A Change Of Hart: Corey Headed For Juno Hall Of Fame

By David Farrell

The Boy In the Box Is the New Kid In Canada’s Hall of Fame

“It’s an incredible honour to be acknowledged alongside so many other talented and venerable Canadian artists.

"My career goal since the beginning has always been to remain one hundred percent authentic to my artistic vision while embodying the highest respect and dedication towards the craft I love so much.

"It’s even more symbolic to receive this recognition as I release my first collection of new studio music and prepare to embark on my first national Canadian tour in over 20 years - these are indeed…very exciting times for me.” – Corey Hart

Corey Hart’s global success in the ‘80s earned him a stack of smash hits that helped to sell millions of albums in rapid succession, but the demands of fame and the unwanted adulation as a teen heartthrob proved overwhelming for the introspective Montrealer.

A decade after the release of the career-launching hit, “Sunglasses At Night,” Hart married Quebec singer Julie Masse, fled fame and disappeared, first to the Bahamas, and then to Spain where the two raised a family of four kids.

The itch for a saner life as an artist percolated as the kids grew up, and he’s been slowly plotting his comeback for the past 10 years. The stepping stones included releasing a few sides, producing a couple of records, raising his profile with a Walk of Fame induction in 2016, and putting himself back in the stage lights with a 16-city national tour that runs May through June. The end-cap is his induction into the Juno Hall of Fame in a televised Juno Awards presentation in London, ON, on March 17.

The announcement of his induction today coincides with the release of the single “Dreaming Time Again” that teases the release of a May 3 EP produced by fellow Canadian Hall of Fame inductee Bob Ezrin.

And here’s the official press release:

 Toronto — The Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS) and CBC are thrilled to announce legendary singer-songwriter Corey Hart as the 2019 inductee into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame. Hart, who has sold over 16 million albums worldwide, will be officially inducted into The Canadian Music Hall of Fame during the 2019 Juno Awards on Sunday, March 17. To celebrate his induction, Hart will take the stage at Budweiser Gardens to perform on live television for the first time in over 20 years. Fans from across the world can tune in to this special performance as part of the 2019 Juno Awards broadcast live on CBC, CBC Radio, the free CBC Gem streaming service in Canada, and globally at cbcmusic.ca/Junos.

The Canadian Music Hall of Fame was established by CARAS in 1978 to acknowledge artists that have made an outstanding contribution to the international recognition of Canadian music. Hart will join the ranks of Canadian music icons including Anne Murray, Joni Mitchell, k.d. lang, Leonard Cohen, Neil Young, Oscar Peterson, RUSH, The Guess Who, The Tragically Hip, and Shania Twain.

A new exhibition honouring Hart, in partnership with CARAS, will launch at Studio Bell, home of the National Music Centre in Calgary.

Corey Hart, John Wagner

“I am deeply humbled by this invitation into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame,” said Hart. “It’s an incredible honour to be acknowledged alongside so many other talented and venerable Canadiana artists.

"My career goal since the beginning has always been to remain one hundred percent authentic to my artistic vision while embodying the highest respect and dedication towards the craft I love so much.

"It's even more symbolic to receive this recognition as I release my first collection of new studio music and prepare to embark on my first national Canadian tour in over 20 years - these are indeed…very exciting times for me.”

“We are proud to welcome Corey into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame,” said Allan Reid, President & CEO, CARAS/The Juno Awards & MusiCounts. “He was one of the biggest Canadian success stories of the eighties and nineties, and even though he stepped back from the spotlight, he remained active in writing and producing for other artists. We look forward to celebrating him at The 2019 Juno Awards in London.”

Hailing from Montreal, Quebec, Hart started singing at the age of 11, performing alongside the likes of Tom Jones and Paul Anka. In 1981, at the age of 18, Hart sent tapes of his songs to the Montreal Forum addressed to Billy Joel and his bandmates. What followed speedily set his career in motion: the band’s saxophone player called Hart, and he spent the following summer playing gigs with members of the Billy Joel Band and quickly began performing solo and writing songs.

In 1983, Hart released his debut album, First Offense, which took off in Canada, the U.S. and internationally, becoming a monumental success. The album gave the world the iconic song “Sunglasses at Night,” and the video for the song was both a staple on MTV and won the first-ever Juno Award for Best Video in 1984. The following year, Hart released his sophomore album, Boy in The Box, which achieved Diamond status certification (1 million-plus sales) faster than any other Canadian artist in history. The album had four hit singles, including “Never Surrender,” which was number one in Canada for nine weeks and won Single of the Year at the 1985 Juno Awards.

The international sensation “Sunglasses at Night” combined with his handsome James Dean persona, propelled him to be adulated by frenzied fans throughout the ‘80s and ‘90s. Hart performed in arenas around the world, and in 1985, sold out the 25,000 capacity CNE Grandstand in Toronto. Hart has sold over 16 million records around the world, has had nine consecutive singles on the U.S. Billboard top 40 and has had 11 top 10s in Canada. Hart has been nominated for a Grammy, as well as ASCAP, ADISQ, SOCAN, and Juno Awards.

In 1999, Hart took a hiatus from touring and recording to focus his energy and time on his children and wife, singer Julie Masse. Although out of the spotlight, Hart wrote and produced several songs for 20-time Juno winner Céline Dion. In 2003, Hart started a record label partnership with Warner Music Canada called Siena Records, where he continues to act as president. In 2014, after 12 years off from live performing, Hart made a comeback in his hometown at the Montreal Bell Centre Arena with a marathon set called “One Night – Three Decades of Music.” At the same time, he launched his autobiography, Chasing the Sun.

Today, Corey Hart releases "Dreaming Time Again," the first official single from his forthcoming EP of the same name, produced by the legendary Bob Ezrin. The Dreaming Time Again EP, releasing on May 3, 2019, is Hart’s first new music in 20 years and comes ahead of his cross-Canada Never Surrender Tour set to begin May 31 (his birthday) in St. John's, NFLD. Tickets for the Never Surrender Tour are available at www.coreyhart.com, and all will include a free download of the Dreaming Time Again EP. Watch the official video for “Dreaming Time Again” here.

Milestones: Corey Hart, a new exhibition at Studio Bell - the physical home to the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in Calgary, Alberta - opens on March 22, 2019, and will run until October 2019. It captures the stories behind some of Hart’s biggest career breakthroughs and features memorable artifacts from the singer-songwriter’s past, including handwritten lyric books and the signature Wayfarer sunglasses that he wore in his “Sunglasses at Night” video. Bonus fan messages provided by Hart will be sprinkled throughout the exhibition and can be viewed using interactive “sunglasses”.

The 48th annual Juno Awards and Juno Week 2019 will be hosted in London from March 11 through March 17, 2019, culminating in The JUNO Awards, on Sunday, March 17, at Budweiser Gardens, broadcast live at 8 PM ET on CBC, CBC Radio, on the free CBC Gem streaming service in Canada, and globally at cbcmusic.ca/Junos.