalent of the Grammys, or the Brits in the U.K. Arcade Fire, which also includes Butler’s wife Régine Chassagne, Richard Reed Parry, Tim Kingsbury and Jeremy Gara, have previously won 11 Juno Awards, including a record-tying three awards for album of the year.
The nomination for group of the year is the band’s only Juno nod this year. By contrast, the band received four nominations in 2018, the year of its previous studio album, Everything Now. The band also received an honorary international achievement award that year.
Butler has faced controversy in recent months due to a series of investigations by the website Pitchfork in which five people accused him of sexual misconduct. The first report was published on Aug. 27. The alleged incidents took place between 2015 and 2020. (Within that time frame, in 2016, Arcade Fire was named humanitarian of the year at the Juno Awards.)
In response to the Pitchfork report, Butler released a lengthy statement which read in part: “I have had consensual relationships outside of my marriage. … I have connected with people in person, at shows, and through social media, and I have shared messages of which I am not proud. Most importantly, every single one of these interactions has been mutual and always between consenting adults. It is deeply revisionist, and frankly just wrong, for anyone to suggest otherwise.
“I have never touched a woman against her will, and any implication that I have is simply false. I vehemently deny any suggestion that I forced myself on a woman or demanded sexual favors. That simply, and unequivocally, never happened.
“While these relationships were all consensual, I am very sorry to anyone who I have hurt with my behavior. Life is filled with tremendous pain and error, and I never want to be part of causing someone else’s pain.”
In the aftermath of Pitchfork’s investigation, Feist canceled her planned appearances as a support act on an Arcade Fire tour through Europe and the U.K. Beck withdrew from opening for the band on a North American tour.
In a message shared to her Instagram account on Sept. 1, Feist said: “At a pub in Dublin, after rehearsing with my band, I read the same headline you did. We didn’t have any time to prepare for what was coming let alone a chance to decide not to fly across the ocean into the belly of this situation. This has been incredibly difficult for me and I can only imagine how much more difficult it’s been for the people who came forward. More than anything I wish healing to those involved.”
She also shared that the charges put her in an impossible position. “To stay on tour would symbolize I was either defending or ignoring the harm caused by Win Butler and to leave would imply I was the judge and jury.”
Beck withdrew from the planned North American tour in mid-October without providing a reason for his departure.
The band’s sixth studio album, We, debuted and peaked at No. 6 on the Billboard 200, breaking a string of three consecutive No. 1 albums by the band. It logged just two weeks on the chart, the briefest stay for any of the band’s albums.
We is vying for best alternative music album at this weekend’s Grammy Awards, but that nomination hasn’t stirred the same degree of controversy as the Juno nod has in the band’s home country. All six of the band’s studio albums have been nominated for best alternative music album. Only three other acts have received six or more nods in the category’s history. Björk leads with nine nods. Radiohead and Beck follow with eight.
Billboard reached out to both the Junos and the Grammys for additional comment.
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual assault, you can reach out to RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline at 800-656-4673 or chat at online.rainn.org 24/7 for confidential support.
The Weeknd is the top nominee for the 2023 Juno Awards, with six nods, including artist of the year, single of the year (“Sacrifice”), album of the year (Dawn FM) and songwriter of the year.
Avril Lavigne and Tate McRae follow with five nods each. NAV, Preston Pablo, Rêve and The Reklaws each received three nods.
McRae and Rêve are both set to perform on the Junos, which will be held March 13. Also set to perform on the show: Nickelback (the 2023 inductee into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame and a nominee for rock album of the year for Get Rollin’), Tenille Townes (a two-time nominee this year) and AP Dhillon.
Lavigne, The Weeknd, Lauren Spencer-Smith, Michael Bublé and Shawn Mendes are nominated for artist of the year. The Weeknd is a three-time winner in that category; Mendes has won twice; Bublé has won once.
All of those artists except Bublé are also nominated for Juno Fan Choice, a fan-voted award.
Mendes, who won three consecutive awards for single of the year from 2018-20, is nominated again in that category for “When You’re Gone.” The other nominees in that category are The Weeknd’s “Sacrifice,” Lavigne’s “Bite Me,” McRae’s “she’s all I wanna be” and Preston Pablo and Banx & Ranx’s “Flowers Need Rain.” The Weeknd is a two-time winner in the category; Lavigne has won once.
The nominees for album of the year are The Weeknd’s Dawn FM, Lavigne’s Love Sux, McRae’s i used to think I could fly, Ali Gatie’s Who Hurt You? and NAV’s Demons Protected by Angels. As with single of the year, The Weeknd is a two-time winner in this category; Lavigne has won once.
