It’s no surprise that Justin Bieber and The Weeknd are among the most-nominated artists for this year’s Juno Awards, with five nods each, but you may be less familiar with the artist who leads the pack with six nods: Charlotte Cardin.
The Montreal-born singer-songwriter sings pop, electro and jazz. She released her debut album Phoenix in April. It has spent two weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Canadian Albums chart. Cardin, 27, was nominated for Juno Awards in 2018 for breakthrough artist of the year and songwriter of the year.
Cardin, Avril Lavigne, Arkells (four-time winners for group of the year) and singer, songwriter and poet Mustafa are the first artists announced to perform on the Juno Awards, which will be held at Toronto’s Budweiser Stage on Sunday, May 15. Simu Liu, star of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, is set to host the show, which will be the first in-person Juno Awards since 2019.
Cardin and Bieber are the only artists nominated this year in each of these four top categories: TikTok Juno fan choice, artist of the year, album of the year, and single of the year. While Bieber has won the fan-voted Fan Choice Award five times, more often than anyone else, he has yet to win in any of these other three categories. Will this finally be his year?
The Weeknd is nominated in all four of the above-mentioned categories except album of the year. He didn’t release a new album in the eligibility period. But he made up for it by also being nominated for songwriter of the year.
Bieber is the first artist to land both Juno and Grammy nominations for album of the year and record of the year (called single of the year at the Junos) in the same year since The Weeknd achieved that quadruple feat six years ago. The Weeknd was nominated on both sides of the border for his album Beauty Behind the Madness and his smash “Can’t Feel My Face.” (He won Juno Awards in both categories.) Bieber is nominated for his album Justice and his soulful jam “Peaches” (a collab with Daniel Caesar, who, like Bieber, was born in Canada, and Givēon).
Cardin, The Weeknd and Bieber are followed in the nominations tally by Jessia, Pressa and Shawn Mendes, with four nods each. Jessia and Pressa are both first-time nominees.
Mendes is nominated for TikTok Juno fan choice, artist of the year and album of the year, but he missed out on a single of the year nod. He won in that category three years running from 2018-20 with “There’s Nothing Holdin’ Me Back,” “In My Blood” and “Señorita,” a collab with Camila Cabello.
JP Saxe is nominated for both artist of the year and album of the year.
WondaGurl, who won the Jack Richardson producer of the year award last year, is back to defend her title. A second female producer, Charlotte Day Wilson, is also nominated. (By way of comparison, the Grammys haven’t had two female nominees in their producer of the year, non-classical category in the same year since 1998, when both Sheryl Crow and Lauryn Hill were nominated.)
Wilson is also nominated for songwriter of the year. She is the only person nominated for both songwriter of the year and producer of the year this year. One other female songwriter, Allison Russell, is nominated for songwriter of the year.
Kairo McLean, just 13, is a first-time nominee in the reggae recording of the year category. But he’s practically an old-timer compared to Romeo Eats, who at the tender age of 3 becomes the youngest nominee in Juno Awards history. Alongside his parents, both members of Walk Off the Earth, he is nominated for children’s album of the year for his debut album Walk Off the Earth x Romeo Eats Vol. 1.
As first announced at last year’s Juno Awards, rap recording of the year has been split into two categories: rap album/EP and rap single of the year. Likewise, indigenous artist or group of the year has been split into contemporary indigenous artist or group of the year and traditional indigenous artist or group of the year.
Also, 2022 is the first year for the underground dance single of the year category. The creation of the category was spearheaded by Toronto electronic producer Joanne Hill, drawing attention to less mainstream sounds with roots in subgenres of electronic music.
Denise Jones, one of the most influential voices in Canada’s Black entertainment community, will be posthumously awarded the 2022 Walt Grealis special achievement award. This award, along with 40 additional Juno statuettes, will be handed out at the Juno Opening Night Awards on Saturday, May 14.
