{"id":567041,"date":"2026-03-28T18:05:12","date_gmt":"2026-03-28T18:05:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/567041\/"},"modified":"2026-03-28T18:05:12","modified_gmt":"2026-03-28T18:05:12","slug":"will-montreal-ever-host-the-junos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/567041\/","title":{"rendered":"Will Montreal ever host the Junos?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 55th Juno Awards take place Sunday night in Hamilton, Ont. Last year, they were held in Vancouver. The year before that, Halifax.<\/p>\n

For the first two decades\u00a0after\u00a0the\u00a0Junos\u00a0began in 1970, they\u00a0were based\u00a0in Toronto. In the 36 years since, they have\u00a0visited\u00a0St. John\u2019s, Ottawa, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Calgary,\u00a0Regina\u00a0and London, Ont.<\/p>\n

The awards, which celebrate the best in Canadian music, have returned to most\u00a0of those places more than once. But guess which\u00a0major Canadian\u00a0city\u00a0the Junos\u00a0have never visited? Hint:\u00a0you\u00a0likely\u00a0live\u00a0there.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s\u00a0right,\u00a0the Juno Awards have never come to Montreal.\u00a0Think about that for a second.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0hard to\u00a0come up with\u00a0a better example of the cultural divide between Quebec and the rest of Canada, which Junos organizers have been working overtime to bridge\u00a0in recent years.<\/p>\n

Andr\u00e9s Mendoza\u00a0can\u2019t\u00a0wait to bring the Junos to Montreal.\u00a0And he\u00a0can\u2019t\u00a0explain why it\u00a0hasn\u2019t\u00a0happened\u00a0yet.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a question that\u2019s been burning in my mind and our hearts forever,\u201d said the vice-president of the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS), which puts on the Junos. \u201cIt\u2019s funny, when I talk to people and tell them we\u2019ve never been to Montreal, they say, \u2018What?\u2019 They thought they must have just missed it. I think it\u2019s something we need to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mendoza came to Montreal on a one-way ticket from Vancouver in the early 1990s, at the age of 21, and spent the next decade toiling in the Quebec music scene. Now based in Toronto, he retains a fondness for Quebec and a determination to make it an integral part of the biggest night in Canadian music. But as he knows first-hand, that\u2019s easier said than done.<\/p>\n

Quebec has its own music industry,\u00a0en\u00a0fran\u00e7ais, where artists can\u00a0bloom and boom,\u00a0selling\u00a0more albums\u00a0in their home province\u00a0than\u00a0many\u00a0artists\u00a0from the rest of Canada do in the whole country.\u00a0Likewise, anglophone acts from outside Quebec who are household names in Toronto\u00a0and\u00a0Vancouver\u00a0often\u00a0have trouble breaking through here.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t want to talk about the two solitudes \u2014 our country has been through a lot of that,\u201d Mendoza said. \u201cPersonally, as somebody who has worked there in music and culture and learned French, I can say there\u2019s a circle of people at the Junos and on the board who have been trying to get there.<\/p>\n

\u201cEspecially in the last few years,\u00a0we\u2019ve\u00a0come\u00a0closer and closer.\u00a0We still\u00a0haven\u2019t\u00a0got a core group of people (in Quebec) saying, \u2018We want you.\u2019\u00a0Meanwhile, there are other cities coming through each year saying \u2018What are your availabilities?\u00a0What\u2019s\u00a0the procedure?\u2019\u00a0We\u00a0have to\u00a0deal with those while we continue to try to solve the Quebec question.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"MichaelMichael Bubl\u00e9 hosted the Juno Awards at Rogers Arena in Vancouver on March 30, 2025. Cindy Ord \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

Host cities for the Junos are selected through a bidding process. Cities have to submit a proposal put together by members of the local music industry and secure a financial commitment \u2014 usually from municipal and federal governments and tourism boards \u2014 to help cover a portion of the associated production costs.<\/p>\n