Taylor Swift has two of the five nominees for international album of the year. She is nominated for both Midnights and Red (Taylor’s Version). The other nominees in that category – the only one reserved for non-Canadian artists – are Ed Sheeran’s =, Harry Styles’ Harry’s House and Lil Nas X’s Montero.
The 2023 Juno Awards will be held March 13 at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta. The ceremony had originally been scheduled for March 12, but was pushed back a day to avoid competing with the Oscars. Actor Simu Liu, star of the 2021 Marvel Cinematic Universe film Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, is hosting for the second year in a row. Music manager Ron Sakamoto is slated to receive the Walt Grealis Special Achievement Award.
Here’s the complete list of 2023 Juno Award nominations.
Juno Fan Choice
Avril Lavigne, Warner
Lauren Spencer-Smith, Island/Republic*Universal
MacKenzie Porter, Big Loud*Independent
Preston Pablo, 31 East*Universal
Rêve, 31 East*Universal
Shawn Mendes, Island*Universal
Tate McRae, RCA*Sony
The Reklaws, Starseed*Independent
The Weeknd, XO*Universal
Tyler Shaw, Sony
Artist of the year
Avril Lavigne, Warner
Lauren Spencer-Smith, Island/Republic*Universal
Michael Bublé, Warner
Shawn Mendes, Island*Universal
The Weeknd, XO*Universal
Group of the year
Arcade Fire, Columbia*Sony
Arkells, Arkells Music*Universal
Billy Talent, Warner
Metric, Thirty Tigers
The Reklaws, Starseed*Independent
Single of the year
“Bite Me,” Avril Lavigne, Warner
“Flowers Need Rain,” Preston Pablo and Banx & Ranx, 31 East*Universal
“When You’re Gone,” Shawn Mendes, Island*Universal
“she’s all i wanna be,” Tate McRae, RCA*Sony
“Sacrifice,” The Weeknd, XO*Universal
Album of the year
Who Hurt You?, Ali Gatie, Warner
Love Sux, Avril Lavigne, Warner
Demons Protected by Angels, NAV, XO*Universal
i used to think i could fly, Tate McRae, RCA*Sony
Dawn FM, The Weeknd, XO*Universal
Music video of the year
“Fraud,” Emma Higgins, director; Jessie Reyez, Island*Universal
“Unholy,” Floria Sigismondi director; Sam Smith and Kim Petras, Capitol*Universal
“Have Mercy,” Karena Evans, director; Chlöe, Parkwood*Sony
“Different Than Before,” Mayumi Yoshida, director; Amanda Sum, Independent
“Remember Me for Me,” Sterling Larose, director; SonReal and Lily Moore, Black Box*Fontana North/Warner
International album of the year
=, Ed Sheeran, Warner
Harry’s House, Harry Styles, Columbia*Sony
Montero, Lil Nas X, Columbia*Sony
Midnights, Taylor Swift, Republic*Universal
Red (Taylor’s Version), Taylor Swift, Taylor Swift*Universal
Breakthrough artist of the year
Dax, Columbia*Sony
Devon Cole, Arista*Sony
Preston Pablo, 31 East*Universal
RealestK, Columbia*Sony
Rêve, 31 East*Universal
Breakthrough group of the year
Banx & Ranx, Universal
Harm & Ease, Cosmo Cat*Independent
Rare Americans, EMPIRE/Crooked City*AMPED
Tommy Lefroy, Independent*AWAL
Wild Rivers, Nettwerk*Amped
Songwriter of the year
Abel Tesfaye, publisher: XO Music Publishing/Kobalt Music Publishing
Faouzia, publisher: Faouzia Music/Kobalt Music Publishing
Tate McRae, publisher: T8 Entertainment Inc/Sony Music Publishing
Tenille Townes, publisher: Year of the Dog
TOBi, publisher: Oluwatobi Ajibolade Publishing
Jack Richardson producer of the year
Akeel Henry
Banx & Ranx
Kaytranada
Mike Wise
Murda Beatz
Recording engineer of the year
Derek Hoffman
George Seara
Gus van Go
Jason Dufour
Serban Ghenea
Pop album of the year
In the Meantime, Alessia Cara, Def Jam*Universal
Love Sux, Avril Lavigne, Warner
The Loneliest Time, Carly Rae Jepsen, 604*Warner
i used to think i could fly, Tate McRae, RCA*Sony
Dawn FM, The Weeknd, XO*Universal
Adult contemporary album of the year
Adventure Book, Francois, Klark Independent
Descendant, Jann Arden, Universal
He Sang She Sang, Marc Jordan & Amy, Sky Linus*Universal/IDLA
Higher, Michael Bublé, Warner
A Tyler Shaw Christmas, Tyler Shaw, Sony
Rock album of the year
Otherness, Alexisonfire, Dine Alone*The Orchard
Crisis Of Faith, Billy Talent, Warner
Get Rollin’, Nickelback, BMG*Warner/ADA
Outta Sight, The Sheepdogs, Warner
Explosions, Three Days Grace, RCA*Sony
Metal/hard music album of the year
Psychic Jailbreak, Cancer Bats, New Damage*The Orchard
Merciless Destruction, Get the Shot, New Damage*The Orchard
Paid In Full, Skull Fist, Atomic Fire*Fontana North/Warner
Synchro Anarchy, Voivod, Century*Sony
Thought Form Descent, Wake, Metal Blade*Sony
Adult Alternative album of the year
Born Losers, Altameda, Pheromone*Fontana North
The Garden, Basia Bulat, Secret City*F.A.B.
