2014 | Album of the Year (Sponsored by Music Canada) | Drake | | The JUNO Awards

Aubrey Drake Graham stepped out as a rapper and singer with pop appeal in 2006, when he initiated a series of mixtapes. He raised his profile throughout the next several months by popping up on countless mixtapes and remixes, and as rumours swirled about contract offers from labels, he gradually became one of the most talked-about artists in the industry. It did not hurt that he had support from the likes of Kanye West, Jay-Z, and Lil Wayne. By the end of June 2009, "Best I Ever Had," a promotional single, had climbed to number two on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. After a fierce bidding war, Drake signed with Universal Motown in late summer and released an EP (So Far Gone) made up of songs from his popular So Far Gone mix tape. It peaked at number six on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart and won a 2010 JUNO Award for Rap Recording of the Year. Thank Me Later, a full-length featuring collaborations with the Kings of Leon, the-Dream, Jay-Z, Kanye West, and Lil Wayne, was issued through Young Money the following year.