The Juno Awards created a direct economic impact of $17.5 million for\u00a0Vancouver last year, according to Mendoza.\u00a0Asked\u00a0how much cities must contribute to\u00a0attract\u00a0the Junos,\u00a0he could not provide a number\u00a0but said\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0\u201ca fraction of that, 15 to 25 per cent of that.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0an investment that gets\u00a0everything\u00a0moving.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe bring in a multifaceted show and event.\u00a0A lot of people think\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0only two hours. No, no, no.\u00a0We have 40 to 50 events\u00a0and a music education organization,\u00a0MusiCounts,\u00a0that puts\u00a0over $1 million in instruments in the hands of kids, which has local impacts,\u00a0a teacher of the\u00a0year\u00a0program, scholarships for engineering and production students.\u00a0There\u2019s\u00a0a lot of industry\u00a0building.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0not just a party.\u201d<\/p>\n

But a party it is. Some might call it a\u00a0marathon\u00a0music\u00a0bender. Juno Week takes over the host city, filling local venues with\u00a0multi-artist bills featuring acts from across the country\u00a0in the days leading up to\u00a0Saturday\u2019s non-televised gala (where the bulk of awards are handed out) and\u00a0Sunday\u2019s\u00a0televised\u00a0ceremony.\u00a0Fans and industry movers and shakers\u00a0converge in a festival-esque\u00a0frenzy that\u00a0gives\u00a0substance to the\u00a0concept\u00a0of a Canadian music scene.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the only place all the industry gets together: 2,500 to 3,000 industry people all having drinks, sitting down and talking,\u201d Mendoza said. \u201cThat\u2019s how things happen, thank god, and not in the digital space.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Andr\u00e9sJunos<\/p>\n

We\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0want to push ourselves into Quebec. We want to\u00a0be invited.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAndr\u00e9s Mendoza
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tVice-president, CARAS<\/p>\n

While Quebec hasn\u2019t hosted the party, it\u2019s always invited. Year after year, a contingent of artists, agents, label heads and other industry types from the province \u2014 including nominees in categories ranging from jazz to classical, world and electronic music \u2014 head to the Junos, where they are joined by peers from across the country.<\/p>\n

Recent editions of the awards have seen more frequent performances by Quebec acts, including Coeur de pirate, Loud, Charlotte Cardin and Elisapie, and led to some surprising collaborations. Quebec singer-songwriter Roxane Bruneau was one of several singers invited to take part in the show-opening rendition of Michael Bubl\u00e9\u2019s 2005 hit Home last year, leading to her recently released French-language version of the song, with Bubl\u00e9 chiming in en fran\u00e7ais.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt made me realize that anything is possible,\u201d Bruneau\u00a0told The Gazette.<\/p>\n

That kind of serendipity\u00a0gives\u00a0Mendoza hope\u00a0about\u00a0holding\u00a0the Junos in Montreal.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re so close now, with Quebec,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019ve talked to people in tourism, to (Quebec Culture Minister) Mathieu Lacombe. We\u2019re not giving up. I\u2019m hoping we can find that group of people to come together locally to be able to do that.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0want to push ourselves into Quebec. We want to\u00a0be invited, and we\u00a0haven\u2019t\u00a0been formally invited.\u00a0I\u2019m\u00a0not going to quit until we get there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"QuebecQuebec musician Elisapie with the Juno she won for contemporary Indigenous artist of the year on March 23, 2024. Tim Krochak \/ Postmedia News<\/p>\n

The\u00a0Junos and Quebec are not obvious bedfellows.\u00a0On the one hand, you have\u00a0an anglophone Canadian awards show\u00a0that\u00a0celebrates\u00a0the likes of Shania Twain, Nickelback, Justin Bieber and Drake; on the other, you have\u00a0a self-contained\u00a0francophone province with its own thriving music scene\u00a0that f\u00eates\u00a0stars like Marie-Mai, Les Cowboys\u00a0Fringants, Les Trois Accords\u00a0and Pierre Lapointe.<\/p>\n

