Tenille Townes at the 2019 Billboard Women In Music (Photo: StarStock / dreamstime.com)

By Shaun Penner

First career JUNO

Townes wins 2021 JUNO for Country Album of the Year

Jun 5, 2021 | 10:12 AM

Grande Prairie’s Tenille Townes has claimed her first career JUNO award win.

On Friday, Townes was awarded the County Album of the Year Award for The Lemonade Stand during the opening night awards ceremony. Townes beat out MacKenzie Porter, Lindsay Ell, Jade Eagleson and Dallas Smith for the honour.

This comes after Townes was nominated for two JUNO’s in 2020, but did not claim the award for either Breakthrough Artist of the Year or Songwriter of the Year.

Townes’ trophy case continues to fill up, as the JUNO win adds to her seven Canadian Country Music Association award wins. She has also claimed two Academy of Country Music awards in her young career, as well as a Country Music Association Award.

The Junos Opening Night Awards, as they were billed, took the place of the usual in-person gala dinner that happens over JUNOs weekend. Awards in 37 of the categories were handed out ahead of Sunday’s broadcast on CBC-TV.

The 50th-anniversary show was hosted by CBC Music’s Angeline Tetteh-Wayoe with pre-taped performances.

The winners were announced live with many of them appearing over webcam to accept their awards.

(With files from the Canadian Press)