“ On social media I said it was my cultural heritage. “That means ? “ If I get fired tomorrow, I would be happy to be remembered with this album. »
• Also read: National holiday: “Émile Bilodeau has chosen to insult his political opponents,” says Minister Mathieu Lacombe
Émile Bilodeau is far from the first artist to go on a press tour claiming his new album is the best of his career. It has even become a job interview cliché.
On the other hand, let’s give Émile back what is his: no one but him can do it with so much… how shall I say… originality?
So what is so extraordinary about “Au Bar des Espoirs”, the fifth album by the hyperactive bard Bilodeau?
“I brought all my knowledge from my job, which I have been doing for almost ten years, and put all the love and energy into it,” he explains.
“It also ends with Fleuve, my love letter to the Territory of Quebec. If I had to leave on my deathbed, my last thoughts and my last words would go to Quebec, and that’s part of what the album does. »
The heart first
Against this backdrop, Émile Bilodeau presents an album in which he voluntarily puts his activism aside, just months after his presence at the Quebec National Day show caused controversy.
He prefers to let his heart speak and show his vulnerability.
Three examples. In “Les Daisy” he introduces three of his best friends. Compromised, he admits that because of his social commitment he may “never be able to become a father or a husband in the way society defines him.” Ultimately, The Sugaring Season was included on the album at the last minute when the singer’s girlfriend left him.
In short, he wanted to address his generation “other than from a sociopolitical perspective.”
“Câlisse, I am 27 years old, I have overcome heartache and controversy. If I don’t take the time to tell them that I’m not a robot estie, I feel like I’ll be lying to my audience. »
Friend Kearney
At the Bar of Hopes also highlights, even on the cover, a creative collaboration with Quebec artist Simon Kearney, whose song Pas sidifferents found a place on the album.
About his new friend, with whom he worked in June, “in the most famous and important Saint-Jean of my generation”, Émile Bilodeau said that he saw him go from a distance and appreciated what he had done before meeting him.
“We met in Grenada, in Ontario, in Montreal. I said to him, “Man, I wish you would do my album.” He accepted, he gave me his melody and it clicked. We play hockey together, we visited Félix’s house on the Île d’Orléans and we started pre-production there. »
“Below is a photo of Félix with Maurice Richard,” recalls Bilodeau, his gaze still full of wonder. His daughter Nathalie said Maurice didn’t talk much, but he laughed quite a bit. »
At the bar of hopesAlbum by Émile Bilodeau, available September 29th.
To view his concert dates, go to bravomusique.com/fr/artistes/emile-bilodeau.