The Weeknd celebrates his Juno win for Single of the Year at the Juno Awards in Calgary, Sunday, April 3, 2016.Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press
It was The Weeknd's weekend.
The Toronto-born R&B phenom walked away from the Juno Awards with five trophies – the most of any artist for the 45th edition of the Canadian music honours – including Single of the Year for his ubiquitous hit Can't Feel My Face and Album of the Year for Beauty Behind the Madness.
His album beat offerings by Drake, Justin Bieber, Shawn Mendes and Jean Leloup in a big year for Canadian music at home and around the world.
The Weeknd, whose real name is Abel Tesfaye, also won Artist of the Year and R&B/Soul Recording of the Year as well as Songwriter of the Year at the untelevised Juno gala the night before in Calgary.
His Junos add to an already bumper year of plaudits for the notoriously media-shy 26-year-old star and Drake protégé. Besides scoring hits, he picked up hardware at the American Music Awards, BET Awards and the Grammys.
True to style, he did not speak to reporters following the award presentations. But he performed for the near sell-out audience. During the show on Sunday night, The Weeknd was joined on stage by the rapper Belly for a spirited medley that included Acquainted and Might Not.
His success is part of a wave of Canadian artists dominating the global pop charts of late. In December, The Weeknd, Justin Bieber, Drake, Alessia Cara and Shawn Mendes held seven of the 10 top spots on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Mr. Bieber won the Fans Choice Award, garnering more than six million votes from his legions of web-savvy young "Beliebers."
Among other winners on Sunday, Walk Off the Earth, who have become an Internet sensation for their inventive cover versions of other artists' hits, took home Group of the Year.
Band member Gianni Luminati said he does not see the group, whose trademarks include non-traditonal instruments along with tight harmonies, as a run-of-the-mill touring rock 'n' roll band. He said the group is planning for a future that may include television and movie projects. "We see ourselves as a new-age Monkees," he said.
"We're just building an empire, basically," said Sarah Blackwood, Mr. Luminati's band-mate and partner.
Ms. Cara, the 19-year-old soul chanteuse from Brampton, Ont., won Breakthrough Artist of the Year and opened the broadcast with high-energy versions of her hits Here and Wild Things.
"I was just a regular girl living the most normal life and ever since I released one song I haven't lived the same day twice," she told the Scotiabank Saddledome crowd.
Dean Brody took home Country Album of the Year for Gypsy Road, the fifth record for the hard-working native of Smithers, B.C.
Hosted by Jann Arden and Jon Montgomery, the awards on Sunday capped off a whirlwind week of music in Calgary, offering some glitz and entertainment to a city undergoing a severe economic downturn due to the collapse in oil prices that has forced thousands of job cuts.
Besides the gala events, artists from across the country performed at venues large and small around town. The Junos also turned the spotlight on the new National Music Centre (NMC), a $190-million venue just east of downtown that will be home to the Canadian Music Hall of Fame as well as recording and performance studios.
Burton Cummings was named to the Hall of Fame in 2016. The former Guess Who front man and long-time solo artist, whose career has spanned five decades, lauded the shiny new NMC venue, due to open this summer, earlier in the week.
"It looks great on Calgary and it looks great on Canada," the 68-year-old said. "And I'm thrilled to be the first guy to be inducted in the new complex. That's Irish luck coming through for me again."
He dedicated his award to Winnipeg, where he got his start as a 17-year-old.
Jeffrey Jones