Mitsou

Mitsou Annie Marie Gélinas (born September 1, 1970, in Loretteville, Quebec) is a Canadian pop singer, businesswoman, television and radio host, and actress. She is credited as Mitsou Gélinas when acting, but records simply as Mitsou.

Background

Born in Loretteville, Quebec, Mitsou is the granddaughter of Quebec actor and playwright Gratien Gélinas.<ref>"Gratien Gelinas was pioneer of Quebec theatre, grandpa to pop singer Mitsou". Waterloo Region Record, March 17, 1999.</ref> Her younger sister, Abeille Gélinas, has also been an actress and television host.

She got involved in acting and modelling as a child, notably in the French-Canadian soap opera Terre humaine,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> but also began to pursue singing in her teenage years.

Career

Early career

In 1988, she signed with Canadian independent Isba Records and released her first single, "Bye Bye Mon Cowboy" (composed and produced by Jean-Pierre Isaac), which became a pop hit across Canada, an extremely rare feat for a francophone song, in 1989.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Later that year, she followed with her debut, multicultural-themed album, El Mundo which also spawned the singles "La Corrida" and "Les Chinois".

She received her first Juno Award nomination, for Most Promising Female Vocalist, at the Juno Awards of 1990.<ref>"Alannah Myles heads Juno nominations list with seven". Montreal Gazette, February 8, 1990.</ref>

Terre des hommes and "Dis-moi, dis-moi"

Later in 1990, she released her follow-up album, Terre des hommes.<ref>"Mitsou dyes to change but still vampy". The Province, September 23, 1990.</ref> Ivan Doroschuk of Men Without Hats wrote the title track, in addition to her first English-language song "A Funny Place (The World Is)".<ref>Rod Campbell, "Mitsou determined to do things her way". Edmonton Journal, June 29, 1991.</ref> The first single, "Mademoiselle Anne", featured Mitsou dressed as a man in the video. In 1991, the second single, "Dis-moi, dis-moi", put Mitsou back in the spotlight with a controversial video that showed her and several male and female models nude in a shower room, as well as a scene where she kissed her own reflection in a mirror.<ref name=stone>Jay Stone, "For singers, sex lies in videotape". Ottawa Citizen, April 27, 1991.</ref>

The video, which was released only a few months after Madonna's "Justify My Love", was banned from regular rotation by MuchMusic as the Madonna video had been – technically, the video was not fully banned from the network, as the programming committee ruled that the late-night program City Limits was allowed to play it, but as a mainstream pop song incompatible with the show's alternative rock format, the program refused to do so.<ref>"English Canada: 'Show them a breast and they freak". Montreal Gazette, April 14, 1991.</ref>

Notably, the video for "Dis-moi, dis-moi" was not banned on Much's French-language sister station MusiquePlus, but in fact was placed in heavy rotation;<ref>"Latest by siren Mitsou too racy for MuchMusic". Vancouver Sun, April 11, 1991.</ref> Mitsou's manager Pierre Gendron attributed the difference to English Canada being more prudish than French Canada.<ref>"Mitsou's manager assails 'prudishness': MuchMusic defends rejection of Quebec pop star's video". The Globe and Mail, April 11, 1991.</ref> Ottawa Citizen journalist Jay Stone additionally highlighted the absurdity of the situation by noting that since MusiquePlus was carried in the parts of the city served by Skyline Cable, but not in the parts served by Maclean-Hunter, that meant that a viewer's ability to see the video on television in Ottawa depended solely on whether they lived east or west of Bank Street.<ref name=stone/>

Having banned two high-profile pop videos within a few months of each other, MuchMusic created a new occasional late-night series, Too Much 4 Much, on which they would play banned videos along with forum and panel discussions on the controversies these videos raised.<ref name=citizen>"MuchMusic to play two racy videos only once". Ottawa Citizen, April 26, 1991.</ref> Due to the controversy, Mitsou's single again garnered radio airplay across Canada despite being in French.<ref>Greg Potter, "Not necessarily Madonna". Vancouver Sun, July 11, 1991.</ref>

In fall 1991, Mitsou faced some controversy when she declined to attend that year's Félix Award ceremonies, despite receiving a nomination for Best Pop-Rock Show, due to Gendron's opposition to ADISQ's $640 annual membership fee.<ref>"Mitsou skipping ADISQ gala in fee, policy dispute". Montreal Gazette, October 10, 1991.</ref> Roch Voisine also later refused to attend the ceremony, claiming that the organization didn't serve the interests of Quebec musicians.<ref>"Two Quebec pop stars snub ADISQ awards gala". The Globe and Mail, October 12, 1991.</ref>

At the Juno Awards of 1992, Mitsou was nominated for Best Female Vocalist, and Alain DesRochers was nominated for Best Music Video for "Dis-moi, dis-moi".<ref>"Adams collects 7 Juno nominations Rocker sets record for a single artist". The Globe and Mail, February 13, 1992.</ref>

File:05-23-2012 Anne-Marie Losique et Mitsou © Karel Chladek - C2-MTL.jpg

Mitsou (left) with Anne-Marie Losique in 2012.

