Juliette Powell, ravishing MuchMusic host turned insightful tech critic, dies at 54

By Canadian Press on June 11, 2025.

TORONTO — Juliette Powell, the captivating former MuchMusic VJ and host of live dance show “Electric Circus,” has died at 54.

The television personality who became an author and technology commentator was found dead at home in New York on June 3, says Art Kleiner, the co-author of her 2023 book “The AI Dilemma.” He said the cause of death was acute bacterial meningitis.

Friends and colleagues say Powell’s professional achievements often broke down barriers.

As a young adult she entered beauty pageants to challenge racial biases and in 1989 she became the first Black woman to win Miss Canada. That same year she represented the country at Miss Universe.

By the mid-1990s, her towering height and captivating smile landed her jobs on Montreal music video channel MusiquePlus and eventually its Toronto sister channel MuchMusic.

Powell later became a business reporter at TV news channel CablePulse 24, now known as CP24, and founded media consulting company Powell International Entertainment Inc.

She launched another career in the fast-evolving world of technology, where she established herself as a trusted commentator on user privacy and published two books on entrepreneurship and artificial intelligence.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 11, 2025.

David Friend, The Canadian Press