Twenty-six years after he met his wife at the 1993 Juno Awards, Corey Hart returned with his entire family, to be inducted to the Canadian Music Hall of Fame. In introducing the '80s icon, the show's host, Sarah McLachlan, told the sweet story of how Hart met his wife of nearly 20 years, Quebec singer Julie Masse. It was a last-minute scheduling change: he had initially been tapped to present the 1993 Juno for Video of the Year, but didn't think it made sense for a musician to present a visual prize. So the producers paired him up with Masse to present the award for Group of the Year (the award, if you're wondering, went to the Barenaked Ladies). The Canadian Press via Juno Awards / Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences Corey Hart and his wife Julie Masse in the 90s. The two had palpable chemistry onstage. After the ceremony, Masse's manager made a comment about their stage presence. Hart ended up producing one of her songs, they fell in love, and the rest is history. "Literally from the time we started seeing each other in the summer of 1994, we've never been apart for more than a few days," Hart said in a pre-Junos interview with The Canadian Press. During his acceptance speech, a visibly emotional Hart referenced the special meaning the awards have for his family. "Without music or the Junos, I would have never met my precious Julie," he said. By the late '90s, the couple had three young daughters, and Hart took time off from touring and recording to raise his kids. He also mentioned that in his speech, following a comment from McLachlan about how when he was faced with the choice between his family and the spotlight, Hart "chose love." He thanked his daughters India, Dante and River, as well as his son, Rain. "As a songwriter, I can honestly say that those are the greatest songs that I'll ever write," he said. His wife and his four children, who accompanied him to the awards, were wiping away tears in the crowd as he spoke. He also thanked his fans. "Without you my songs would have no home, and they would ultimately be unrequited and empty," he said. "I believe music and love are the most enduring and powerful forces of good in the world." Jessie Reyez, who was onstage just after Hart, picked up on that message. While accepting her Juno for R&B/Soul Recording of the Year after Hart's induction, Reyez told the crowd, "To quote Mr. Hart, without y'all, there's no home for my songs." Hart closed out the show with a stripped-down piano performance of "Never Surrender" followed by crowd-pleaser, "Sunglasses At Night," which involved him, yes, wearing sunglasses. That fun-loving quality was present in his speech, where he also said "I'm very proud to be Canadian and very proud to be a musician," before he thanked the crowd "from the bottom of my heart — no pun intended." With files from David Friend at The Canadian Press<doc-sep>Share this Story: Corey Hart back in a big way Corey Hart back in a big way He plays the Sudbury Arena on June 10 Photo by DEAN PILLING / DEAN PILLING/POSTMEDIA Article content By Jane Stevenson Corey Hart may have advised fans to Never Surrender in his 1985 hit, but in real life, he let go of his music career two decades ago. We apologize, but this video has failed to load. Try refreshing your browser. Corey Hart back in a big way Back to video The 2019 inductee into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame at this year’s Juno Awards stopped making records and touring in 1998 to be a full-time dad to his four kids with wife Julie Masse. “My type of job does not permit me to have the luxury of me coming home and having dinner (every night),” said Hart, now 56 and sporting lighter-coloured hair (and a beard) than his ‘80s heartthrob heyday. “And I had a choice to make: Either continue doing that and be a tourist dad (or stopping) because I didn’t grow up having my dad in my life and I did not want my kids to have the same experience.” We apologize, but this video has failed to load. Try refreshing your browser. Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content But now the Montreal native with such hits as Sunglasses At Night is back in a big way. First up was the Canadian Music Hall of Fame honour, which also saw him perform at the Junos for the first time since the ‘80s. That was followed on May 3 by a new EP, Dreaming Time Again, produced by Toronto’s Bob Ezrin (Alice Cooper, KISS) and featuring Blue Rodeo’s Jim Cuddy on the track First Rodeo and a 17-city Canadian tour starting on May 31 that marks his first trek since 1986. He’s at the Sudbury Arena on June 10. Pick up tickets in person at the Sudbury Arena Box Office, 240 Elgin St., online at www.greatersudbury.ca/tickets, and by telephone at 705-671-3000. Reserved seating is $109, $85 and $55. Limited VIP tickets also available; visit greatersudbury.ca/tickets