Isabelle Boulay

Emerging through stage productions and television appearances, Isabelle Boulay rose to global prominence as one of the foremost Francophone pop vocalists of her era. She entered the world on July 6, 1972, in Sainte-Félicité, Quebec, and passed much of her youth inside the restaurant owned by her parents, where she regularly sang for the enjoyment of customers and acquaintances. Local talent competitions soon beckoned, delivering her earliest triumph at age seven. Literary studies occupied her attention without any serious thought of a music profession until associates secretly submitted her name for the 1990 Petite-Vallée Song Festival. Judges responded with strong approval to her set, and the following year she secured first place at the Granby Song Festival through her version of Jacques Brel’s “Amsterdam,” which led directly to an invitation for Les FrancoFolies de Montréal. In 1993 she represented Radio Canada at the “Truffe de Périgueux” festival in Périgord, France, claiming victory in the “Chanson Francophone” category. Composer and producer Luc Plamondon noticed the performance and cast her as Marie-Jeanne, taking over from Luce Dufault, in a revival of his David Bowie-inspired rock opera Starmania. She next supplied the singing voice for Alys Robi in the television series bearing that name. Late in 1996 she released her debut solo album, Fallait Pas, which yielded a modest Canadian hit with the single “J’enrage.” The 1998 album États d’Amour marked her commercial arrival, driven by the Plamondon-penned smash “Je T’oublierai, Je T’oublierai,” and she collected the Félix Award for Best Female Singer of the Year. Her 2000 album Mieux Qu’ici Bas established her as a star in France, where she received Best New Artist honors at the Victoires de la Musique. Tours of Quebec and France followed, including two nights at Montreal’s Wilfried-Pelletier that produced the live set Au Moment d’Être à Vous. Benjamin Biolay and Pierre Jaconelli co-produced the 2004 album Tout un Jour. Three years later De Retour à la Source arrived, climbing to the number two position on the Canadian pop charts.