Heading West

In 1992 she released the followup EP Heading West, which featured several of her earlier singles alongside the new single "Deep Kiss", and covers of Cyndi Lauper's "Heading West" and Janis Joplin's "Mercedes Benz".<ref>Jane Stevenson, "Quebec pop siren Mitsou prepares to seduce U.S.". Waterloo Region Record, June 17, 1992.</ref> The album initially received a Juno nomination for Francophone Album of the Year at the Juno Awards of 1993,<ref>"Juno Award nominations". Calgary Herald, February 10, 1993.</ref> sparking some controversy when the Juno Awards subsequently rescinded the nomination on the grounds that the album didn't meet the criteria of being at least 80 per cent francophone.<ref name=shrugs>"Mitsou shrugs off Juno-nomination flap". Montreal Gazette, February 11, 1993.</ref> The award committee claimed that the album's failure to qualify in the category had "slipped through the cracks" due to a last-minute submission, but Mitsou herself dismissed the controversy as an unimportant "tempest in a thimble".<ref name=shrugs/>

In 1992 she also made her film acting debut with appearances in Danièle J. Suissa's television film Prince Lazure and Richard Ciupka's romantic comedy-drama film Coyote.<ref>Paul DeLean, "Coyote is neither a dog, nor something to howl about; Despite the provocative ad poster, Mitsou and movie are relatively tame". Montreal Gazette, June 26, 1992.</ref>

Tempted

In 1993, she followed it up with her first full-English album Tempted.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

The lead single "Everybody Say Love" was written by RuPaul,<ref>Brendan Kelly, "Hollywood, Mitsou team up for possible hit". Edmonton Journal, December 26, 1993.</ref> who offered it to her after they met while she was working with RuPaul's production and songwriting collaborator Jimmy Harry.<ref>Pierre-Luc Houle, "Mitsou Gélinas sera juge à Canada's Drag Race". HollywoodPQ, September 29, 2021.</ref>

Return to French-language music

She returned to recording primarily French-language material for her 1994 album Ya Ya, which included cover versions of songs popular in Quebec in the '60s and '70s, such as Joël Denis's French-language version of the Lee Dorsey song "Ya Ya", and Marc Hamilton's "Comme j'ai toujours envie d'aimer".<ref>Jean-Claude Surprenant, "Pas désagréable du tout Mitsou". Le Droit, September 17, 1994.</ref>

She followed up in 1996 with a Christmas album entitled Noël.<ref>Martin Tremblay, "Bande musicale". Le Quotidien, December 7, 1996.</ref>

Her next album, Mitsou (Éponyme), was released in 1999, featuring hip-hop-influenced beats and a street-oriented rock sound. She also co-wrote and co-produced all the tracks.<ref>Denis Dufresne, "Mitsou dit bye-bye au passé". La Tribune, June 19, 1999.</ref> The club-oriented EP MitsouVibe, comprising new remixes of past singles, followed in 2002.<ref name=trentaine>"Mitsou vit à pleine sa trentaine". Le Droit, June 1, 2002.</ref>

Media and acting

Following MitsouVibe, she began turning to other creative and business activities as she entered her 30s, including serving as editor of a fashion magazine for young women, Clin d'Œil,<ref name=trentaine/> and acting in the films Alice's Odyssey (L'Odyssée d'Alice Tremblay)<ref>Genevieve Royer, "Alice's wonderland: On Mme Tremblay's odyssey into a fairy-tale world, moviegoers meet many cleverly cast characters, but the charm falls short of enchantment". Montreal Gazette, June 28, 2002.</ref> and The Barbarian Invasions (Les invasions barbares).<ref>Peter Black, "After Decline comes the Invasion". Peterborough Examiner, May 13, 2003.</ref>

