Posted at 7:00 am.
Constance Massicotte
Five years ago, Constance Massicotte started creating memes in English on a secret account. Her success convinced her to publish it on her personal page and then write about it in French. In doing so, she revealed another facet of her personality. The fashion designer had no idea that these memes, often parodies of so-called inspirational phrases, would become advertising tools. “It brings people to my clothing page because they see my shared memes and then discover my page. » Constance is one of the rare Quebec meme creators. For what ? “It can be embarrassing to think you won’t be funny. If I post a meme and it doesn’t do well, I’ll feel really bad. I think most girls don’t want to take that risk. »
Normal Quebecois
PHOTO EDOUARD PLANTE-FRÉCHETTE, LA PRESS
Louis, from the Québécois Normal account
As he often does, Louis started making memes for his friends and then a passion developed. “The aspects that influence the site are the fact that I am a queer person and an immigrant,” he emphasizes. I like to talk about Quebec culture, especially music, but sometimes I don’t know to what extent I have the right to say that I’m Quebecois. I think I have a somewhat unique perspective in the sense that I wasn’t born into it. It is a culture that I had to discover on my own. » This 20-year-old shit-posting fan believes it’s important to respect the genre’s unwritten rules. “You want to be as authentic as possible, but we all feel that at a certain point we have a duty between ridicule and responsibility. It’s a duality. »
Fruit
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, THE PRESS
Vincent Houde from Fruiter
“In 2016, maybe 2015, there was a kind of resurgence in Quebec of memes with a more ironic flavor, since initially they were memes of the first degree. “This sarcastic touch really appealed to me,” says Vincent Houde. In my first releases I made a video, a parody of the Scott Brothers theme song in Vrak, which became super viral for the time and had around 150,000 views on Facebook. It was the site’s first success. » Fruiter is certainly the most popular meme in Quebec, with accounts totaling more than 250,000 subscribers. Vincent posts almost daily. Where do his ideas come from? “Pop culture and nostalgia,” he immediately calls it. I consume a lot of Quebec culture, shows and music. These topics inspire me for content. There is also a bit of politics and current events. »
Lynternait
PHOTO PROVIDED BY THIERRY HARDY-LACHANCE
Thierry Hardy-Lachance from Lynternait
PHOTO PROVIDED BY THIERRY HARDY-LACHANCE
Anthony Thibeault of Lynternait
PHOTO PROVIDED BY THIERRY HARDY-LACHANCE
Deven Caron, from Lynternait
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“They really paved the way for all the meme pages in Quebec,” says Vincent Houde of the trio behind Lynternait, which has all but ceased operations. Thierry Hardy-Lachance joined Anthony Thibeault and Deven Caron in 2015, two years after their debut. “We used to do three releases a day. At times I found it a bit tiring because you force yourself to be creative. But it was a great experience. […] Two or three times we have used our platform for purposes that can be described as good. The day after the murder in the Quebec mosque, we saw comments on Facebook groups like La Meute like “Good deal!” You deserve exactly that!” That’s why we asked our fans to respond to the hate in a completely absurd way. They invaded these groups to write the most insignificant comments, like “I have a pimple on my foreskin, how do I treat it?” For two or three days the hate message was completely submerged. »
Skedoo sled
PHOTO EDOUARD PLANTE-FRÉCHETTE, LA PRESS
Fabrice Poirier from Skedoo Sled
Fabrice Poirier, who lives in Quebec, is originally from Gaspésie. “I met people with a very colorful language and a particular expression, and I took a lot of inspiration from them to create the character of a regional redneck who swears a lot and speaks in Joual.” » His Instagram launched almost four years ago -Site is one of the most original in Quebec. “If you’re quick in memes and find jokes about current events, you’ll get the most likes. […] What also helps me stand out is finding my own images on free photo strips. People also send me videos and say, “Make this a meme!” The community helps me create my content. »
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Number of subscribers to these Quebec accounts:
Fruit
Facebook: 154,000
Instagram: 78,000
TikTok: 32,000
Lynternait
Facebook: 82,000
Instagram: 25,600
Skedoo sled
Facebook 30,000
Instagram 40,500
Constance Massicotte
Instagram 7400
Normal Quebecois
Instagram 1350