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- CTV News
Junos introduce Latin music category in effort to recognize more Canadian-made sounds
A woman awaits for the Juno Awards nominees announcement to start in Toronto on Tuesday, Feb. 6, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette TORONTO — The Juno Awards are adding a dash of Latin flavour to next year's festivities. Organizers at Canada's biggest music awards show say they plan to introduce Latin music recording of the year at the 2026 edition. The new category will recognize Canadian musicians across all Latin American languages and genres who've released music in the eligible year. It's the latest move by the Junos to diversify how it recognizes Canadian creators and the evolving national music scene. Last year, the Junos added a South Asian music category, while in 2022 it split the Indigenous category in two to honour both contemporary and traditional Indigenous artists. The 2026 Junos are set to take place in Hamilton with the main show broadcast from Hamilton Arena, formerly FirstOntario Centre, which is finishing off a $290-million renovation. Another tweak is being made to the rap categories, which answers calls for clarity around the involvement of Canadian MCs. The revised rules state that vocalists on releases eligible in the rap single and rap album or EP categories must be Canadian citizens or permanent residents This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 5, 2025. David Friend, The Canadian Press


CTV News
an hour ago
- CTV News
‘Tremendous support': Tickets sold out for Edmonton Folk Music Festival
A crowd enjoys the sights and sounds of Edmonton Folk Music Festival at Gallagher Park on August 8, 2024. (Brandon Lynch/CTV News Edmonton) If you were looking for a last-minute ticket to the Edmonton Folk Music Festival, you are unfortunately out of luck. The festival announced Tuesday afternoon that all personal passes and single tickets have been sold. 'We are so pleased with the tremendous support we've received over the past few years and particularly this year,' said festival producer Terry Wickham. 'We sold our last available ticket at 1:59 p.m. today.' But not all hope is lost. The festival has an official ticket exchange to buy and sell tickets that can no longer be used. Tickets are sold on the exchange at face value plus a service charge. Full festival passes and tickets for Saturday sold out just days after they went on sale in early June. The festival kicks off its 45th year Thursday evening at Gallagher Park.


CTV News
an hour ago
- CTV News
Alberta's stuffed gopher museum turns 30 years old
Stuffed gophers on display at the World Famous Gopher Hole Museum in Torrington, Alta. (Marek Tkach / CTV News Edmonton) The World Famous Gopher Hole Museum in central Alberta is marking 30 years of presenting its local history in a wacky, albeit memorable, way. 'I don't know what's wrong with people,' joked director Laural Kurta when asked in a recent interview to explain the museum's popularity. Between May and October – while only offering daily hours during July and August – the museum of stuffed gophers in Torrington counts about 15,000 visitors. Anthropomorphic taxidermy is the official name for the dioramas depicting the history of the hamlet. 'I think part of it is that people just don't have enough to laugh at,' Kurta speculates. Scenes from the community and its past become comical with the stuffed rodents taking the place of humans, be it in church, on a sheet of curling ice, or working at long-closed businesses. World Famous Gopher Hole Museum Torrington Stuffed gophers on display at the World Famous Gopher Hole Museum in Torrington, Alta. (Marek Tkach / CTV News Edmonton) 'At one point, there were three stores, three restaurants, a comic book store, arcade (and) pool hall. It was a busy, busy little place. But after the railway lines were lifted, the grain elevators went down, people had to take their grain to further markets outside of this community and everything here started to close,' Kurta explained, noting it's a story familiar to many agricultural communities across the Canadian prairies. 'For us in particular, it's left us with virtually nothing. Yet, thousands of people come every year for this ridiculous gopher museum, and we're glad that we're able to give them some kind of joy that way.' The museum was created in 1995 with a $9,000 grant from the provincial government to develop a tourist attraction to boost local business. Since then, it has been fully funded by admission profits. World Famous Gopher Hole Museum Torrington The World Famous Gopher Hole Museum in Torrington, Alta., on July 30, 2025. (Marek Tkach / CTV News Edmonton) Its opening made international headlines due to protests by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) over the use of the dead animals – but that is precisely the museum's draw. 'We've been, for three years, talking about this place,' said one museum visitor, Tom Higdon. His partner, Karen Leonhardt, added, 'I don't know how many gopher museums there are in the world, but certainly there aren't a lot. … It was just a chance to do something very unique and very local.' Higdon said the museum saw a steady flow of people on the day they visited with their grandchildren. 'It's like that movie, Field of Dreams. Build it and they will come, right?' The museum has also sat on the bucket list of Tina Lorenz for a while, who called it 'as ridiculous and awesome as it sounds.' 'I had a blast with how whimsical the dioramas are,' Lorenz told CTV News Edmonton. 'When you look at things to do in Alberta, they talk about all the big things, like the sausage and the egg and the (Vulcan) Star Trek thing. This is iconic Alberta. You definitely want to come here.' World Famous Gopher Hole Museum Torrington Stuffed gophers on display at the World Famous Gopher Hole Museum in Torrington, Alta. (Marek Tkach / CTV News Edmonton) Although Kurta's parents were among the museum's founding members and they managed it for two-and-a-half decades, she once swore she'd never be involved with the place. Five years ago, she was sucked into managing it by circumstance and now finds herself at the helm while the museum looks for a new home in Torrington due to a wasp and maple bug problem. It took 30 years, but she has come to recognize both the museum's significance and charm. 'It's really important to represent what used to be here. So it's not so much a vanity project for us, but it is telling stories that people are no longer around to tell,' Kurta said. 'I never wanted anything to do with this place, but I can stand back to the side and just listen to people laugh, and that truly is a gift.' With files from CTV News Edmonton's Marek Tkach