Apr
01
So it’s now Wednesday and I’m STILL recovering from Juno weekend in Vancouver, but it was well worth the trip (and residual exhaustion).
I landed on Friday night and headed immediately to the Backstage Lounge on Granville Island to see a showcase of bands from Victoria, B.C. Neil Osborne, lead singer of 54-40, was in the crowd to watch his daughters’ band The Blue Violets.
The star spotting continued at the Artist Sanctuary VIP Lounge at the Loden Hotel on Saturday. Greeted at the door by several Barenaked Ladies, I headed upstairs to the swag rooms where Great Big Sea were perusing a rack of Ben Sherman gear. As I moved on to get my nails done by the ladies from Absolute Spa I spotted Juno host Russell Peters enroute to grab some freebies (before “vogueing” for the cameras).
Russell Peters striking a pose. Photo by George Pimentel
I moved on to the Tastemakers Lounge at the Shangri-La Hotel where stars could have their lashes done by noir lash lounge and pick up some amazing Cosabella panties from Ben Mulroney’s new wife Jessica who is now distributing the chic Italian undergarments in Canada.
Sunday was all about prepping for the post-Juno parties. I headed to Blo Blow Dry Bar at the Four Seasons Hotel to get a gorgeous updo (at around $30, this is the deal of the century…and it was still looking pretty at 2am!).
After the awards show I hit the Warner Music Canada & Flare Magazine party at The Warehouse Studio (where Bryan Adams does his recording). I grabbed a glass of wine and turned around to see Michael Buble who called me a “fancy lady”, attempted to limbo under a underneath a platter of grilled cheese sandwiches held by a caterer, then hit the stage to sing a few tunes with Divine Brown (who won a Juno for best R&B/Soul Recording of Year) and Ron Sexsmith.
Michael Buble, Divine Brown and Ron Sexsmith performing together at the Warner/Flare party. Photo by George Pimentel
The live music continued into the night with performances by the Barenaked Ladies’ Ed Robertson, Luke Doucet, and Barney Bentall’s son Dustin Bentall.
I ended the night ended at EMI’s post-awards show party, where Nickelback’s Chad Kroeger was celebrating his band’s three-award winning streak.
Check back tomorrow for more Juno photos.
– Jen O’Brien
