The nominees for the 2021 Juno Awards are in, and The Weeknd is leading the pack with six nods.
Abel Tesfaye is coming off a massive run—he recently became the first solo Canadian to headline the Super Bowl halftime show, got his own official day in his hometown of Toronto, and made history again with his No. 1 hit “Blinding Lights,” which just became the first song to ever spend a year in the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 chart. He was also the subject of controversy last year when he was shutout by the Grammy Awards, receiving zero nominations.
Such is not the case with the Junos, which take place May 16. The Weeknd’s album After Hours is nominated for Album of the Year, while “Blinding Lights” gets a nod for Single of the Year. As well, the artist has received nominations for Artist of the Year, Fan Choice, Songwriter of the Year, and Contemporary R&B Recording of the Year
Other artists leading the charge include Justin Bieber, Jessie Reyez, and JP Saxe, who have five Juno nods each.
Among nominees for Rap Recording of the Year are TOBi, for this mixtape ELEMENTS Vol. 1, 88GLAM for their project New Mania, and Nav, for his album Good Intentions (Brown Boy 2 Deluxe Version).
First-time nominees this year include TikTok stars Curtis Waters and Tate McRae, as well as Saxe and Vancouver-based R&B duo Manila Grey.
Check out some of the other Juno nominations below.
Juno Fan Choice
Ali Gatie
Curtis Waters
JP Saxe
Justin Bieber
Lennon Stella
Les Cowboys Fringants
NAV
Shawn Mendes
Tate McRae
The Weeknd
Single of the Year
Drink About Me, Brett Kissel
If The World Was Ending (feat. Julia Michaels), JP Saxe
Intentions (feat. Quavo), Justin Bieber
Kissing Other People, Lennon Stella
Blinding Lights, The Weeknd
Album of the Year
YOU, Ali Gatie
Courage, Céline Dion
Changes, Justin Bieber
Thanks for the Dance, Leonard Cohen
After Hours, The Weeknd
Artist of the Year
Ali Gatie
Céline Dion
Jessie Reyez
Justin Bieber
The Weeknd
Group of the Year
Arkells
Half Moon Run
Loud Luxury
The Glorious Sons
The Reklaws
Breakthrough Artist of the Year
Curtis Waters
JP Saxe
Powfu
Ryland James
Tate McRae
Breakthrough Group of the Year
2Frères
Crown Lands
Manila Grey
Peach Pit
Young Bombs
Songwriter of the Year
Alanis Morissette
Alessia Cara
Jessie Reyez
JP Saxe
The Weeknd
Album Francophone de L’Annee
À tous les vents, 2Frères MP3 Disques
Notre-Dame-des-Sept-Douleurs, Klô Pelgag Secret City
Les antipodes, Les Cowboys Fringants Les disques de La Tribu
Quand la nuit tombe, Louis-Jean Cormier Simone
Pour déjouer l’ennui, Pierre Lapointe Les Disques Audiogramme
Rap Recording of the Year
New Mania, 88GLAM
Baby Gravy 2, bbno$ & Yung Gravy Baby Gravy
Cold World, Eric Reprid
Good Intentions (Brown Boy 2 Deluxe Version), NAV
ELEMENTS Vol. 1, TOBi
Indigenous Artist or Group of the Year
Kîyânaw
Church House Blues
The Ridge
North Star Calling
Nunarjua Isulinginniani
Contemporary R&B Recording of the Year
Before Love Came to Kill Us, Jessie Reyez
Where You Are, Savannah Ré
Solaris, Shay Lia
After Hours, The Weeknd
Holiday, TOBi
