Drake pays tribute to Nelly Furtado at Junos, making first appearance since 2011

By Canadian Press on March 29, 2026.

HAMILTON —

Drake moved Nelly Furtado to tears with a video speech toasting her at the Juno Awards, marking his first appearance at the ceremony since 2011.

The Toronto rapper paid tribute to Furtado as she was being inducted into the Canadian Hall of Fame.

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.”

Drake has not showed up at the Junos since hosting 15 years ago, when he was infamously snubbed despite being up for several awards.

The rapper said he would “spare” the Junos, even though he knew the organization was “still thinking about those six awards that you gave to Shad in 2011 when you snubbed ‘Take Care’ as I hosted the 40th anniversary of your award show.”

Furtado was feted by the likes of Alessia Cara, Jully Black, Shawn Desman and Tanya Tagaq in a live medley of her greatest hits.

Kardinal Offishall, who was also on hand to celebrate Furtado, said he was proud to see how far she’d come, noting he was in the studio with Timbaland the day the American rapper and producer purchased a copy of her album.


“He was like, ‘I think I wanna work with her,'” he recalled. “To see what’s happened since then, it’s just awesome.”

Earlier in the evening, Prime Minister Mark Carney and Joni Mitchell were shown sitting side-by-side at the ceremony, where the folk legend is set to receive a lifetime achievement award.

Host Mae Martin quipped that their “parents” were at the ceremony before the camera cut to the duo.

“I’m just kidding, those are not my parents,” the comedian said. “I’m not a nepo baby. That’s Prime Minister Mark Carney and one of the greatest songwriters in history, Joni Mitchell.

“Joni, just being in the same room and breathing the same air as you is making me want to cry tears of joy. Thank you, Joni, for everything you’ve given us.”

Sarah McLachlan and Allison Russell are set to perform a tribute to Mitchell at the ceremony, and on the red carpet they suggested she “just might” join them in song.

Meanwhile, Rush opened the ceremony with their first performance at an awards show since 1978.

They performed “Finding My Way” — the first song on their first album. It was the Toronto band’s first live performance with new drummer Anika Nilles, filling in for Neil Peart, who died in 2020.

“Neil is irreplaceable, and if he had something to say to us right now, he’d probably say, ‘You guys are idiots,'” quipped frontman Geddy Lee in the media room.

“But, you know, music lives beyond tragedy, beyond anything that can happen in your life.”

Toronto’s The Beaches took home group of the year — marking the third year in a row they’ve claimed the prize.

Guitarist Leandra Earl thanked her ex during their acceptance speech.

“(She said) if you’re going to write a song about me, at least make it good. Well, I guess it was good enough,” she quipped, referencing the track “Lesbian of the Year.”

Daniel Caesar also took home the R&B recording of the year for his fourth studio album, “Son of Spergy” and is being honoured with the international achievement award.

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 artist of the year, single of the year for “Sports Car” and album of the year for “So Close To What,” along with pop album of the year for the same project.

Cameron Whitcomb, the newcomer who took home country album of the year at last night’s ceremony, also took home breakthrough artist on Sunday.

Ahead of the ceremony, he said the opportunity to perform at the show left him speechless.

“From working on a pipeline to being here, it’s just — I can’t even, I don’t even know what to say,” he said on the carpet.

He noted that he flew his parents out to the ceremony in business class — a first for his family.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 29, 2026.

Alex Nino Gheciu and Nicole Thompson, The Canadian Press