Shang-Chi's Simu Liu to TikTok's Jessia: Canadians who shaped culture in 2021

In a year defined by COVID anxiety and lowered expectations, it can be difficult to recognize success. But despite massive business closures, delayed releases and an incredibly difficult time for the arts in general, artists across television, music and film were not only able to survive 2021 — but topple records, revive franchises and even help reinvent the conventional path to fame.

And from superstars like Simu Liu and The Weeknd, to lesser known up-and-comers adapting to a new kind of industry, Canadians helped lead that charge. Here, CBC News highlights some of the Canadian artists who made headlines and defined the times in 2021.

In her feature film debut Beans, Mohawk director Tracey Deer revisits her upbringing during the 1990 Oka Crisis, a 78-day standoff that occurred between the Kanien'kehá:ka (Mohawk) community of Kanesatake, the Sûréte du Québec provincial police and the Canadian military. For her powerful rendering of that period — reframed as a fictional coming-of-age story — Deer won Best First Feature Film at the Canadian Screen Awards. 

It's a new era for the director, known for her TV series Mohawk Girls and documentary Club Native. But with Beans, she solidifies her place among a new wave of Indigenous filmmakers bringing authentic stories to life.

Not many people make history twice with one project. But Bilal Baig did, with their CBC/HBO dramedy Sort Of: Canadian television now has its first non-binary protagonist and its first queer, South Asian Muslim actor in a lead role. 

The Mississauga, Ont.,-born talent stars as Sabi Mehboob, a gender-fluid millennial straddling family, work and big dreams. At its heart, Sort Of tells the story about the quirks and confusions of an identity in flux — and who better to tell that story than Baig (also the series creator and co-writer), a champion of representation in front of and behind the screen.

Page has been charming audiences for years, from indie darling Juno to mega blockbuster Inception. So when the Halifax-born actor came out as a trans man this year, it was clear that the world has seen only a sliver of what he's capable of: "I'm really excited to act, now that I'm fully who I am, in this body," he told TIME Magazine. For his advocacy, Page received an achievement award from Outfest, a major LGBTQ film festival. 

In addition to his lead role in Netflix's Umbrella Academy, the actor signed a deal to develop scripted and unscripted projects for Universal.

Ruddock, the Brampton, Ont.,-born designer behind clothing line Flaws of Couture, won a $100,000 prize from fast fashion company Shein in September — and beat 30 designers from around the world to design a new line in collaboration with the online retailer. This is Ruddock's second collaboration with Shein, and it stays true to her values: all of the designs are size-inclusive, a solution to what she deems the exclusion of plus-sized women in fashion. Khloe Kardashian is among her fans. 

"I just want people who are wearing my clothes to feel comfortable but elevated," she told CBC News.

Bieber got busy this year. Having built himself back up after a series of personal troubles, the Stratford, Ont.,-born 27-year-old has again established himself as one of modern pop music's most vital stars. 

For hit singles Peaches and Anyone (both tracks from his sixth studio album, Justice), Bieber nabbed a career-high eight Grammy nominations and won artist of the year at the MTV Video Music Awards. A new documentary, Justin Bieber: Our World, explored his first COVID-era live show. But he made the biebs-est splash of all with his Tim Hortons collaboration: Timbiebs, a twist on the donut chain's iconic Timbits.

Cree writer Michelle Good's debut novel, Five Little Indians, was released in 2020 — and she received a litany of accolades this year, earning the Governor General's Literary Award for English-language fiction and the Amazon Canada First Novel Award.

A lawyer by training, Good is a fierce advocate for the rights of residential school survivors, which she channeled into her remarkable novel. The book was inspired by the experiences of her mother, aunt and cousins at various residential schools, following five survivors as they grapple with the aftermath of the abuse they endured in these institutions.