The common ground\u00a0has traditionally\u00a0trickled down to a few breakthrough Quebec acts\u00a0who sing\u00a0in English: C\u00e9line Dion<\/a>, Arcade Fire \u2026 That\u2019s changing.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor several years now, there has been a desire to include Quebec,\u201d said Philippe Archambault, executive director of Quebec label Audiogram and vice-president of music for Quebecor. \u201cWe see an openness from the Junos toward the Quebec industry and artists, both francophone and anglophone.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2021, the Junos hired a Quebec publicist, Nathalie Corbeil, to handle media relations for the province. The organization also translated its entire website, application forms and membership information into French.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a real openness to the Quebec milieu,\u201d Corbeil said,\u00a0and interest in the Junos has increased among Quebec media\u00a0as a result.<\/p>\n

In 2023, Archambault was invited to sit on the Juno\u00a0Awards\u2019\u00a0board of directors.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a great honour to join this pan-Canadian organization,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s an opportunity to share the voice of the Quebec industry, which is very specific. For 40 years, we\u2019ve had our own star system and artists.\u201d<\/p>\n

For several years now, there has been a desire to include Quebec.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPhilippe Archambault
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tExecutive director, Audiogram<\/p>\n

\"ALaurence Labat \/ADISQ<\/p>\n

Archambault also sits on the board of\u00a0l\u2019ADISQ, Quebec\u2019s French-language music awards show.\u00a0The two galas\u00a0previously\u00a0operated\u00a0in silos, he says, \u201cboth working in parallel. For a long time, it was, \u2018You do your gala, we do ours.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

That dynamic has\u00a0evolved.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, there\u2019s no choice but\u00a0to\u00a0open up to one another and see what\u2019s happening,\u201d Archambault said.\u00a0\u201cThe industry is no longer what it\u00a0was.\u00a0There\u2019s\u00a0less media,\u00a0we\u2019re\u00a0selling less records, everyone is living the same things.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0important to expand our horizons and reach out.\u201d<\/p>\n

The question is no longer if the Junos will come to Montreal.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt will happen,\u201d Archambault said, \u201cbut you\u00a0can\u2019t\u00a0force it.\u00a0It has to happen naturally.\u00a0It has to come from the right place.\u00a0It\u00a0has to\u00a0be a group of people saying, \u2018We want this.\u2019\u00a0Would I like to be part of it? It would be\u00a0a great pleasure.\u00a0But\u00a0it\u00a0has to come from many corners.\u00a0There\u00a0has to\u00a0be a local push.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"CoeurCoeur de pirate performing at the Junos on March 18, 2019 in London, Ont. Mike Hensen \/ Postmedia News<\/p>\n

Eve Par\u00e9 is no stranger to the idea of Montreal hosting the Junos. The ADISQ executive director, who is attending the Junos this weekend, says the two organizations have been in discussions \u201cfor many years concerning the gala coming to Montreal, which we\u2019re not at all against \u2014 au contraire. It would be a nice occasion to offer visibility to artists from here.\u201d<\/p>\n

That said, ADISQ has put forth a few requests: that the award for francophone album of the year \u2014 to which Quebec\u2019s top music acts are often relegated \u2014 be presented during Sunday\u2019s televised ceremony and not Saturday\u2019s off-air awards, as it is now; that francophone artists be among the TV performers; and that the broadcast feature a francophone or bilingual host\/co-host, \u201call of which the Junos are very open to,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

While ADISQ would support an initiative to bring the Junos to Quebec, the challenge is in securing public funding, Par\u00e9 explained, \u201cwhich can\u2019t come at the detriment of our organization. The sums available in culture are rare, so we must be careful.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Gazette reached out to the City of Montreal, Tourism Montreal and Quebec\u2019s ministry of culture; none were prepared to comment on the matter.<\/p>\n

