46 things you didn't know about the Juno Awards
From which Prime Minister attended to who Pamela Anderson kissed, 46 fascinating facts.
April 2017 marked the 46th annual Juno Awards, and hundreds of Canada's top musical talents were honoured.
But who has won the most awards? Who got an onstage kiss from Pamela Anderson? How many categories are based on sales? And which Prime Minister joined in the festivities? Here are 46 fun Juno facts.
1. What the Junos were called for the first year: RPM Gold Leaf Awards, named after RPM Magazine.
2. In the first four years, how winners were announced: In RPM magazine, before awards night.
3. Origin of the name Junos: The awards are named after Peter Juneau, the first president of the CRTC, who was an outspoken advocate for Canadian content regulations.
4. Year of the first Junos: 1970.
5. First host: George Wilson of CFRB Radio.
6. First winners: Andy Kim for best male vocalist, the Guess Who for best group, Gordon Lightfoot for best folk artist, Ginette Reno for best female vocalist.
7. Canadian musician who has won the most Juno Awards: Anne Murray, 24 wins (52 nominations).
8. Canadian musicians who have won the 2nd and 3rd most Junos: Celine Dion (won 20, nominated for 72) and Bryan Adams (won 19, nominated for 60).
9. High-profile Canadian acts that have never won a Juno: The Band, Great Big Sea.
10. Year the Junos introduced a rap recording of the year category: 1991, winner was Maestro Fresh-Wes' Symphony in Effect.
11. Year the Junos introduced classical and jazz categories: 1977.
12. Year the Junos introduced an aboriginal recording category: 1994.
13. Year the Junos changed aboriginal album of the year to indigenous music album of the year: 2017.
14. Artist who almost didn't make it to the theatre on time for her opening number: Alannah Myles, who had forgotten to book a limo so her drummer had to drive her to the stage door.
15. Number of categories in 1970: 12.
16. Number of categories now: 42.
17. Youngest person to ever host the Junos: Drake, at 24.
18. Years they started, then stopped, having a journalist of the year category: 1971, 1973.
19. Year the Juno Cup, which pits musicians against former pro hockey players in a charity game, began: 2004.
20. Canadian musician who got an onstage kiss from Pamela Anderson: Buck 65.
21. Cost to submit an album for award: From $40 to $95.
22. Number of categories where nominees are determined entirely by album sales: Two (international album of the year, album of the year.)
23. Number of categories where nominees are determined by mix of album sales and voting: Five, including breakthrough artist, breakthrough group, rock album, pop album, artist of the year and group of the year.
24. Number of judges who listen to submissions and vote: 330.
25. First year the Junos were televised: 1975, on CBC Television.
26. First artist to be given the Juno Humanitarian Award: Bruce Cockburn, in 2006.
27. Host that donned 6 custom-made, hockey-themed outfits in a single evening: Shania Twain, in 2003.
28. First nominee with multiple nominations to win every award she was nominated for: Nelly Furtado in 2007, who won for album, artist, single and pop album of the year, and Juno fan choice.
29. Second nominee to sweep all the categories he/she was nominated in: Feist, in 2008 (single, artist, album, songwriter and pop album of the year.)
30. Year the Junos didn't happen: 1988, because the awards were rescheduled from the fall to the following spring.
31. Artist who broke Anne Murray's 7-year winning streak for country female vocalist: k.d. lang, in 1987.
32. Length of eligibility period: 13-14 months, so some albums can be entered in two different years.
33. Year the best video category was added: 1984.
34. What the 1st trophies were made of: Walnut wood, 46 cm tall, in the shape of a metronome.
35. Material the trophies were changed to in 1975: Acrylic, until 2000, when producers complained they weren't attractive enough for TV.
36. What the trophies are made of now: Etched glass.
37. Music legend who saved the day by performing 2 songs when Paul Anka backed out at the last minute in 1980: Gordon Lightfoot.
38. Music legend who made a surprise appearance in 1986: Bob Dylan, who introduced Gordon Lightfoot, who was being entered into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame.
39. Legendary band that reunited for the 1st time in 23 years on the Juno stage: Bachman Turner Overdrive, in 2014.
40. First year the Junos were held outside Toronto: in Vancouver in 1991.
41. Year the Junos started taking its show on the road: 2002.
42. Artist who accepted her Juno wearing a wedding dress: k.d. lang, for most promising female vocalist in 1985.
43. Artist who appeared onstage in a bathrobe, then a naked bodysuit: Alanis Morissette in 2004, to illustrate a point about censorship.
44. Canadian luminary who introduced Joni Mitchell as she was being inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1981: Pierre Elliot Trudeau.
45. Number of people who showed up for Juno Awards in 1971: 250 (double the number expected).
46. Number of viewers today: Over four million.
— Jennifer Van Evra, q digital staff