Before the Juno Awards come to Ottawa at the end of the month, its producer came to Carleton March 7 to speak to students about building up the Junos over the past decade.
Getting the Junos to where they are now has been a whirlwind trip from the start, said Juno producer Melanie Berry, who was invited to Carleton by the Sprott School of Business.
Berry said when she was hired, she was “very conscience of being the young, blonde, female president.”
Hired just five months before the 2002 Junos, Berry’s first day happened to be a press conference where she met everyone all at once.
“The line was, “I’ll call you on Monday.” It was pretty intense,” she said.
Since landing her “dream job” as president and CEO of Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS) in October 2002, she said she’s successfully brought the Juno brand to new heights.
Last year’s Juno Awards in Toronto were the best yet, with 2.4 million viewers and $14 million return on the initial investment.
Berry said the revenue, audience, and nominee numbers are expanding every year and “worldwide recognition is following.”
The 2012 “homecoming” Juno Awards in Ottawa will be no exception, she said. Spanning March 26 to April 1, Juno week consists of dozens of events across the Ottawa-Gatineau region that lead up to the main event: awards night.
Junofest, a fan favourite which features local, regional, and national artists will be held March 30-31 and Pandemonium, an exclusive concert for university students, will take place March 28. The Arkells and Lights have already been slotted to perform at Pandemonium at the Ottawa Civic Centre.
“We have something for everyone,” Berry said. “Music is the common thread that links them together.”
The Junos are much more than an awards ceremony. Since 2002, the Juno Awards have travelled coast-to-coast. In the past five years, host cities have all received 10 times the return on the capital of their initial investment, she said.
“The Junos serve as living proof how culture and commerce are mutually beneficial,” she said.
While the Junos have been skyrocketing financially, they’ve still remained not-for profit. The Junos have extended financial support from the music industry to not-for-profits like MusiCounts, a charity that promotes music education. MusiCounts has raised $5 million to date, giving 12 Ottawa schools $125,000 towards rebuilding band programs.
“[It’s a] cultural and economic investment for our future,” she said.
With so many projects on the go, Berry said it’s her great team of co-workers and her passion for her job that keeps her going.
“It certainly isn’t always easy,” she said. “But I’m still here.”