Being Somewhere, Dan Mangan, Arts & Crafts*Universal
Colder Streams, The Sadies, Dine Alone*The Orchard
How Is It That I Should Look at the Stars, The Weather Station, Next Door*Outside
Alternative album of the year
Blue Rev, Alvvays, Celsius Girls*Universal
Duality, Luna Li, AWAL
Sewn Back Together, OMBIIGIZI, Arts & Crafts*Universal
The Unraveling of Puptheband, PUP, Little Dipper*Universal
Tongues, Tanya Tagaq, Six Shooter*Universal
Dance recording of the year
“Afterglow,” Bob Moses and Kasablanca, Astralwerks*Universal
“Shinigami Eyes,” Grimes, Columbia*Sony
“These Nights,” Loud Luxury feat. Kiddo, Armada*Sony
“CTRL + ALT + DEL,” Rêve 31, East*Universal
“Spiral,” Rezz, RCA*Sony
Underground dance single of the year
“Debonair,” Bensley, mau5trap*Independent/AWAL
“Aye Aye,” Blond:Ish and Cameron Jack, Abracadabra*Above Board
“The Time Is (Now),” Fred Everything, Lazy Days*Prime Direct/Paradise
“I Knew Techno,” Greg Gow, Restructured*The Orchard
“Easy,” Tiga, Turbo*!K7
Electronic album of the year
Not OK, Mecha Maiko, NewRetroWave*HHV/Believe
Spectrums, Odonis, Odonis Felte*Secretly
Nightmare on Rezz Street 2 Mix, Rezz, HypnoVizion*Universal
Synthetic Season One, Rich Aucoin, We Are Busy Bodies*Redeye
Interior, Teen Daze, Independent*Believe
Contemporary R&B recording of the year
“When Flowers Bloom,” Adria Kain, ArtHaus*Warner
“If I Get Caught,” dvsn, OVO
“No Longer in the Suburbs,” Dylan Sinclair, Five Stone*The Orchard
“Yessie,” Jessie Reyez, Island*Universal
“WTF,” Savannah Ré, Universal
Traditional R&B/soul recording of the year
“Please Do Not Lean,” Daniel Caesar feat. BadBadNotGood, Republic*Universal
“Palisade,” Jon Vinyl, Vinyl Recordings*Foundation
“All I Need,” Safe, RCA*Sony
“Last One,” Savannah Ré feat. Dylan Sinclair, Universal
“How to Make Love,” Thehonestguy, Independent*Believe
Rap single of the year
“Alejandro Sosa,” 6ixbuzz and Pengz, Warner
“Been Himma,” Dom Vallie, Natalus*The Orchard
“Wrath,” Freddie Dredd, RCA*Sony
“Twin Flame,” Kaytranada and Anderson .Paak, RCA*Sony
“Wrong Decisions,” XO*Universal
Rap album/EP of the year
GONZO, Boslen, Capitol*Universal
Retrospected (Acoustic), Classified, Halflife*Universal
The Fleur Print Vol. 2, Jazz Cartier, Petal Garden*Believe
Demons Protected by Angels, NAV, XO*Universal
Shall I Continue?, TOBi, RCA
Country album of the year
Way Back, High Valley, Cage Free*The Orchard
Honkytonk Revival, Jade Eagleson, Starseed*Independent
Bronco, Orville Peck, Columbia*Sony
Masquerades, Tenille Townes, RCA*Sony
Good Ol’ Days, The Reklaws, Starseed*Independent
Reggae recording of the year
“Water,” Ammoye, Lulaword*Symphonic
“Like a Star,” Celena, Independent
“Jah Love,” Exco Levi, Independent
“In the Streets,” Kairo McLean, Soul Survival*Independent
“Reggae Party,” Kirk Diamond, Kairo McLean and Finn, Independent
Contemporary roots album of the year
O Glory, Blackie and The Rodeo Kings, Divine*Warner