In 2000, she joined C't’encore drôle, the morning show on Énergie 94.3 FM in Montreal.<ref name=inthemiddle>Brendan Kelly, "Mitsou in the middle". Montreal Gazette, January 31, 2005.</ref> She remained with the station until 2012, when she left to join rival CFGL-FM as afternoon co-host with Sébastien Benoît until 2021.<ref>Pierre-Luc Houle, "Mitsou accroche son micro et quitte la radio après 21 ans". HollywoodPQ, June 8, 2021.</ref>

In 2005, she debuted as host of Au Courant, an English-language program that focuses on French Canadian culture, for CBC Newsworld.<ref>Miro Cernetig, "Quebec chanteuse switches to news; Mitsou a sexy pop star in the '80s Skepticism greets CBC hiring". Toronto Star, February 5, 2005.</ref> The announcement faced some controversy, with Nathalie Petrowski of La Presse claiming that hiring Mitsou as an authority on Quebec culture was like hiring Pamela Anderson to moderate an election debate;<ref name=inthemiddle/> she claimed to be a fan of Mitsou, but insisted that she was much more of an authority on matters of fashion and style than of serious arts and culture.<ref name=pellerin>Brigitte Pellerin, "Bye-Bye, mon arts critic". Ottawa Citizen, February 3, 2005.</ref> At the end of the year, Brendan Kelly of the Montreal Gazette summed up the controversy by stating that "what everyone missed is that Mitsou, besides being gorgeous and telegenic, is actually one bright, articulate person."<ref>Brendan Kelly, "Quebec's profitable and tumultuous year". Montreal Gazette, December 30, 2005.</ref> In 2006, the show was nominated for a Gemini Award in the Best Talk Series category.<ref>Alex Strachan, "Stroumboulopoulos captures Gemini". Nanaimo Daily News, October 18, 2006.</ref>

In February 2009, it was announced that Mitsou would become the "beauty ambassador" for Lise Watier, a Canadian-based cosmetics and skincare product line, and would subsequently appear in the company's advertising campaigns.<ref>Michelle Coudé-Lord, "Mitsou sur les traces de Lise Watier". Le Journal de Québec, February 256, 2009.</ref>

In the late 2000s and early 2010s she hosted television programs including the cooking show Kampaï! À votre santé, for Radio-Canada,<ref>Brendan Kelly, "This working mother is a natural; Mitsou has switched from pop star to multipurpose broadcaster; this fall, she'll be host of a show on healthful eating". Montreal Gazette, September 7, 2009.</ref> the cultural magazine show La liste for ARTV,<ref>Nathaëlle Morissette, "Les listes de Mitsou à ARTV". La Presse, August 6, 2009.</ref> and the documentary series Comment va ta famille? for V.<ref>"Mitsou animera une nouvelle série sur la famille à V". La Presse, January 7, 2010.</ref>

She also had another acting role in The Child Prodigy (L'Enfant prodige), a movie about pianist André Mathieu, in which she played Vivianne Jobin, one of Mathieu's mistresses.<ref>Charles-Henri Ramond, "Enfant prodige, L’ – Film de Luc Dionne". Films du Québec, April 23, 2010.</ref>

In August 2010, Mitsou married her partner of 15 years, Iohann Martin, in a "surprise wedding" that he had organized without her knowledge for her 40th birthday.<ref>Michelle Coudé-Lord, "Mitsou a dit oui". Le Journal de Montréal, August 27, 2010.</ref> They are the parents of two daughters. They separated in 2023 but remain business partners.<ref>Samuel Pradier, "Mitsou et Iohann seraient séparés après 27 ans d’amour". 7 Jours, August 3, 2023.</ref>

In 2011 she collaborated with Creature on the song "On vole", her first new music since the MitsouVibe EP.<ref>Émilie Côté, "Mitsou est en studio". La Presse, February 17, 2011.</ref>

In 2017, she hosted Canada Day in Ottawa with actress Sandra Oh, attended by Justin Trudeau, Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles, as well as Bono and The Edge.<ref>"Mitsou Gélinas coanimera le spectacle du 1er juillet à Ottawa". Ici Radio-Canada, June 30, 2017.</ref>

Mitsou Magazine

In 2018 she launched Mitsou Magazine, a web publication devoted to health, beauty and lifestyle information for women.<ref>Aurélie Bolduc, "Mitsou lance son nouveau magazine web". HollywoodPQ, March 3, 2018.</ref> She later expanded this with the launch of Mitsou Cuisine, featuring healthy and nutritious recipes.<ref>Raphaëlle Plante, "Mitsou Magazine lance une section cuisine". Le Soleil, April 30, 2020.</ref>

