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EARNED IT: WILL THE WEEKND WIN BIG

AT THE JUNO AWARDS?
With Canadian artists dominating the U.S. charts, the JUNO Awards, Canadas most
important night in music, will have more than enough talent to keep the competition
lively.
Nielsen music data shows that five homegrown artistsJustin Bieber, The Weeknd,
Drake, Yoan, and Jean Leloupall had albums among the 10 best-sellers in Canada in
2015; this is the highest share of local talent since 2006. These musicians, as well as
teen favorite and Canadian Shawn Mendes, also did well on charts around the world,
and a strong case can be made for each coming away a big winner from the show on
April 3.
So who has the inside track to take home the evenings top trophies? Based on
nominations, The Weeknd has certainly earned it. The R&B phenomenon has the most
nods in the major categories (six), including Fan Choice, Single of the Year and Album
of the Year.
Data from the Nielsen 2015 Canada Music Year-End Report shows The Weeknd had
four of the top 10 most streamed songs performed by a Canadian artist; he also had
the top two digital songs in 2015 by Canadian artist (Cant Feel My Face and The
Hills).
This success maps to larger Canadian music consumption trends, Nielsen data shows.
R&B and rap had a big 2015, posting the largest sales increases of any genres
compared with 2014 (rap was up 23%; R&B was up 9%). Moreover, in the second half
of 2015 on-demand digital streaming in Canada jumped by 114% compared with the
second half of 2014. According to previous Nielsen research, young Canadians are
driving the digital shift, with these young consumers spending twice as much time
streaming music as the general Canadian population.
While The Weeknd clearly tapped into the spirit of the times and had a breakout year in
2015, he still faces stiff competition at the JUNO Awards from fellow nominees who
also had an impressive year.

EARNED IT: WILL THE WEEKND WIN BIG AT THE JUNO AWARDS?

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Justin Bieber had the top selling album in 2015 of any Canadian artist and came in
second overall to Adele. In fact, Justin Bieber has sold 1.57 million albums release-todate in Canada. The Biebs also had the most streamed song of 2015What Do You
Mean? and its nominated for Single of the Yearand he is the most streamed JUNOnominated artist, with 242 million streams release-to-date.

Finally, dont forget about Drake. Data from Nielsens Homescan Panel shows that the
pride of Toronto has more fans in Canadian households than any other Album of the
Year nominee.

EARNED IT: WILL THE WEEKND WIN BIG AT THE JUNO AWARDS?

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So, which artist will come out on top? That remains to be seen. One thing is clear,
though: Canadian music artistsand their fanshave already won big over the past
year.

EARNED IT: WILL THE WEEKND WIN BIG AT THE JUNO AWARDS?