In less than a week, some of the biggest names in Canada’s music industry will descend upon Vancouver for the 2009 Juno Week and Juno Awards.
The four-day-long celebration of homegrown music — which kicks off on Thursday and includes free street parties and concerts — culminates on Sunday with the awards ceremony at GM Place.
“We’ve done other festivals but (this is) certainly the biggest music celebration we’ve ever had,” said Bob D’Eith, executive director of the Junos’ host committee.
“(The Junos) have grown from an awards show to an entire week of events.”
The celebrations kick off at 4 p.m. on Thursday for the WestJet Street Party on Granville Street.
The free event — which will be under tents in case of rain — runs until Sunday and includes concerts, vendors and DJs.
Friday night features the Juno Cup, which pits NHL alumni against musicians at UBC Thunderbird Arena, and the Juno Awards Welcome Reception at the Commodore Ballroom.
Spectators can also catch one of 19 JunoFest concerts around the city featuring 100 local and national artists on Friday and Saturday nights.
The grand finale is the awards ceremony on Sunday at 3:30 p.m.
Where else can you catch performances by Bryan Adams, Sarah McLachlan, Sam Roberts, Nickelback and stand-up comic Russell Peters in one night for around $100, asked D’Eith.
“You’d have to spend thousands of dollars to see them all in one place,” he said.
Tickets to the show are still available.
For more information visit www.junoawards.ca.
