| Juno Awards of 2017 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 The 2017 Juno Awards Logo | ||||
| Date | 1–2 April 2017 | |||
| Venue | Canadian Tire Centre, Ottawa | |||
| Hosted by | Bryan Adams Russell Peters | |||
| Television/radio coverage | ||||
| Network | CTV | |||
| Viewership | 1.272 million[1] | |||
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TheJuno Awards of 2017, honouring Canadian music achievements, were presented inOttawa,Ontario the weekend of 1–2 April 2017. The ceremonies were held at theCanadian Tire Centre inKanata and televised onCTV withBryan Adams andRussell Peters as co-hosts.[2][3][4][5] The duo replacedMichael Bublé, who was originally scheduled to host the show.
Various events associated with the awards are held in Ottawa from 27 March until the primary awards ceremony at the Canadian Tire Centre on 2 April. This was the last Juno Award Broadcast on CTV, before moving back to CBC in 2018.
TheJuno Cup charity hockey game was played atTD Place Arena on 31 March.[6] The NHL former players team beat the musicians team with a score of 13-12.[7]
A Songwriters' Circle event was hosted byBruce Cockburn on 2 April at the National Arts Centre.[8]Daniel Caesar,Chantal Kreviazuk,Lisa LeBlanc,Colin Linden,Paul Murphy andDonovan Woods performed.CBC Radio broadcast recordings of this event.[9]
Most award category winners were announced at a private dinner gala 1 April at the Shaw Centre hosted by musician and CBC Radio hostTom Power.[10][11] The lateLeonard Cohen won the Artist of the Year category; his sonAdam accepted the award on his behalf at the gala.The Tragically Hip won Rock Album of the Year for their albumMan Machine Poem.Secret Path, the solo album by Tragically Hip lead singer Gord Downie, won Junos in two categories: Adult Alternative Album and Recording Package of the Year. Drake did not win any of his several nominations at the gala and The Weeknd won in only the R&B/Soul Recording category for hisStarboy album.[12]
The televised award ceremony on 2 April was hosted byBryan Adams andRussell Peters. Performers includedArkells,Alessia Cara,Billy Talent,Dallas Smith,July Talk,Ruth B,Sarah McLachlan,Shawn Mendes,The Strumbellas,A Tribe Called Red.[13][2][14]
Canadian singerMichael Bublé was originally scheduled to host the awards, but had cancelled public appearances due to his son's cancer diagnosis.[2]
It was announced on 1 November 2016 that the singer would return to host of the 2017 ceremony after playing emcee in 2013. Three days later, on 3 November, Bublé made public that he would be suspending professional activities to focus on his son's treatment.[15] At that time it was uncertain whether he would still host the Junos or its British counterpart, theBrits.
Bell Media president Randy Lennox said in an interview with The Canadian Press that initial discussions with Russell Peters began in early November when the comedian offered to take the hosting gig if Bublé needed someone else to step in.[16] Shortly after Bublé opted to forgo the Brit Awards hosting plans, singer Adams also began talking with Juno organizers about taking a role in the Canadian broadcast.
On 9 March 2017, the Juno Awards announced that Bublé would be replaced by Adams and Peters.[16]
The telecast began with a sketch introducing the co-hosts prior to taking the stage. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appeared in this segment, phoning Adams to request a performance of "Summer of '69".[17]
Buffy Sainte-Marie appeared on stage at the Canadian Tire to declare that the event was held on traditional Algonquin territory. She then introducedA Tribe Called Red who performed music from their albumWe are the Halluci Nation accompanied bythroat singerTanya Tagaq.[18][19]
Former Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau and his wife Sophie Grégoire Trudeau paid tribute to musicianLeonard Cohen who died in November 2016.Feist then sang Cohen's song "Hey, That’s No Way to Say Goodbye", accompanied only by her acoustic guitar and singers Ariel Engle andDaniela Gesundheit of Hydra. Cohen's albumYou Want it Darker was later awarded a Juno for Album of the Year. He won the Artist of the Year category during the previous night's gala.[20][21]
Canadian singer Sarah McLachlan was this year's inductee to the Canadian Music Hall of Fame. A video montage featuring of her career began with a tribute from former American presidentBill Clinton.Sheryl Crow,Josh Groban,Diana Krall,James Taylor andTegan and Sara also provided statements in honour of McLachlan's career.[17][22]
McLachlan took the stage to make an acceptance speech which noted the presence and importance of diversity, politeness and the arts in Canadian society, declaring that "[w]e Canadians, we're far from perfect, but we have a lot to offer the world and we have to continue to set the bar high." while expressing gratitude to those who supported her career.[22][23]
During the ceremony broadcast, co-host Russell Peters spotted some young women in the audience and remarked "Look at all the young girls. This is a felony waiting to happen."[24] Furthermore, when announcing that Minister of Canadian HeritageMélanie Joly was co-presenting the Breakthrough Artist of the Year Award with musician Coleman Hell, Russell added "I don't know why, but she's hot, so who cares?"[25] The following day, Joly declared that Peters' comments were not appropriate, indicating a need to ensure "that all our role models are supporting the importance of gender parity."[25] Allan Reid, president of CARAS and the Juno Awards, issued an apology and distanced the Juno Awards organization from Peters' statements.[26]
Category nominees were announced on 7 February 2017.[27]
Buffy Sainte-Marie is the 2017 recipient of the Allan Waters Humanitarian Award.[28] It was revoked in 2025 over citizenship requirements.[29][30]
Randy Lennox is the year's recipient of theWalt Grealis Special Achievement Award.[31]Sarah McLachlan is the 2017Canadian Music Hall of Fame inductee.[32]
The category for Aboriginal Album of the Year was renamed to Indigenous Music Album of the Year as of the 2017 awards.[33] The first 34 awards were announced on 1 April 2017.[34]
| Artist of the Year | Group of the Year |
|---|---|
| Breakthrough Artist of the Year | Breakthrough Group of the Year |
| Fan Choice Award[35] | Songwriter of the Year |
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| Producer of the Year | Recording Engineer of the Year |
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| Single of the Year | Classical Composition of the Year |
|---|---|
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| Dance Recording of the Year | R&B/Soul Recording of the Year |
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| Rap Recording of the Year | Reggae Recording of the Year |
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| Recording Package of the Year | Video of the Year |
|---|---|
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