In 2019, she debuted as cohost with Léa Clermont-Dion of the TVA documentary series Mitsou et Léa, which profiled strong and remarkable women.<ref>Marie-Josée R. Roy, "«Mitsou et Léa»: la formidable expérience humaine de Mitsou". Le Journal de Montréal, June 20, 2021.</ref>

In 2021 she appeared as a guest judge in a second season episode of Canada's Drag Race.<ref>Pierre-Luc Houle, "Mitsou Gélinas sera juge à Canada's Drag Race". HollywoodPQ, September 29, 2021.</ref> Her 1993 single "Everybody Say Love", originally written by RuPaul, was used as the Lip Sync for Your Life number.<ref>Kevin Ritchie, "Canada’s Drag Race: Adriana is happy to play the villain". Now, December 4, 2021.</ref>

In 2022, Mitsou and her sisters, Abeille and Noémie, published the book Bien-être inspiré - Trouver l'harmonie Corps, Coeur, Esprit, a guide to healthy living.<ref>Olivia Lévy, "Franchise, bien-être et liberté". La Presse, October 19, 2022.</ref>

A year later, she returned to music, collaborating with singer Laurence Nerbonne on "Cowgirl", a song which alludes to "Bye Bye Mon Cowboy" and sees Nerbonne directly praising Mitsou as Quebec's original "girlboss".<ref>Mélissa Pelletier, "«Bye bye / J’ai pas besoin d’un cowboy», chantent Mitsou et Laurence Nerbonne dans leur nouvelle chanson «Cowgirl»". Le Journal de Montréal, October 27, 2023.</ref> In the same year, Pierre Lapointe invited her to take part in his Chansons hivernales tour of Christmas shows across Quebec, alongside other guest artists.<ref>Alexandre Vigneault, "Un anti-Noël rassembleur signé Pierre Lapointe". La Presse, December 8, 2023.</ref>

In June 2024, she took part in the Saint-Jean-Baptiste show on the Plains of Abraham.<ref>Élizabeth Lepage-Boily, "Une tenue bien spéciale pour Mitsou lors du Grand spectacle de la Fête nationale". Showbizz, June 24, 2024.</ref>

In March 2025, the docureality series Trois sœurs et un chalet premiered on Canal Vie and Crave, in which Mitsou and her sisters renovate the chalet bequeathed to them by their father Alain.<ref>Melissa Maya Falkenberg, "Vider la maison d’un être symbolique après sa mort". Le Devoir, May 24, 2025.</ref>

Discography

File:MITSOU.jpg

Mitsou in 2004

Albums

• El Mundo (Isba) 1988 (Platinum)
• Terre des Hommes (Isba) 1990 (Gold)
• Heading West (Isba) 1992
• Mitsou (Hollywood Records) 1992 (U.S. compilation)
• Tempted (TOX) 1993
• Ya Ya (TOX) 1994
• Noël (TOX) 1995
• La Collection (Unidisc) 1997 (compilation)
• Mitsou (Dazmo) 1999
• Vibe EP (Dazmo) 2002

Singles

• "Bye Bye Mon Cowboy" (Isba) (1988) Canada No. 63 / Québec No. 1 (6 weeks)
• "Les Chinois" (Isba) (1989) Québec No. 2
• "La Corrida" (Isba) (1989)
• "Mademoiselle Anne" (Isba) (1990)
• "Dis-moi, dis-moi" (Isba) (1991) Canada No. 63
• "Lettre à un Cowboy" (Isba) (1991) Québec No. 1
• "A Funny Place (The World Is)" (Isba) (1991)
• "Deep Kiss" (Isba) (1992)
• "Heading West" (Isba) (1992)
• "Everybody Say Love" (1993)
• "Le Yaya" (1994)
• "Comme j'ai toujours envie d'aimer" (1994)
• "Ouvre-moi" (1999)
• "Si tu m'aimes encore" (1999)
• "Les Ronces" (1999)
• "La Vie Sera" (1999)
• "A Toi (You and I)" (2002)
• "Bye Bye Mon Cowboy (vibe mix)" (2002)
• "Mon Roi" (2002)
• "On vole" (2011)
• "Cowgirl" (2023, with Laurence Nerbonne)

See also

• List of Quebec musicians
• Music of Quebec
• Culture of Quebec

External links

• Official site
• Template:IMDb name