The Junos are\u00a0willing\u00a0to\u00a0change things up to come to\u00a0Quebec.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt can\u2019t be like any other Junos,\u201d Mendoza said. \u201cWe\u2019ve got\u00a0to work with the community.\u00a0We have to collaborate on a deeper level because there\u2019s such a special, nuanced, distinct culture there.\u00a0There\u2019s\u00a0an\u00a0expertise,\u00a0a cultural\u00a0savvy\u00a0and history that are different and important to respect.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Lou-AdrianeRising star\u00a0Lou-Adriane Cassidy conquered Quebec at last year\u2019s ADISQ gala, winning 12 awards. Her album Journal d\u2019un loup-garou is up for a Juno for best francophone album. ADISQ GALA<\/p>\n

Gourmet D\u00e9lice is a founding partner of Quebec music company Bonsound, home to artists including Elisapie, Les Louanges, Lisa LeBlanc and Annie-Claude Desch\u00eanes, who is nominated for underground dance single of the year and performs Saturday as part of Juno Week festivities.<\/p>\n

D\u00e9lice\u00a0has attended the Junos often and believes it\u00a0\u201cwould be good for Canada and Quebec\u201d for the awards to happen here.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a desire in\u00a0Quebec\u00a0to\u00a0make\u00a0a bid, which in theory is good,\u201d he said, \u201cbut it seems like everyone is waiting for something to happen. We need a spark, otherwise it will always remain a wish.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sabrina Cousineau is general manager at Bravo Musique. The label, formerly known as Dare To Care, was taken over by its flagship artist Coeur de pirate in 2021. Bravo\u2019s new rising star\u00a0Lou-Adriane Cassidy conquered Quebec<\/a> last year, winning 12 ADISQ awards including for female artist, songwriter, song and concert of the year. Her album Journal d\u2019un loup-garou is up for a Juno Award for best francophone album.<\/p>\n

The Junos \u201care a nice spotlight,\u201d Cousineau said, though it can be hard to quantify their impact\u00a0for\u00a0Quebec acts.\u00a0Same\u00a0goes for the appeal of bringing the Junos here.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not sure the Quebec government is willing to contribute financially to an event that is mainly broadcast in English on CBC,\u201d she said. \u201cAt the same time, I can see how the Junos could shine in Montreal. With the upcoming change in government,\u00a0maybe it\u2019s\u00a0a good time\u00a0to have that discussion.\u201d<\/p>\n

Quebec rap artist\u00a0Fredz\u00a0has blown up in France,\u00a0Belgium\u00a0and Switzerland over the past three years. He too is nominated in the Juno category of best francophone album and will perform at Saturday\u2019s non-televised\u00a0ceremony.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m very proud to be Qu\u00e9b\u00e9cois in a national gala,\u201d he said. \u201cThe Quebec market is completely different than Canada. It feels international when\u00a0I\u2019m\u00a0there. I feel both at home and far from home.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Canadian music scene \u201csometimes feels disunited, but in reality we\u2019re all together,\u201d Fredz said, adding that bringing the Junos to Montreal would make him \u201cfeel even more like one of the gang.\u201d<\/p>\n

His manager, Henry-Fran\u00e7ois Gelot, says \u201cit\u2019s a shame\u201d the Junos have never taken place here.<\/p>\n

\u201cMontreal\u00a0isn\u2019t\u00a0an exception in Canada.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0a core part of the identity of Canada. The Junos should reflect what the country looks like.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"NickNick Farkas, vice-president of concerts and events at Evenko, knows all about the hurdles of bringing the Junos to\u00a0Montreal: \u201cAfter many years of banging my head against the wall and never getting anywhere, we are now in a position to do it.\u201d Dave Sidaway \/ Montreal Gazette<\/p>\n

Nick Farkas is\u00a0tired\u00a0of\u00a0the question.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve\u00a0been to the Junos all over Canada,\u201d he said,\u00a0\u201cand every single bloody time\u00a0I\u2019ve\u00a0gone to the Junos in my entire life,\u00a0I\u2019m\u00a0asked the same question at least 20 times: \u2018When\u00a0are the Junos coming to Montreal?\u2019\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0going to be the best party ever. The entire industry is looking forward to it.\u201d<\/p>\n

