Lights, the Beaches, WondaGurl and more took home awards at this Canadian music gala
Hosted by Billboard Canada, the Women in Music awards showed just how many Canadian women are making it big
On October 1, Billboard Canada’s Women in Music awards show paid homage to women leaders and artists carving new paths in the industry during a soirée at Rebel Nightclub. Hosted by singer-songwriter Keshia Chanté, the event was attended by the likes of Lights, the Beaches and Deadmau5. Here’s what went down.
Electropop star Lights received the Visionary Award, presented by Deadmau5 and Bryan Adams, in recognition of her “commitment to originality” and unique artistic vision. Lights released her sixth studio album, A6, this past May.
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The Beaches became the first band to take home the Women of the Year Award, which is usually given to a single artist. Right before they took the stage, the four rockers were surprised with video congratulations from Elton John, Kid Cudi, Greta Van Fleet and Charlotte Cardin.
Related: Almost Famous—Inside the Beaches’ rise to rock stardom
Grammy Award–winning record producer and songwriter Boi-1da presented fellow producer WondaGurl with the Producer of the Year Award. As he did, one of her most popular productions, Rihanna’s “Bitch Better Have My Money,” played through the venue.
Pop-punk artist Julia Wolf received the Global Rising Star Award and gave a speech shouting out Drake for championing her music. She recently teamed up with the Toronto rapper on his new single “Dog House,” featuring Los Angeles rapper Yeat, which is climbing the Canadian Hot 100.
Montreal’s Cœur de pirate—a.k.a. Béatrice Martin—took one home for the francophones, receiving the Trailblazer Award, which honours an artist who “acts as a music industry pioneer by using her platform to spotlight unheard voices and break ground for future generations of performers.” Martin became the president and artistic director of Bravo Musique (formerly Dare to Care Records), a Montreal-based label whose former leadership was toppled by a sexual assault scandal involving one of its signed artists. Today, Martin is focused on reshaping the label into a supportive space for women artists.
Representing Western Canada, Alberta’s Noeline Hofmann took the stage to accept the Breakthrough Award. Hofmann turned heads last year with an emotional performance of her breakout track, “Purple Gas.” That caught the ear of country heavyweight Zach Bryan, who invited her to record a duet version for his chart-topping album The Great American Bar Scene. The collaboration marked Hofmann’s first appearance on the Billboard Hot 100, and her debut Purple Gas EP has since racked up over 100 million streams worldwide.
There were also awards for executives. Julie Adam, president and CEO of Universal Music Canada, received the Executive of the Year Award for becoming the only woman leading a major Canadian label.
Several leaders of smaller labels and industry organizations focused on supporting emerging artists from marginalized communities were also honoured. Meg Symsyk, CEO of Factor Canada, received the Champion Award in recognition of her ongoing advocacy for Canadian artists. She has been instrumental in shaping the Online Streaming Act, which aims to promote and support Canadian content creators in the global digital music landscape. Last year, Factor was the target of an alleged $10-million cybertheft, and Symsyk has led efforts to recover the funds.
The awards also celebrated rising talent, spotlighting Toronto-based Afrobeats artist Osé alongside standout performances from Etobicoke R&B singer Aqyila, Montreal pianist and composer Alexandra Stréliski, electropop artist Baby Nova and indie rocker Ruby Waters.
