Red carpet rolled out at Rogers Place for 2023 Juno Awards

A week of anticipation and celebration came to a head Monday night at Rogers Place.

The red carpet rolled out and fans and limousines lined the streets in downtown Edmonton for the 2023 Juno Awards.

"I think Nickelback is going to be pretty good tonight," said Nicole Zandbergen, a self-proclaimed super fan. "My mind has just been racing. I'm just so, so excited for them.

"I've seen them so many times in concerts. I've been a fan for over 20 years."

Nickelback is just one of the many big names who performed Monday night for the finale of Junos Week, which Explore Edmonton estimated will bring an economic impact of between $12 and $13 million to the city.

'STRONG DIVERSITY OF ARTISTS': MAYOR

"It's such a good feeling that we're able to highlight Edmonton, and Edmonton artists and our beautiful venues to the national and to the international community," said Mayor Amarjeet Sohi.

Sohi said before the show that he was looking forward to seeing all the emerging musicians from Alberta as well as so many Indigenous artists take the stage, including several local groups.

"That is so exciting that we have such a strong diversity of artists from every community and they're thriving and they're working hard to highlight their potential and what they have to offer," he added.

Some of the guests arriving at Rogers Place had wins already in hand after the Juno Opening Night Awards took place at the Edmonton Expo Centre on Saturday.

First-time nominees and winners of Traditional Indigenous Artist or Group of Year, the Bearhead Sisters from Paul First Nation walked the red carpet in ribbon skirts made by their aunt.

"[The album] is called unbreakable," said Allie Bearhead. "We put a lot of heart and soul into this whole album that we did. It represents sisterhood, womanhood and togetherness."

The sibling trio said it was touching to hear their name called out on Saturday.

"It was incredible, especially to hear our last name Bearhead," said Carly Bearhead. "It lives on from our grandfather Steven Bearhead, so it was a true honour to hear that come up."

'FULL CIRCLE TONIGHT': TENILLE TOWNES

Now two-time Juno winner Tenille Townes from Grande Prairie also arrived with a win already in hand for Country Album of the Year.

"This is such a cool full circle tonight," Townes said. "I was here at the Junos the last time they were in Edmonton, watching as a kid in the nosebleed section. So this is pretty surreal to be a part of the show tonight."

Townes said having the awards so close to home means lots of friends and family in the stands for her special moment.

"It's so wonderful to feel that Alberta spirit," she added. "Everybody always shows up in such a special way."

One of the most anticipated acts of the night was Nickelback, the newest inductees into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame.

Frontman Chad Kroeger said it would be an honour anywhere, but having it happen so close to home makes it even sweeter.

"The fact that it's in the home province, that's icing on the cake right there," Kroeger said. "To be accepting it here is just such a wonderful added feature."

There to play wingman for the band was Oilers' captain Connor McDavid, who will join the band during their induction.

"It's really cool. Obviously super proud to be living in Edmonton and represent the Oilers and the city," McDavid said. "Any time the light shines on Edmonton it's always a good thing."

THE SHOW

The awards opened with a song by Calgary pop star Tate McRae, who was nominated for five 2023 Juno awards, and a shoutout to Mayor Amarjeet Sohi from host Simu Liu.

"As a Torontonian myself, how do I put this?" Liu asked the crowd. "Let me just say how refreshing it is to see a mayor not do crack in an underpass or engage in a very uncomfortable sexual scandal.

"Toronto should take note, I think."

There was some unexpected excitement for Avril Lavigne, when a topless protestor briefly interrupted the Canadian pop icon on stage.

In a Juno first, Indo-Canadian rapper AP-Dhillon performed in Punjabi with St. Albert musician Riley Chernoff on the drums.

A noticably absent Weeknd won Album of The Year, making it five total Juno wins in 2023 for the Toronto artist. 

Alexisonfire did a set for the first time in 16 years, and Tenille Townes and Anishinaabe also performed before Nickelback was officially inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame.

To introduce the band, Connor McDavid took the stage to chants of "MVP."

"Before we say anything, how badass is it to be in Edmonton and have the best hockey player in the world right now give that award to us?" Chad Kroeger asked the crowd.

Rêve, Preston Pablo, Banx and Ranx and Jesse Reyez also performed before a 50th-anniversary of Canadian hip-hop was led by Kardinal Offishall.

To end the evening, Nickelback returned to the stage for a pyrotechnic performance of some of the band's biggest hits over the last two decades.

"It was so absolutely incredible," said Juno attendee Jennie Marshall. "Honestly, I really loved seeing Connor McDavid get the biggest cheer of the entire night giving the award to Nickelback.

"To have a little piece of Edmonton showcased at the Junos was incredible." 

With files from CTV News Edmonton's Sean Amato, Nahreman Issa and Sean McClune