As vice-president of concerts and events for Evenko, Quebec\u2019s biggest concert promoter, Farkas knows all about the hurdles of bringing the Junos to Montreal. Evenko oversees festivals including Osheaga, Lasso, \u00celeSoniq, the Montreal International Jazz Festival and Les Francos de Montr\u00e9al, and runs venues including the Bell Centre, Place Bell, MTelus, the Beanfield Theatre and Studio TD, making the company an obvious partner for any Quebec Juno bid.<\/p>\n

Farkas has been on the case for over a decade.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter many years of banging my head against the wall and never getting anywhere, we are now in a position to do it,\u201d he said. \u201cLocal\u00a0industry is aligned. We see Quebec artists blowing up\u00a0internationally. This would be a great window for them and for the venues all over town. Everyone wants to make this happen. The question is getting commitment from\u00a0different levels\u00a0of government and a big committee to put it all together.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s tricky. There are a lot of different components.\u201d<\/p>\n

Farkas has\u00a0discussed\u00a0logistics\u00a0with Mendoza and the Junos team.\u00a0The televised awards would naturally take place at the Bell Centre, which\u00a0would involve some serious\u00a0schedule\u00a0juggling.\u00a0The Junos team requires\u00a0full\u00a0access to a venue for\u00a0over a week\u00a0beforehand.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust before the hockey playoffs, that\u2019s a big chunk of days to give up,\u201d Farkas said. \u201cIt\u2019s tricky to make that work in the Bell Centre and make your team go on the road \u2014 that\u2019s a constraint. We\u2019ve been working with the Junos to get the days they need for pre-production down. From an arena perspective, we can do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The\u00a0next step would involve assembling\u00a0a\u00a0bid\u00a0committee\u00a0of local industry players to\u00a0convince\u00a0government and funding agencies to contribute to an awards show\u00a0celebrating Canadian\u00a0music.\u00a0Farkas believes\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0about\u00a0shifting the focus to\u00a0putting\u00a0a national spotlight\u00a0on\u00a0the\u00a0Quebec scene.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s super beneficial is putting our city, our artists in front of a Canadian audience,\u201d he said. \u201cThere are a bunch of lead-up showcases and parties for artists to play prior to the main event, with lots of opportunities to perform in front of industry, which is huge. And then there\u2019s the national telecast.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are so many pluses to this. It\u2019s a chance for the rest of the Canadian industry to see shows in Montreal, with Montreal fans, and to experience our amazing venues. All these things contribute to putting Montreal on the national map. It would be great culturally for the province.\u201d<\/p>\n

Financially, it\u2019s a no-brainer, according to Farkas. He has seen the positive impact of Evenko\u2019s festivals on the city and province, and believes the Junos would have a similar effect.<\/p>\n

\u201cOther\u00a0provinces have\u00a0seen the benefit,\u201d he said. \u201cAsk Winnipeg, Halifax, St. John\u2019s. The economic impact for a city to have the entire industry\u00a0descend\u00a0is massive.\u00a0You have to make an investment to get the economic impact,\u00a0to have full hotels and\u00a0restaurants\u00a0and tons of people in town.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re\u00a0a lot closer than\u00a0we\u2019ve\u00a0ever been, but it depends on the next government\u00a0that\u2019s\u00a0going to come in.\u00a0Is there a willingness to have this vitrine for Quebec artists to be exposed nationally?\u201d<\/p>\n

The 55th Juno Awards will be broadcast Sunday at 8 p.m. on CBC and CBC Gem.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The 55th Juno Awards take place Sunday night in Hamilton, Ont. Last year, they were held in Vancouver.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":567042,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[49,48,75,341],"class_list":["post-567041","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-music","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-entertainment","tag-music"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/567041","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=567041"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/567041\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/567042"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=567041"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=567041"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=567041"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}