The 50th Annual JUNO Awards Show Recap

2021-06-14

Updated 6/06/2025

The 50th Anniversary JUNO Awards

The 50th anniversary of the annual JUNO Awards Show aired Sunday, June 6, 2021. Due to the pandemic, the JUNOS were presented and televised from a variety of music venues throughout Canada.

The JUNO Awards Recap

The seven-time JUNO Award winner Justin Bieber performed on the JUNOS stage for the first time in 11 years. Bieber was nominated for five awards this year and took home the pop album of the year award for Changes.

The Weeknd swept the JUNO Awards, taking home five awards: artist of the year, album of the year, contemporary R&B recording of the year, single of the year, and songwriter of the year. The Weeknd was this year's only multiple JUNO winner out of 43 categories presented over the two nights. These five wins bring his total JUNO Awards wins to 15 and puts him in sixth place on the all-time winners list behind Anne Murray (25), Bryan Adams (21), Céline Dion (20), Orchestre symphonique de Montréal (18), and The Tragically Hip (17).

Renowned Canadian rock band The Tragically Hip received the 2021 Humanitarian Award Presented by Music Canada. The award honors of the band’s history of philanthropic work, including the late frontman Gord Downie's longtime support of Indigenous communities. They were joined by indie-pop icon Feist for a special performance of "It's A Good Life If You Don't Weaken." This was the band’s first TV Performance since Gord Downie passed away in 2017.

Designing the JUNO Awards

We worked closely with the JUNOS to redesign the iconic award with great care and attention to detail. We wanted to mark the importance of the 50th anniversary and honor Shirley Elford’s original design with a modern and elevated trophy in 24k gold. The silhouette of the original was refined and perfected in precision-cast metal and hand polished to a mirror-like finish.

Society Awards is honored to have collaborated with CARAS/MusiCounts in creating these remarkable custom statuettes.

Prestigious Entertainment Awards and Trophies for Musicians

Society Awards helps bring fresh designs to custom awards for any event. Society Awards is the world’s best designer and manufacturer of awards, and it shows on the global stage. To get started on your own custom award, please contact our concierge here or at (212) 845-9980.