Tate McRae and Josh Ross lead Juno Award nominees with five each

Tate McRae, centre, performs during the iHeartRadio Music Awards, Monday, April 1, 2024, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP/Chris Pizzello

TORONTO — Pop performer Tate McRae and country star Josh Ross are leading contenders at the 2025 Juno Awards.

The Calgary-raised McRae and Burlington, Ont.-native Ross each have five nominations, including in the single and artist of the year categories, as well as for the viewer-voted fan choice award.

Both artists are also up for album of the year -- McRae for her sophomore record “Think Later,” and Ross for “Complicated.”

They’re trailed by fellow fan choice nominees Shawn Mendes and the Weeknd who each hold four noms.

Other big nominees this year are Karan Aujla and AP Dhillon, two breakout stars of the Punjabi music scene. They’re both nominated three times, including in the newly minted South Asian music recording of the year category.

The Junos air live on CBC from Vancouver on March 30 with crooner Michael Buble as host.

Rock band Sum 41 was previously announced as the Canadian Music Hall of Fame inductee after the Ajax, Ont., act recently wrapped their farewell tour.

Matthew Samuels, better known as Toronto producer Boi-1da, will receive the international achievement award for a career that includes working on Drake’s first mixtape.

Burlington, Ont.-native Sarah Harmer is this year’s humanitarian award recipient for her support of environmental and human rights issues.

By David Friend

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