The Weeknd, Shawn Mendes, Drake lead Juno nominations
Global superstars the Weeknd, Shawn Mendes, Drake lead pack with five nods each; Gord Downie up for six
Global music stars Drake, Shawn Mendes and the Weeknd were celebrated at home Tuesday as they were named the leading nominees heading into this year’s Juno Awards, while Gord Downie’s work in 2016 could garner a half-dozen trophies.
Downie is nominated for songwriter of the year, best adult alternative album and best video for his multimedia solo project Secret Path, which is also in the running for recording package of the year. His band the Tragically Hip is also up for group of year and rock album of the year honours.
Drake, Mendes and the Weeknd all have five nominations and are contending in marquee categories including best album, best single, artist of the year and the Juno Fan Choice Award.
Pop singer Alessia Cara followed closely behind with four nominations, as did the late Leonard Cohen.
A Tribe Called Red, Grimes, Ruth B, Kaytranada, and Tegan and Sara all have three nominations.
Several musicians with ties to Vancouver Island also drew nominations Tuesday.
Longtime local favourite Ivonne Hernandez of Victoria earned her first Juno nomination for Bird’s Nest. She earned the nod as a member of Toronto group the Fretless, which she left last year.
“It’s very exciting,” Hernandez said during an interview with the Times Colonist.
“There’s a lot of amazing other people in the category, so I’m thrilled to be in their company.”
Hernandez and the Fretless will compete in the instrumental album of the year category against Sarah Neufeld, a Montreal-based violinist who was born and raised in Merville in the Comox Valley. Neufeld is in the running for The Ridge, her second solo album. The member of Arcade Fire’s touring unit won a Juno for instrumental album of the year in 2016.
The third candidate in the instrumental category is Blitz//Berlin, a Toronto group featuring Victoria natives Dean Rode, Tristan Tarr, and Martin Macphail. The trio — founding members of defunct Victoria rockers Theset — are in contention for their release Movements 1.
Dustin Rabin, a Victoria-bred photographer now living in Toronto, earned a nomination in the recording package of the year category for Live at Copps by Alexisonfire. He shares the nomination with art director Justin Ellsworth. It’s the first Juno nomination for Rabin, who has worked as the official photographer for Foo Fighters, Beastie Boys and Paul McCartney during his career.
Pop singer Coleman Hell, nominated for Summerland in the pop album category, said returning to the Junos after being nominated as breakthrough artist last year is encouraging. “You put so much time into these things and you never know what’s going to happen with it, so it’s nice to be recognized.”
The Strumbellas felt an extra sense of accomplishment with their three Juno nominations, which include group of the year and the fan choice award. They say it was about a year ago when their single Spirits, which is up for single of the year, started its surge into the mainstream.
“We got a Juno nomination early in our career and … we were so excited at the time,” said keyboardist Dave Ritter.
“So it’s great to be back, nominated again, and to have it cap off what’s been a crazy year.”
The Juno Awards will be staged at Ottawa’s Canadian Tire Centre on April 2 and air on CTV.
Among the performers at the show will be Mendes, Cara, the Strumbellas, Ruth B and A Tribe Called Red. This year’s show will also include a tribute to Sarah McLachlan, who is being inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame.
Michael Bublé is still set to host, although Bublé and his wife, Argentine actor Luisana Lopilato, announced in November that they would put their careers on hold after their three-year-old son Noah was diagnosed with cancer.