for details. Q. It sounds like being a child of divorce really affected your parenting? A. My parents split up when I was nine or 10 and I only saw my dad three or four days a year. There was very little communication. He wasn’t a bad man, but I think by the time me and my older brother had come around, he had decided that he just didn’t really want to be around. He passed away in 2004. Q. So we can credit your mother that you didn’t lose your mind during your ‘80s heyday? A. My dad abused drugs a lot. And I saw a lot of things that a little kid shouldn’t see … So I decided really early on in my life that I was never going to drink. I was never going to do drugs. I’m a teetotaller. In the music business that’s like weird on steroids. So, all in all, I think that that helped when I went through what you were alluding to – the ‘80s. It was quite a phenomenon. Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content Q. So how are you feeling about re-entry into the music business? A. I never thought that I would be doing this again. It wasn’t some plan to say that after a certain point I would return to doing what I used to do. It’s unfolded in a very magical way in the last year. We apologize, but this video has failed to load. Try refreshing your browser. Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content Q. You seem incredibly excited about that Canadian Music Hall of Fame induction despite being a music vet? A. I think of all the names that are there that preceded me – legends, absolute legends. And to think that I’m in that company is mind-blowing. Q. You performed what you said would be your farewell concert at Montreal’s Bell Centre in 2014 but now you’re back on tour. What changed your mind? A. I did the show and then as the years progressed, slowly the stars started to align. I’m going to be able to go out there (this summer) and play all the hits that (the fans) grew up listening to and then some scattering of some new songs and some surprise cover songs. Q. What do you think of the social media that pop stars have to deal with now? A. I wish that I had had the ability to take my phone and write my fans directly in the ‘80s – absolutely – because it’s coming right from me to them. I would have loved to have had that. But I don’t think the ubiquity of it and the navel-gazing is healthy. Q. Why make an EP? A. Bob Ezrin was the catalyst. I didn’t just want to go out (on the road) as a jukebox artist. I had never met him until last year. I met him at a fundraiser for Canada’s Walk of Fame. I performed three songs unplugged. It was at Casa Loma in Toronto and as I left the stage, he got up, and he grabbed my shoulder and he said, ‘That was really good. Where have you been? ’And I pointed to my table and my kids were there so he said, ‘That’s fabulous but I’m going to call you. You should be doing music.’ And when he told me, ‘You ought to share your music with the world again,’ it made me think. Q. Are there more new songs? A. There was a period about 10 years ago where I went through something with some health issues, so I wrote about that in that song and it didn’t feel like it belonged on this record. The song is a really powerful song, but it isn’t how I feel today. sud.editorial@sunmedia.ca Share this article in your social network News Near Sudbury<doc-sep>Canadian rocker Corey Hart is having a big year. The '80s heartthrob, who gave fans Sunglasses at Night and Never Surrender, will be inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame at the 48th annual Juno Awards on Sunday. Hart, who has sold over 16 million albums, is also releasing a new album and kicking off a Canadian tour in May — his first in over 20 years. On Sunday, Hart will join other music legends, such as Leonard Cohen, Anne Murray and Neil Young, when he's inducted into the Hall of Fame at the Junos in London, Ont. The show will be broadcast live on CBC-TV, CBC Radio, CBC Gem and globally on cbc.ca/junos beginning at 8 p.m. ET. "It's an incredible honour — one that I didn't anticipate or expect ever happening, " said Hart, who is a multi-Juno nominee and winner. "And to think that I'm going to be in that august company, it's so humbling.… It's just mind-blowing." The Montreal-born Hart said that in 1998 he decided to step away from making music and touring to spend time with his young children and wife. He said it was a personal choice, "and it's something that I don't regret ever doing." Watch Corey Hart discuss his Hall of Fame induction and his 20-year hiatus: Interview with Corey Hart CBC News 2:33 Corey Hart talks Canadian Music Hall of Fame induction, his 20-year hiatus and what it's going to be like returning to the Juno stage. 