It was an all-Canadian love-in at Sunday’s Juno Awards as Joni Mitchell took the stage for a stirring sing-along after accepting a lifetime achievement award.
Taking the stage to a thunderous standing ovation, Mitchell, who lives in the US, told the audience she was “so happy to be in Canada”
She added that her life has improved since her brain aneurysm in 2015: “I went into a coma, which helped me to quit smoking. And my house filled up with the most wonderful nurses. I was on the road with men for years and years. Now I live with a house full of women … so my life has changed for the better, out of a catastrophe, like a phoenix.”
Mitchell then joined a musical tribute to her oeuvre with several Canadian artists, including Sarah McLachlan, Allison Russell, Jully Black, The Beaches and Alessia Cara.
She took the mic and joined a sing-along of her 1970 hit “Big Yellow Taxi,” swaying along with the music and beaming, though slightly off rhythm.
The wholehearted vibes were in the air throughout the evening, as Drake suspended his years-long feud with the Junos to pay tribute to Nelly Furtado, who was being inducted into the Canadian Hall of Fame. The Toronto rapper moved Furtado to tears with his video speech toasting her.
Reading from a piece of paper while sitting in a studio, Drake said Furtado “showed us what was possible and what a Canadian artist could be.”
Furtado was feted by singers such as Cara, Black, Desman and Tanya Tagaq in a live medley of her greatest hits.
“He was like, ‘I think I wanna work with her,'” he told The Canadian Press on the orange carpet earlier in the night. “To see what’s happened since then, it’s just awesome.”
Meanwhile, Rush opened the ceremony with their first performance at an awards show since 1978.
They performed “Finding My Way” with new drummer Anika Nilles, filling in for Neil Peart, who died in 2020.
“Music lives beyond tragedy, beyond anything that can happen in your life,” frontman Geddy Lee later told reporters.
Toronto’s The Beaches took home best group — marking the third year in a row they’ve claimed the prize.
“I also want to thank my ex who said, ‘If you’re going to write a song about me, at least make it good.’ Well, I guess it was good enough,” quipped guitarist Leandra Earl, referencing the track “Lesbian of the Year.”
Daniel Caesar took home best R&B recording for his fourth studio album, “Son of Spergy,” and was honoured with the international achievement award. The artist from Oshawa, Ont., performed a hushed set from the album after a moving speech from Mustafa praising him.
“He’s always trying to interrogate what it means to navigate a working life, a life with purpose, a life with dignity,” Mustafa said. “And that, I think, is what separates an artist and an entertainer; a writer and someone that I think operates like a heart surgeon when they’re writing songs.”
Caesar accepted the R&B award while standing next to his dad.
“Thank you to my dad, this is Spergy, right here … and to my mom, and to Mustafa, thanks for the kind words.”
B.C. rapper bbno$ took home the fan choice award — voted on by the audience — for the second year in a row. He was not in attendance to receive the trophy, which was accepted on his behalf by R&B duo Majid Jordan.
Most of the awards were handed out at a livestreamed gala last night, where no-show Tate McRae emerged as the big winner.
The Calgary-born pop star took home four of the night’s biggest prizes, including best artist, single for “Sports Car,” and album of the year for “So Close To What,” along with pop album of the year for the same project.
Aysanabee won Alternative Album of the Year at the 2026 JUNO Awards.
His second win of the evening, the Oji-Cree artist from the Sucker Clan of the Sandy Lake First Nation took home the top Alternative Album prize for his 2025 album Edge of the Earth.
Earlier in the night, after winning Contemporary Indigenous Artist of the Year, Aysanabee said he would step aside from the category to make space — while still aiming for recognition in the non-Indigenous categories.
“I did not know it would happen that quickly,” he said during his acceptance speech.
The critically acclaimed album beat out other Alternative nominees, including PUP and Yves Jarvis. Aysanabee was the only Indigenous artist in the category.
The 2027 Juno awards will be held in Winnipeg
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