AND THE
AWARD GOES TO ...
PHOTO : CARAS / IPHOTO
2020 WINNERS CZN
THE TRAGICALLY HIP WITH FEIST DURING THE JUNOS BROADCAST
The Weeknd Wins Artist , Album , Single & Songwriter of the Year at 50 th Juno Awards
The Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences ( CARAS ) celebrated a golden anniversary on June 6th at the 50 th annual Juno Awards Broadcast . The awards were broadcast nationwide on CBC platforms and globally on CBCMusic . ca / junos .
Following his three major wins at the 2021 Juno Opening Night Awards , The Weeknd also won Artist of the Year and Album of the Year during the broadcast . This brings his overall total to 15 awards , making The Weeknd the sixth most awarded artist in Juno history .
Shawn Mendes took home the Fan Choice award , while one of Canada ’ s most buzzworthy talents , R & B singer Savannah Ré , took home Traditional R & B / Soul Recording of the Year for her single “ Solid ”, and emerging soulful singer-songwriter JP Saxe was awarded Breakthrough Artist of the Year . Global superstar Justin Bieber walked away with the award for Pop Album of the Year for his album Changes and graced viewers with a performance of his hit “ Somebody .”
The Tragically Hip received the 2021 Humanitarian Award , presented to them by Rush ’ s Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson . The band also performed from Massey Hall alongside indie-pop star Feist with a rare rendition of “ It ’ s A Good Life If You Don ’ t Weaken .”
The night also included a memorable induction of singer-songwriter and adored Canadian personality , Jann Arden , into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame , inducted by Anne Murray . Arden was honoured for her musical excellence , which has had an immeasurable impact on Canada ’ s music scene during the span of her 30-plus-year career .
For more a full list of winners , go to www . junoawards . ca .
Finalists Revealed for CMW ’ s 2021 Virtual Jim Beam National Talent Search
Canadian Music Week ( CMW ) is hosting the annual Jim Beam Virtual National Talent Search via a series of online webisodes from June 21 to July 10 , 2021 . The six provincial webisodes are streaming via Indies . ca , where fans can vote for their favourite artists in each province to help determine the grand prize winner .
Hosted by comedian Darrin Rose , the Jim Beam Virtual National Talent Search includes 18 finalists , with three finalists from each of the participating provinces — British Columbia , Alberta , Manitoba , Ontario , Quebec , and Nova Scotia . The finalists will receive constructive feedback from artist advisors , who include country star Jason McCoy ( solo / The Road Hammers ) and Monowhales lead singer Sally Shaar .
CMW and the Jim Beam Virtual National Talent Search will provide 18 of Canada ’ s best new bands with their own virtual stage , ownership of their own recordings , and starring roles in this musical event . Each webisode focuses on one of the six participating provinces , and features performances from three local artist finalists , as well as feedback commentary from the artist advisors .
One grand prize winner , selected from 18 provincial 2021 finalists , will win the opportunity to perform live on stage at the 2022 Jim Beam Indie Awards in Toronto . Additional grand prize package items are a fully-produced single at Metalworks Studios , a shopping spree at Long & McQuade , and gifts from Canadian Musician magazine .
For more information , and to watch the finalists and vote , go to www . indies . ca .
Polaris Music Prize Longlist Revealed ; Claire Dagenais Departing as Executive Director
The Polaris Music Prize , presented by CBC Music , has revealed its 40-album longlist .
In total , 204 albums that were released between May 1 , 2020 , and May 31 , 2021 , were recommended and considered by the 199-member jury , which includes Canadian Musician Editor-in-Chief Michael Raine . The Polaris Music Prize awards $ 50,000 to the artist who creates the Canadian Album of the Year , judged solely on artistic merit , without consideration for genre or record sales . Additionally , the nine other nominated acts whose albums make the 2021 Short List will receive $ 3,000 each courtesy of Slaight Music .
This year ’ s longlist includes returning nominees like Dominique Fils-Aimé , Cadence Weapon , The Weather Station , and Art Bergmann , alongside first-time nominees like Mustafa , The OBGMs , and Charlotte Cardin .
The 2021 Longlist was unveiled in a video broadcast via the Polaris Facebook page and YouTube channels . A cast of past Polaris nominees were enlisted to present each longlist album . Additionally , Cadence Weapon performed “ On Me ” and “ Skyline ” from his longlisted album , Parallel World , as part of the reveal event . The 10-album shortlist will be unveiled live on July 15 th via CBC Music platforms .
In other Polaris news , its board of directors announced that its executive director , Claire Dagenais , will be departing the organization after 11 years . Joining the Polaris Music Prize team in 2010 , Dagenais moved from administration to the position of events and office manager in 2013 , before stepping into the role of executive director in March 2020 . During her tenure , Dagenais worked closely with all facets and evolution of the prize , including the successful poster program and the activation of the community development program . Dagenais was also an important part of the team that built the Polaris Music Prize Gala into one of the Canadian music industry ’ s coveted events .
“ Stepping into the executive director role in the last year , and shepherding Polaris through what was a challenging year for music and the world , was an enriching personal and professional experience that was equal measure of difficulty , sacrifice , and reward . The next chapter for me will be focusing on my family ,” says Dagenais .
The Polaris board says it will soon commence the search for a new executive director . For more information , go to www . polarismusicprize . ca .
CANADIAN MUSICIAN 19