That Was You and Me, Fortunate Ones, Sonic *Warner
Hold on to Love, Shakura S’Aida, Independent
Come Morning, The Bros. Landreth, Birthday Cake*The Orchard
House of Dreams, The East Pointers, Nettwerk*Amped
Traditional roots album of the year
Hurricane Clarice, Allison de Groot & Tatiana Hargreaves, Free Dirt*AMPED/MNRK
20 printemps, Le Vent du Nord, La Compagnie du Nord*IDLA
Narrow Line, Mama’s Broke, Free Dirt*AMPED/MNRK
Tell ‘Em You Were Gold, Pharis & Jason Romero, Smithsonian Folkways*AMPED/The Orchard
The Empress, The McDades, Independent
Blues album of the year
Long River, Angelique Francis, Independent
Midnight Blues, Crystal Shawanda, True North*Universal/IDLA
Thanks for Tomorrow, Harrison Kennedy, Electro-Fi*Isotope Music/The Orchard
Preach to My Soul, Spencer Mackenzie, Gypsy Soul*Warner
Live at the King Eddy, The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer, Fontana North*The Orchard
Contemporary Christian/gospel album of the year
Into The Wild, Dan Bremnes, CURB | Word*New Day
Trust, Daniel Ojo, Psalmist*Independent
Jordan St. Cyr, Jordan St. Cyr, BEC*The Orchard
Only Ever Always, Love & The Outcome, CURB | Word*New Day
The Church Will Rise, Tehillah Worship, Independent*Wings
Global music album of the year
In the Footsteps of Rumi, Ghalia Benali, Constantinople, Kiya Tabassian, Glossa*Naxos
Thieves of Dreams, Lenka Lichtenberg, Sunflower*Independent
José Louis and the Paradox of Love, Pierre Kwenders, Arts & Crafts*Universal
Vox.Infold, Ruby Singh, Independent
Tradisyon, Wesli,WUP/Disques Les Nuits d’Afrique/Cumbancha*Believe
Vocal jazz album of the year
Featuring, Caity Gyorgy, La Reserve*The Orchard
Blue, Diana Panton, Independent*The SRG/ILS Group
Venez donc chez moi, Laura Anglade and Sam Kirmayer, Justin Time*F.A.B./Nettwerk
Nikki By Starlight, Nikki Yanofsky, MNRK
The Ostara Project, The Ostara Project, Cellar*The Orchard
Jazz album of the year (solo)
Joy, Ernesto Cervini, TPR*A-Train
A Little Louder Now, Lauren Falls, Independent
El Tinajon, Luis Deniz, Modica*Believe
Rumba, Rafael Zaldivar, Effendi*Propagande/Naxos
Kinds of Love, Renee Rosnes, Smoke Sessions*The Orchard
Jazz album of the year (group)
Semantics, Andrew Rathbun Quintet, SteepleChase*Stateside/The Orchard
Talk Memory, BadBadNotGood, People’s Champ*Stem
The History of Us, Carn Davidson 9, TPR*Independent
Desert Bloom, Florian Hoefner Trio, Alma*Universal
The Dragon’s Tail, Mark Kelso & the Jazz Exiles, Independent
Instrumental album of the year
Canadiana, Canadian Brass, Linus*Universal/IDLA
Everything Was Forever Until It Was No More, Esmerine, Constellation*Secretly
Iguana, Hard Rubber Orchestra, Redshift*Independent
Aubades, Jean-Michel Blais, Arts & Crafts*Universal
Lionheart, Stephan Moccio, Decca*Universal
Francophone album of the year
medium Plaisir, Ariane Roy, La maison fauve*Universal
Mercure en mai, Daniel Bélanger, Secret City*F.A.B.
