Who is Meghan Patrick? Get to know the Juno breakthrough artist nominee
The country musician is riding high on her first No. 1 single.
The Juno categories of breakthrough artist and group of the year have gone through a few different identities in their 45-year history, but what's never changed is the incredible pedigree of the categories' winners. A veritable who's who of now-established and future Canadian music industry icons have taken home these coveted Junos.
Breakthrough artist winners include Burton Cummings, k.d. lang, Colin James, Alanis Morissette, Jann Arden, Avril Lavigne, Michael Bublé, Feist, Drake, the Weeknd, Alessia Cara and Jessie Reyez. The list of breakthrough group winners is equally star-studded: Bachman-Turner Overdrive, Rush, Glass Tiger, the Tragically Hip, Nickelback, Alexisonfire and A Tribe Called Red.
Think of the Junos as an opportunity to survey just a little bit more of the country's music scene, its depth and breadth, and then keep checking back as CBC Music posts its handy primers for each artist and group, as well as some context to help deepen your appreciation of these great musicians.
Who: Meghan Patrick.
Where: Bowmanville, Ont.
Sound: Country-rock and country-pop.
Why they're nominated: The singer-songwriter released her solo debut album, 2016's Grace & Grit, and subsequently won two CCMA Awards. In 2018, she released her followup album, Country Music Made Me Do It, and scored her first No. 1 on the Canadian Country charts for the album's second single, "Walls Come Down."
Previously: She was lead singer of the now-defunct roots group the Stone Sparrows.
Fun fact: Patrick was classically trained in jazz and opera at McGill University..
Quote: "I was raised to be independent, strong, tough and not take any shit [laughs], but also to be kind and gracious. My mom actually ended up finding this necklace for me that said 'grace and grit' on it, and she gave it to me when I was leaving to go down to Nashville." — Patrick to Songfacts, 2018
'Walls Come Down' (2018)
'Bow Chicka Wow Wow' (2016)
'Still Loving You' ft. Joe Nichols (2016)
Wherever you are in the world, you can watch the 2019 Juno Awards on Sunday, March 17, broadcast live from London's Budweiser Gardens at 8 p.m. ET on CBC, CBC Radio and online at cbc.ca/junos.