Remember his “love affair” with dance music and his musical love letter to Montreal.

The Rev is reliving his Cinderella moment.

The 28-year-old Montreal musician picked up his first Juno nomination and first win at last year's awards following the massive online success of his single. CTRL + ALT + DEL. Less than a year later, he returned to Halifax for the March 24 event. His debut album, Saturn returnwon pop album of the year, pitting her against fellow Quebecois front-runner Charlotte Cardin, as well as Lauren Spencer Smith and country legend Shania Twain.

CBC News sat down with Reve to talk about what that comeback means, how he found his love for dance music and where he learned to make a hit track.

Your music is defined by a big, dance-pop style, but you start with piano, trumpet, flute – basically high school music. Where did your current sound come from?

That's why my instrument of choice since childhood was the piano. I used to drag my Fisher-Price xylophone to the upright at home and match the notes, and I fell in love with it. When I first started figuring out chords, I would sing along and I never stopped.

I played my fair share of flute in high school, but I was pretty bad at it. I used to sing on the flute for exams, I thought my music teacher wouldn't notice.

Is he so?

Absolutely. He immediately called (laughs). Piano was my favorite — I dabbled in guitar, but piano is still my one true love.

What drew you from piano and band music to the dance tracks on your debut album?

In fact, this is one of my favorite Montreal stories. I've been into music since I could talk, but I went to a night club in Montreal called Velvet. I had been to arena shows before, but had never DJed before.

We walked into this place, it's like a very old hotel in the old port, in the basement of an auberge, and when you walk in, it's like taxidermy, stone walls and lights.

Then the DJ goes on and I feel something I've never felt before. It was like a sense of unity, of transcendence, of euphoria in this room. And it was unlike anything I had ever experienced before. I was instantly hooked. I fell in love with dance when I was 17-18 years old and I've been in love ever since.

Last year you took home dance record of the year, while your friend Preston Pablo won for swing artist, and the swing group Banx & Ranx, who helped produce two of your albums, won. Do you all make music together?

Absolutely. I mean, Preston is like a brother to me. We started our major label journey at the same time, around the same people – Banx & Ranx, who were the glue. And Banx & Ranx and I — they're like family to me, they're my favorite colleagues. They still play a big role – they played a big role in the album, but also in the upcoming music, we're as close as ever.

Your engineer, Joel Stouffer, was also nominated for a Junos for his work on your album. Did you all celebrate together?

Yeah, we had a cute moment the other day at the nomination announcement, and I love Joel so much. He was one of the first producers I met when I started coming to Toronto to work on my first records like six years ago. And it worked (my only one) Whitney, he saw 25 versions of the production. He went through it and we saw it through to the end. It's great to be recognized together for that record.

You talk and interact a lot with your fans on TikTok. But as an artist signed to Universal Music, your music is now removed from the app. What is it like for you? How has that changed your relationship with fans and as an artist?

I mean, there are other ways to connect with fans, of course. It's something we all feel, but we're focused on the next chapter, which is the upcoming tour, the upcoming music.

Are you struggling with worrying about your lack of music?

I think this is a great opportunity to be creative. I think we're looking forward to the solution, but I think it's a challenge, and I'm just looking forward to the creative challenges of finding other ways to navigate this time.

You won dance entry last year and now you're back for pop album Saturn return. Do you see yourself as a pop star?

I feel more secure about myself and my art than ever, and I put a lot into it to get recognition for my debut album. It's a love letter to dancing. A love letter to pop, a love letter to the city I'm from Montreal. This year it is very special to be recognized for all the work.

What was it like for your family to see you reach such heights?

It was great. They were always supportive. As I said, I grew up in a very musical household. I think at first it's a parent's worst nightmare when your child says, “I want to drop out of school and run away and be a rock star.”

But now that they can be at the Junos and see everything that's going on and hear the songs on the radio — they've always been supportive, but now I think they understand and feel it. a little lighter.

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This interview has been edited for length and clarity.