Brian Hiatt
Contact Brian Hiatt on X View all posts by Brian Hiatt March 29, 2026
Geddy Lee of Rush performs onstage during the 2026 JUNO Awards Getty Images Rush‘s Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson teased something special for tonight’s Juno Awards — and they came through in a big way by opening the show with a live performance featuring their new drummer, Anika Nilles, for the first time. They chose “Finding My Way,” the first track on their very first album, 1974’s Rush, which featured John Rutsey on drums in the studio, rather than the late Neil Peart, who didn’t join the band until afterward.
Former Jeff Beck drummer Nilles, in what was likely the most pressure-filled moment of her career, simply excelled, playing a huge kit with the Rush logo on the bass drum, bashing her way through virtuosic fills. Lee and Lifeson, meanwhile, seemed energized after their long break, with Lee hitting notes at the top of his youthful range. Keyboardist Loren Gold, who will also join the band on its upcoming tour, rounded out the expanded lineup. Behind the musicians, video footage of Peart flickered on screen, a reminder that the evening was as much a tribute as a comeback.
Anika Nilles of Rush performs onstage during the 2026 JUNO Awards Cindy Ord/Getty Images The performance at TD Coliseum in Hamilton, Ontario marked the first time Lee and Lifeson played as Rush since they wrapped their career-spanning R40 tour at the Forum in Los Angeles on Aug. 1, 2015. In the decade-plus since, the two appeared together only sporadically, billed only their own names rather than as the band, including at tributes to the late Gordon Lightfoot and Taylor Hawkins of the Foo Fighters.
“You really can’t ask us what song to play,” Lee told reporters afterward. “If we have to choose one song, it’s almost impossible. We have so many. So we just asked management, and they said first song, first album.”