Here are the nominees in selected nominees:
TikTok Juno fan choice
347aidan, Columbia *Sony
bbno$, bbno$ *mtheory
Charlotte Cardin, Cult Nation *The Orchard
Forest Blakk, Atlantic
Jessia, Republic *Universal
Justin Bieber, Def Jam *Universal
Loud Luxury, Armada *Sony
Pressa, Sony
Shawn Mendes, Island *Universal
The Weeknd, XO *Universal
Artist of the year
Charlotte Cardin, Cult Nation*The Orchard
JP Saxe, Arista*Sony
Justin Bieber, Def Jam*Universal
Shawn Mendes, Island*Universal
The Weeknd, XO*Universal
Album of the year
Phoenix, Charlotte Cardin, Cult Nation*The Orchard
Dangerous Levels of Introspection, JP Saxe, Arista*Sony
Justice, Justin Bieber, Def Jam*Universal
Wonder, Shawn Mendes, Island*Universal
Too Young to Be Sad, Tate McRae, RCA*Sony
Single of the year
“Make a Life, Not a Living,” Brett Kissel, Warner, publisher: Bennett’s Dad Songs
“Meaningless,” Charlotte Cardin, Cult Nation*The Orchard, publisher: Big Boy Ed./SOCAN
“I’m Not Pretty,” Jessia, Republic*Universal
“Peaches,” Justin Bieber and Daniel Caesar featuring Givēon, Def Jam*Universal, publisher: Universal Music/ASCAP and Bieber Time Pub/ASCAP / Universal Music Canada/Socan
“Take My Breath,” The Weeknd XO*Universal, publisher: KMR Music Royalties II SCSp
Songwriter of the year
Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye
Allison Russell
Charlotte Day Wilson
Mustafa Ahmed
TOBi
Jack Richardson producer of the year
Charlotte Day Wilson
Chromeo
Kaytranada
WondaGurl
YogiTheProducer
Group of the year
Arkells, Arkells Music*Universal
Loud Luxury, Armada*Sony
Mother Mother, Warner
The Reklaws, Starseed Entertainment*Vydia
Valley, Universal
Breakthrough artist of the year
347aidan, Columbia*Sony
Faouzia, Warner
Jessia, Republic*Universal
Pressa, Sony
Tesher, Capitol Records*Universal
Breakthrough group of the year
Black Pistol Fire, Blackhill*The Orchard
Cleopatrick, Nowhere Special*The Orchard
Monowhales, True Records*ADA
Ocie Elliott, Nettwerk*ADA
Spiritbox, Rise/BMG*ADA
Rap album/EP of the year
See You Next Wednesday, Belly, XO*Universal
Stock Exchange, Haviah Mighty Mighty, Gang Inc.*Foundation Media
Emergency Tsunami, NAV, XO*Universal
The Extravagant Collection, NorthSideBenji, Nrthrn*Believe
Gardner Express (Deluxe), Pressa, Blue Feather*Sony
Contemporary R&B recording of the year
“Tabula Rasa,” a l l i e, Oracle Records*Believe
“Vibe for Me (Bob for Me),” Aqyila, Sony
“Gifted,” Kallitechnis, Independent*Stem
“Supernovas,” k-os, Fontana North
“Take My Breath,” The Weeknd, XO*Universal
Alternative album of the year
Hope for Sale, Chiiild, 4th & Broadway*Universal
Death of an Optimist, grandson, Warner
When Smoke Rises, Mustafa, Regent Park Songs*The Orchard
If It Comes Down to It, Ruby Waters, Independent*The Orchard
The Fool, Sate, Clk*Independent/Idla
Underground dance single of the year
“Waves,” Blond:Ish feat. Grace Tither, Spinnin’
“Hood Sh*t,” Carlo Lio feat. MC Flipside, Rawthentic
“Shadows in the Dark,” Hntr feat. Elliot Moss, mau5trap/Awal
“All I Need (DJ-Kicks),” Jayda, G !K7 Music
“Sobriety,” Korea Town Acid, Independent
Contemporary indigenous artist or group of the year
When the Magic Hits, Adrian Sutherland, Midnight Shine*Independent
War Club, DJ Shub, Shub Music*The Orchard
Wild Whisper, Jayli Wolf, Alt Eden*Fontana North
Shawnee Kish, Shawnee Kish, Independent
Life After Snotty Nose, Rez Kids, Independent*Fontana North