Meet The Juno Awards Host: Russell Peters

02/06/08 6:30pm

by Noah Love (CHARTattack)

Russell Peters has exploded on the comedy scene over the last year, selling out two nights at Toronto's Air Canada Centre in 2007 and then turning the trick again at Madison Square Garden in New York City last weekend. As the host of this year's Juno Awards show, he follows in the footsteps of such luminaries as Pamela Anderson, Brent Butt, Alanis Morissette, Shania Twain and Barenaked Ladies.

ChartAttack: Don't be modest, how do you feel about being the host?
Russell Peters: It feels pretty good. We're gonna see how the people feel after we host the show, you know? We'll see what happens then.

What was your musical highlight of the last year?
What year?

Last year.
What, for me? You mean in Canadian music?

Canadian or otherwise.
There's never been a Canadian music highlight. Wait, Maestro Fresh Wes, "Let Your Backbone Slide," 1988.

Let's simplify: What was your career highlight last year?
I don't know, lots of great things happened to me in the past year. Um, so many things… I guess doing the Air Canada Centre was a highlight for me — 30,000 people over two nights, that was a real emotional, great time.

Triumph are this year's Canadian Music Hall Of Fame inductees. What's your favourite Triumph song?
I don't remember any of the names of their songs, but I have all their albums. They all have Vs on them — like a guitar, stretched out, with a V. I totally remember Triumph. [Note: This wasn't a guess, Peters was largely correct.]

Feist or Avril, who wins in a cage fight?
I don't know what Feist looks like. Is she small like Avril? I don't know. Her name's Feist, she probably has a little more feist than Avril. Avril's been rich for a long time, she might have softened up. She's married, right?