2:33 He explained that he didn't know his own father well, only seeing him once or twice a year after his parents split when he was a young boy. Hart's latest collection of songs is very autobiographical. (Coreyhart.com) "There was a pain that I carried with me of not having a relationship — not having memories with my father," the 56-year-old said. "And I did not want my kids to experience the same thing that I went through." But now that his four children are older, Hart is back making new music and touring. For those wondering what he's been up to, his new collection of songs in Dreaming Time Again are very autobiographical. The "mini" album contains five songs that were all written last year, he said. One of the tracks, Another December, is a song for his mother, who died in 2014. "Christmastimes were particularly hard for me," said Hart, who was very close to his mother. "So that song is an uplifting message in the song wanting her to know that I'm OK and that, you know, the light that she instilled in me is still shining bright." Other tracks on the album include a song for his eldest daughter and one for his wife, Julie. The couple met 25 years ago at a Junos show. He said he was supposed to give an award that he didn't want to present, so the show producers let him present an award to singer Julie Masse of Quebec instead. "Had I accepted the first award that they'd given me, I never would've met her," Hart said. Hart's family will all be at the Junos on Sunday to watch him receive the Hall of Fame honour and take to the stage. Masse, 48, will also join him on stage when he closes out the Juno broadcast. Hart said he hasn't performed at the Junos since the mid-'80s, and he's "super excited." Hart said he has "some surprises planned" for fans, but added he will sing songs he thinks they will want to hear.<doc-sep>
TORONTO -- Corey Hart's sizzling contributions to pop music will be in focus at the Juno Awards on Sunday, but the hitmaker says this year he'll be recognizing another significant personal milestone at the event. Nearly 26 years ago, Hart was introduced to his wife, Quebecois singer Julie Masse, when they handed out the Juno for group of the year together live on the broadcast. But it wasn't originally supposed to happen that way -- an 11th-hour scheduling snafu is how the stars aligned for the couple back in 1993. "If I hadn't been pig-headed, opinionated or following my inner voice, I never would've met her," said Hart, ahead of his induction into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame. The performer was initially set to hand out album of the year, but Juno producers shuffled presenters and asked him to announce video of the year instead. Hart was on his way to the dress rehearsal when he got the call about a change of plans. The "Sunglasses at Night" singer-songwriter says he rejected the idea on the spot, thinking it "was a demotion" for a musician to hand out a visual prize. "That just doesn't feel right," he remembered telling the producers. "So, no problem I just won't present this year." A few minutes after hanging up, the producers called back with another offer -- he could pair up with Masse, a rising francophone star, to pass out the group of the year award. Hart was immediately on board. Masse was coming off her sophomore album that night and picked up best new female artist. When host Celine Dion welcomed the pair onto the stage, their casual banter was magnetic. They announced the Barenaked Ladies as the winners of the Juno. As Hart made his way back to his seat, Masse's manager stopped him to gush about their stage presence. "He quickly garbled out to me that Julie was going to be pursuing a career in English," Hart said. "He thought we looked like we had great chemistry together. I don't think (this) is what he imagined when he made that comment." Months later, Hart wound up in the studio working alongside producer Tom Lord-Alge on Masse's single "One More Moment." More songs followed as production moved to Morin-Heights, Que. The pair was in love by the following year, he said. "Literally from the time we started seeing each other in the summer of 1994 we've never been apart for more than a few days," he said. Both Hart and Masse were in crumbling marriages at the time, he said, and those quickly dissolved. "It was complicated," he added. The couple had three daughters before they wed in 2000, and a son after they tied the knot. When Hart began to ease out of Canada's music industry the family settled in the Bahamas. In more recent years, Hart, now 56, and Masse have collaborated on each other's work. She appears as a backup singer on his upcoming EP "Dreaming Time Again," due for release on May 3. Masse, 48, will also join him on stage when he closes out the Juno broadcast performing some of his biggest hits. "There's an empathy and an understanding that only another artist can relate to," Hart said. "We're very simpatico together." The Juno Awards air Sunday.