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Concerts

Billy Joel Announces First Toronto Show in Over a Decade

Nathaniel Rateliff, Jorja Smith, and Nate Smith have also announced upcoming Canadian dates.

Billy Joel

Billy Joel

Myrna Suárez

Billy Joel will be playing Toronto's Rogers Centre next year.

The legendary piano man is set to return to Toronto on March 15. The stadium show will be his first performance in the Canadian metropolis in 11 years and his only Canadian performance in 2025.


Joel is one of the industry's most popular artists, with 160 million records sold worldwide and 23 Grammy nominations to his name. He'll serenade the Rogers Centre thirty years after he last played there, in March 1995. Tickets go on sale October 25, with presale beginning Oct. 21.

Also announced this week: Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats will be bringing their brand of Americana to several Canadian cities in the new year. Touring their new album South of Here, they'll perform in Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg, Ottawa and Toronto in February and March 2025. Tickets go on sale Oct. 25, with presale beginning Oct. 22.

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American country singer Nate Smith is bringing his Through the Smoke tour to Toronto and Hamilton on March 28 and April 1 respectively, with tickets on sale Friday, Oct. 18. Smith's had a recent breakout and is performing particularly well in Canada, with his new album California Gold debuting at No. 45 this week on the Billboard Canadian Albums chart, 20 spots higher than in the U.S.

Another Smith just announced a Toronto show for next year: English singer Jorja Smith will perform at Massey Hall on March 4, her only Canadian stop on a North American tour. The new tour dates arrive alongside the deluxe edition of her album falling or flying, with features from popular U.K. acts like Craig David and Nia Archives. Tickets are on sale now.

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Amber Still, executive director of the Polaris Music Prize
Johanna Stickland

Amber Still, executive director of the Polaris Music Prize

Awards

‘Protect the Prize’: The Polaris Music Prize Undergoes Its Biggest Period of Change

Now entering its third decade, the Canadian critic’s prize has expanded its voting pool, adjusted to financial constraints and expanded to award both albums and songs. After years defined by its refined focus, the changes mark a major expansion of the organization’s mission.

In 2025, the Polaris Music Prize celebrated its 20th anniversary. Entering its third decade, the award is undergoing what might be its biggest period of change. From funding to voting process, the organization is continuing to evolve.

The cultural not-for-profit organization has spent the better part of two decades creating a space in the industry for Canadian acts to be recognized based solely artistic merit, rather than sales, genre or support from a record label. Founded in the 2000s as Canada's answer to the Mercury Prize, the organization became a registered Canadian charity in 2017.

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