44th ADISQ Gala | The Hubert Lenoir evening

Hubert Lenoir is the big winner of the 44^e Gala of the ADISQ which took place on Sunday. The singer-songwriter won three of the ten trophies that were awarded during the evening, hosted by Louis-José Houde for the 17^e consecutive year.

Josee Lapointe
The Press

These three awards are in addition to the four others he won at the two previous galas this week. The annual festivities of the Quebec music industry therefore conclude with a harvest of seven trophies out of eleven selections for Hubert Lenoir and his PICTURA DE IPSE: Direct Musichis second solo album released a little over a year ago.

Hubert Lenoir first received the Félix for international influence at the start of the evening, a prize he dedicated to the Quebec public, thanks to whom “everything begins”. The singer then stood out in the very prestigious and elevated category of author or composer of the year, where he found himself alongside Lisa LeBlanc, Les Louanges, Salomé Leclerc and Lou-Adriane Cassidy.

“Writing songs. Everyone writes about it without realizing it, ”said the singer in very eloquent thanks that he had taken the time to write. “My talent is to be attentive to it. It allowed me to be invisible and invincible, and gave me the chance to be myself. This trophy, he added, is “a tribute to humility and ambition and the refusal of convention”.

A few minutes later, the singer put on his stage costume – white dress under a firefighter jacket – to deliver a spectacular performance of his song Sunday nightwhich will certainly mark the memories.

Hubert Lenoir finally received the last trophy of the evening by being crowned male performer, the ultimate honor he receives for the first time since his sensational entry into the world of Quebec music only four years ago. In this category, where the public vote counts for 50% and that of the industry for 50%, Hubert Lenoir was nominated along with Ludovick Bourgeois, Corneille, Marc Dupré and Patrice Michaud. In his thanks, he made a strong call for diversity and openness.

“A public award… To all those who say that my music is listened to by a microcosm of people in urban centers, just shut the fuck up. Thank you to the world that listens to my music, I make music for the world. At the same time, we all live in our world and maybe in your circle of friends, no one listens to me. But it’s important to be curious about others, not to judge at first sight and to open your blinders. It’s a message to the entire music industry. »

Roxane Bruneau for the second time

On the women’s side, Roxane Bruneau won the title of female performer for the second consecutive year. She was a finalist with Cœur de pirate, Lisa LeBlanc, Klô Pelgag and Sarahmée.

“A big thank you to the public, launched the author-composer-performer, very moved. It was you who created me, you who brought me here. »

Another result of the popular vote, it is the merry troupe of Salebarbes, which sows happiness wherever it goes for nearly three years, which left with the trophy of the group or duo of the year. The five friends were quoted along with 2Frères, Bon Enfant, Les Cowboys Fringants and Les Trois Accords.

“The Salebarbes project is thought of in terms of us rather than I,” explained one of the group’s members, Éloi Painchaud. And everywhere we go, the world wants to think of us with us. It’s steep. »

In the category of the song of the year, it is the immense hit by FouKi and Jay Scøtt, Copilot, which was acclaimed, after receiving the video of the year trophy on Wednesday. “I wrote that song in panties in my room, and today we are here. I just want to say that anything is possible,” recalled Jay Scøtt.

Other categories

The Revelation category was well diversified this year, as we could see during the performances, ranging from the classic song of La Zarra to the lyrical sweetness of Étienne Coppée, passing through the poetry of Natasha Kanapé and the folk of Jay Scott. The prize was awarded to Ariane Roy, who seemed genuinely surprised and moved. The young singer-songwriter launched a solid first album this year, medium pleasurebarely two years after participating in the Francouvertes.

The Cowboys Fringants added a 21^e Félix to their collection by winning the prize for album of the year – popular success, for the soundtrack of their film America is cryingwhich had already been rewarded on Wednesday in the Reinterpretation category.

After winning several awards in 2021 for the album Our Lady of Seven Sorrows, including that of author or composer of the year, Klô Pelgag continues to reap honors with her project. This year, it was the show that won the award, chosen from around ten finalists, including Vincent Vallières, Roxane Bruneau, Ariane Moffatt and Patrice Michaud, proof that 2022 was the real year of the resumption of shows.

This is what the singer-songwriter pointed out when she went to pick up her trophy. “This show has been a great adventure with the pandemic and the post-pandemic. I went to play in Japan, in England, in Europe, I consider myself lucky. Thank you to the musicians, and congratulations to everyone in this category, who make music. It’s brave, it’s important and nice. »

In the Indigenous Artist category, Laura Niquay was chosen among finalists Beatrice Deer, Natasha Kanapé, Scott-Pien Picard and Samian. It’s a double for the Atikamekw singer-songwriter, who had already received the Félix for album of the year – aboriginal languages ​​on Wednesday for her excellent Waska Watisiwin.

Émile Bilodeau also presented a very solid number, in which he left all the room to three Aboriginal artists, Samian, Laura Niquay and Claude McKenzie.

For this first “normal” gala in three years, several performances punctuated the animated evening with always the same sense of punch by Louis-José Houde. Between Cœur de pirate and Patrice Michaud accompanied by the Quatuor Esca at the start of the evening and the soul of Corneille in duet with Dashny Jules a little later, we were treated to a battle at the top between the two great voices that are Mario Pelchat and Bruno Pelletier. And two female duos came to ignite the evening: Edith Butler and the queen of chiac disco Lisa LeBlanc, as well as rappers Naya Ali and Sarahmée.