Jag Gundu, Getty

At the tail end of 2011, we declared it "The Year Canadian Music Broke," what with everyone from Feist, Deadmau5 and Arcade Fire to Drake, Michael Buble and Justin Bieber dominating their respective genres at home and abroad.

But with Canada Day coming up on July 1, we thought we'd dig a bit deeper and explain exactly what it is we love about our favourite Canadian musicians, and why.

So click through to read about those fine folks we name-dropped above plus everyone from Rufus Wainwright and Metric to Leonard Cohen and Stompin' Tom.