National tribute to Karl Tremblay | “The Cowboys are part of our lives”

They braved the cold to attend the ceremony in tribute to Karl Tremblay at the Bell Center in Montreal, where there were more than 14,000 people, Tuesday evening.

As the doors opened, around 6 p.m., the crowd outside grew thicker, but rushed into the amphitheater within a few minutes. Cowboys fans who were unable to get their hands on tickets had the opportunity to watch the ceremony from the comfort of their own home on the group’s Facebook page.

Crossed in line, Jérôme had purchased tickets for his father Patrick, a big Cowboys fan, and his two friends Georges and Hovig, “to pay tribute to the group”. “I’ve never seen them live, but I listen to their music in my tank,” he told us.

Extremely rare, the media, excluded from the tribute ceremony for nebulous reasons, and at the same time from the Bell Center, were gathered outside, on the square of the Rio Tinto courtyard which overlooks Avenue des Canadiens-de -Montreal. Around 7:45 p.m., nearly 200 people followed the start of the ceremony on a giant screen installed outside, wrapped up in their toques and scarves.

Vanessa came with her sister Cassandra and her family. There was no way she was going to miss this ceremony. “The Cowboys are part of our lives, we absolutely wanted to pay tribute to them. » Vanessa and her sister have seen the group perform several times, the last time at the International Balloon Festival in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu. “Their music is always present in our hearts, it will never disappear,” this die-hard fan told us.

Before entering the Bell Center, around 6:30 p.m., Prime Minister François Legault took the time to address the media.

“Tonight, we say goodbye to Karl, a man who left his mark on Quebec,” he began by saying. It’s incredible what we’ve seen since his death, a wave of love and sadness, it’s as if millions of Quebecers had lost someone in their close family. What we see is that with the songs of the Cowboys, the entire Quebec nation recognizes itself in Karl. My thoughts are with Marie-Annick, who I spoke to, and their two daughters, it must be so hard… It’s shocking to die so young, that’s also what left its mark on Quebecers. So we say: thank you, Karl, for bringing Quebecers together around values ​​that unite us. »

The Minister of Culture and Communications, Mathieu Lacombe, was also present. He said he was happy to be able to give Quebecers who wanted to pay tribute to Karl Tremblay the opportunity to do so. He described the upcoming tribute as “celebratory, sober and emotional.”

“Karl Tremblay symbolizes Les Cowboys Fringants which, 25 years after its creation, is still together and at the peak of its glory,” he emphasized. It’s a group that gave so many Quebecers a feeling of pride. »

Minister Lacombe added that if he was in politics, it was not unrelated to the fact that he grew up with the music of the Cowboys. “The desire to get involved, to be outraged, that’s what the Cowboys are all about. We must do more, we must do better. »

The mayor of Montreal, Valérie Plante, testified that she had never seen the Cowboys in concert, but that their music was played regularly at home.

“In light of the tributes that are pouring in, we see to what extent Karl’s voice has marked Quebec. » As for the group’s music, the mayor described it as “festive”, but also imbued with “healthy anger”. “The fact remains that there is a lot of tenderness and kindness in their songs, and I think that this is a quality that Quebecers hold dear. »

The Prime Minister raised the possibility of reserving land at L’Assomption for disc golf games, one of Karl Tremblay’s passions.

The Quebec flag on the central tower of the Parliament Building was lowered to half-mast at dawn on Tuesday. A condolence register has also been posted online for those who would like to offer their condolences to the family. It is open until November 29.

Karl Tremblay died on November 15 at the age of 47 following prostate cancer diagnosed in January 2020. The singer of Cowboys Fringants announced his illness in the summer of 2022. His death was followed by an immense wave of sympathy across Quebec.

The next day, Prime Minister François Legault proposed to Karl Tremblay’s family to organize a national funeral. “I feel that there is a great demand from many Quebecers who want to pay a last tribute to Karl,” indicated Mr. Legault.

The proposal was accepted by his partner Marie-Annick Lépine, who however wanted the ceremony to be secular.