Montrealer Steve Pageot was recently named governor of the New York section of the Recording Academy. This is the organization that oversees the prestigious Grammy gala, in the United States, no less! Mr. Pageot, a sound engineer notably awarded in 2004 for his work with Aretha Franklin, becomes the first Canadian representative within the most important organization in the American music industry. And if you’ve never heard of the Pageot family of Montreal, of Haitian ancestry, here is an introduction to a fabulous artistic history.
Fritz Pageot left Haiti to settle in Montreal in the early 1970s, like many other of his compatriots fleeing the Duvalier regime. A talented bassist, Fritz finds himself in the studio alongside singer and pianist Henri-Pierre Noël. Interesting fact: the two rare albums released by Mr. Noël in the late 1970s became coveted collector’s items for their infectious groove, a quality to which Mr. Pageot greatly contributed with his teeming bass lines.
“I remember the day my father was getting ready to go accompany Henri-Pierre Noël in the studio, I was 9 years old,” recalls Steve, born in Brooklyn in 1970 but settled in Côte-des-Neiges with the family from his early years. six months. “My father is well known for his groove on the bass,” adds the son.
The Pageot siblings
From a young age, Steve and his two little brothers, Rickey and Anthony, were introduced to music by Fritz at home. “My father started giving me guitar lessons when I was 3,” says the eldest. Fritz refuses to let his boys take music lightly. Although he pushed them in this direction, “he told us that we should take this work just as seriously as that of a lawyer or a doctor.”
In fact, many immigrant families have an aversion to jobs in the world of arts and culture. Having uprooted themselves from their country of origin to give their children a better future, they often expect them to go into liberal professions, in law or health for example. But Fritz stands apart. He is determined to prove that he can educate his children to become serious musicians.
During the 1980s, Rickey, Steve’s younger brother, began piano lessons in Westmount. “I took him to his lessons and I learned the piano too. When we got there, the one who had his class just before us was Justin Trudeau. We used to talk about our dreams; him to become a politician, me to pursue a career in music,” says Steve. Rickey’s piano lessons paid off. After finishing his studies in the field at McGill, he accompanied Corneille and gradually climbed the ranks to find himself Madonna’s touring pianist, no less! Rickey Pageot now lives in Los Angeles, where he has a successful career.
The youngest of the family, Anthony, has turned more to the drums. We can also hear him playing with Sarahmée or with Robert Robert. But he also had a moment of glory in the United States with his brother Rickey, in 2013. Both were invited to accompany Nelly and Talib Kweli for a televised performance at the legendary Tonight Show by Jay Leno.
Steve in New York
And Steve in all this? “In 1996, I left for New York with $400 and a dream: to make my mark in the music industry. » There, he worked as a creator of rhythms (commonly called beats). producers Or beatmakers) in the hip-hop community. Although Puff Daddy is at the center of huge controversies nowadays, during the 1990s he was one of the hallowed monsters of hip-hop culture. In order to allow him such popular rise, he worked with numerous and talented producers.
Pageot found his place in the team of one of these, the legendary Ron Lawrence, known as Amen-Ra. “He “signed” me in 1998, he remembers. My contract with him ended in 2003. It was five years of learning and, at the very end, we won a Grammy with Aretha Franklin. » Indeed, at the 2003 Grammy gala, the undisputed queen of African-American soul music, Aretha Franklin, won the statuette in the category Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance for the song Wonderful, one of his last successes. Mr. Pageot was honored as sound engineer on this piece.
This award opened new doors for Steve Pageot, who became a member of the Recording Academy and with whom he obtained contracts, notably that of offering mentoring to young artists. He also becomes a voting member to determine who the Grammy winners will be. In 2017, Steve returned temporarily to Montreal. His goal is to join his brother Rickey in Los Angeles. But here he begins to play an important role with his aging father; he therefore decided to settle down again in the metropolis. In 2017, he began setting up a new studio in Pierrefonds, from which he could work. At the same time, he is developing his business plan to launch his own company, Pageot Productions, which will come to fruition in 2021. With this company, he wants to launch the careers of new artists. He works in particular with the R&B artist Momelo, the young Italian singer Sofia and the Angolan afrobeat musician Ndaka Yo Wiñi.
The governor
In recent months, when a position for governor of the New York section of the Recording Academy opened up, Steve Pageot went for it. After campaigning among his fellow academy members, he officially won the title of governor in early June 2024.
At the time of the interview, Steve was just coming out of his first gubernatorial training. During this meeting, the ethics surrounding the task were established, but its mission was also given to it: to aim for the inclusion and development of new talents, as well as to invite Canadian artists to become members of the Recording Academy.
“This is the result of so many years of work and effort. It’s a validation,” he believes. And for Fritz Pageot, it is further proof that his sons take their musical careers very seriously, as seriously as a career in law or medicine.