After criticism: Juno Awards declare Arcade Fire’s nomination for Band of the Year

The Juno Awards are a kind of Canadian version of the Grammys. They have been awarded since 1970. Past winners in the Group of the Year category include Tegan & Sara, Nickelback, Billy Talent and, five times already, Arkells. Arcade Fire also received the award in this category in 2011, and they have been honored with eleven Juno Awards in their career so far.

This year they were nominated again with their album WE. It was criticized for that. The background: Allegations were made against singer Win Butler in the summer of 2022. He was guilty of sexual misconduct and assault, research by Pitchfork found. Butler himself confirmed the allegations. However, he denied that all incidents had taken place consensually.

Beck and Feist then canceled their support slots. Arcade Fire went on tour anyway, they also gave a concert in Berlin, here is our review.

The Canadian Academy Of Recording Arts And Sciences has now defended Arcade Fire’s nomination. In a statement, they said: “Arcade Fire’s nomination for Group of the Year is for the entire band. We take the allegations very seriously, but give credit to the rest of the band for their success. We hope the allegations against Butler don’t detract from what the other band members have accomplished.”

This year’s Juno Awards will be presented on March 13, 2023.

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