Lethbridge’s Ron Sakamoto inducted into Order of Alberta Excellence

“This is given to you by the queen and it’s a totally different scenario. Everybody tells me this is one of the hardest awards to receive and that’s why only 181 people have received it in 39 years.”

Sakamoto says he has been in this line of work so long because nothing is more rewarding to him than taking an up-and-coming artist and helping to turn them into a megastar.

“It’s really a tremendous feeling when you see them perform and thousands and thousands of people are out there enjoying the night.”

When Keith Urban was first getting started in the early 1990s, Sakamoto recalls how he first moved to Nashville, Tennessee since that is one of the world’s biggest hubs for country music. He was not going over there very well, so Sakamoto brought him to Canada where he would first start to pick up steam.

Sakamoto managed both of Shania Twain’s first and farewell tours.

One story he will never forget is when a young Johnny Reid first moved to North America from Scotland.

“I checked with his record company and a friend of mine, Randy Lennox, who was the president, to see what kind of person Johnny was. After he told me, I said, ‘Wow, he’s got a lot of talent and all he needs is help to bring his talent to the forefront.'”

“I said to my wife, ‘What do you think?’ She said you’ve gotta help [Reid] and she said one of the main reasons is that he has the same qualities as you, which is your work ethic and your passion and drive towards a goal. That’s what she saw in him and what she saw in me.”

Throughout all of his successes, Sakamoto has remained loyal to his Albertan roots.

He was born in Coaldale, grew up in Medicine Hat, and to this day, lives in Lethbridge.

“A lot of people said I couldn’t do this from Lethbridge, I had to go move to Los Angeles, New York, Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal, but I wanted the quality of life.”

Sakamoto says the key to his success is a simple phrase he constantly reminds himself of: “Inch by inch, it’s a cinch. Yard by yard, it’s really hard.”

The other part is following through with your passions in life.

“I tell young people this, make sure you love what you do because there’s a long life ahead of you and if you don’t love what you do, it’s kind of an up and down road, right? Make sure you follow your dreams, follow your heart, and if you follow your heart, you’ll always get what you want to get.”

Including Sakamoto, eight Albertans will go into the Alberta Order of Excellence.

The ceremony took place at the legislature in Edmonton.

A video by the Alberta Order of Excellence on Ron Sakamoto’s induction can be viewed below:

by David Opinko

Lethbridge’s Ron Sakamoto inducted into Order of Alberta Excellence

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