Pictura De Ipse : Musique directe, Hubert Lenoir, Simone*The Orchard
Crash, Les Louanges, Bonsound*Sony/The Orchard
Chiac Disco, Lisa LeBlanc, Bonsound*Sony/The Orchard
Children’s album of the year
Nice to Meet You, Beppie, Platoon
Say Hello, Jeremy and Jazzy, Hidden Pony*Universal
I Am Love, Splash’N Boots, Independent*The Orchard
Walk off the Earth & Romeo Eats, Vol. 2, Walk off the Earth and Romeo Eats, Golden Carrot*The Orchard
Maestro Fresh Wes Presents: Julia the Great, Young Maestro and Keysha Freshh, Independent
Classical album of the year (solo artist)
Winner of the 18th International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition Warsaw 2021, Bruce Liu, Deutsche Grammophon*Universal
Prokofiev: Piano Sonatas, Vol. 1, David Jalbert, ATMA*Universal
La Zingarella: Through Romany Songland, Isabel Bayrakdarian, AVIE*Naxos
Bach: Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin, James Ehnes, Onyx*PIAS America/The Orchard
Fables, Philip Chiu, ATMA*Universal
Classical album of the year (large ensemble)
Clara – Robert – Johannes: Lyrical Echoes Canada’s National Arts Centre Orchestra, conducted by Alexander Shelley, Analekta*F.A.B./The Orchard
Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Ensemble Caprice, Ensemble Vocal Arts-Quebec, conducted by Matthias Maute, featuring Karina Gauvin, Leaf Music*Naxos
Richard Strauss: Metamorphosen – Arvo Pärt: Symphonie No. 4, “Los Angeles,” I Musici de Montréal, conducted by Jean-Marie Zeitouni, ATMA*Universal
Viola Borealis, Orchestre de l’Agora, conducted by Nicolas Ellis, featuring Marina Thibeault, ATMA*Universal
Radiant Dawn: Music for Advent and Christmas, The Elora Singers, conducted by Mark Vuorinen, Independent
Classical album of the year (small ensemble)
Nagamo, Andrew Balfour and musica intima Redshift*Independent
Hemsi: Chamber Works, ARC Ensemble Chandos*Naxos/PIAS
Vagues et ombres, collectif9 Alpha*Independent
Early Italian Cello Concertos, Elinor Frey and Rosa Barocca, conducted by Claude Lapalme, Analekta*F.A.B./The Orchard
De la cour de Louis XIV à Shippagan! Chants traditionnels acadiens et airs de cour du XVIIe Siècle, Suzie LeBlanc, Marie Nadeau-Tremblay, Vincent Lauzer, and Sylvain Bergeron, ATMA*Universal
Classical composition of the year
“An Overall Augmented Sense of Well-being,” Anthony Tan, Independent
“Bestiary I & II,” Bekah Simms, Centrediscs*Naxos
“The Black Fish,” Keyan Emami, Centrediscs*Naxos
“Prayers for Ruins,” Nicole Lizée, Analekta*F.A.B./The Orchard
“Supervillain Études,” Vincent Ho, Navona*Naxos
Contemporary indigenous artist or group of the year
“Watin,” Aysanabee, Ishkōdé*Universal
“Zhawenim,” Digging Roots, Ishkōdé*Universal r&b
“Code Red,” Indian City, Rising Sun*Warner
“Beyond the Reservoir,” Julian Taylor, Howling Turtle*Warner
“The Crossing,” Susan Aglukark, Aglukark*Universal/IDLA
Traditional indigenous artist or group of the year
kâkîsimo ᑳᑮᓯᒧᐤ, Cikwes, Nehiyaw Soul*Bigstone Cree Nation
Katajjausiit, Iva & Angu, Independent
Mikwanak Kamôsakinat, Joel Wood, Independent
Ôskimacîtahowin: A New Beginning, Northern Cree, Independent
Unbreakable, The Bearhead Sisters, Independent
Comedy album of the year
Let Me Hold Your Baby, Courtney Gilmour, Comedy Records*Independent
Splash Pad, Jackie Pirico, Independent
A Person Who Is Gingerbread, Jon Dore, Howl & Roar*Independent
Here Live, Not A Cat, Matt Wright, Chillybrain
Things Black Girls Say – The Album, Zabrina Douglas, Howl & Roar*Independent
Album artwork of the year
Emy Storey (Art Director, Designer, & Photographer), Becca McFarlane and Pamela Littky (Photographer); CRYBABY – Tegan and Sara, Mom+Pop*Redeye
Ian Ilavsky (Art Director & Designer), Maciek Szczerbowski (Illustrator); Everything Was Forever Until It Was No More – Esmerine, Constellation*Secretly
Jud Haynes (Art Director & Designer); Kubasongs – Kubasonics, Independent
Kee Avil (Art Director), Lawrence Fafard (Photographer); Crease – Kee Avil, Constellation*Secretly
Lights (Art Director & Illustrator), Virgilio Tzaj (Designer), Matt Barnes (Photographer); PEP – Lights, Fueled By Ramen*Warner
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