Latest news with #French-speaking
Broadcast Pro
2 days ago
- Business
- Broadcast Pro
TF1 to launch TF1+ streaming platform in 22 African countries
The deal is also part of Belmer's strategy to transform the group's AVOD platform, TF1+, into a global brand, with its African launch set for the end of the month. French broadcaster TF1 has announced plans to expand its free ad-supported streaming service, TF1+, into 22 French-speaking African countries starting June 30, 2025. This strategic expansion follows the platform's previous rollouts in Belgium, Luxembourg and Switzerland, marking a significant step in TF1's ambition to become a dominant entertainment player across the French-speaking world. Speaking to Variety, TF1 CEO Rodolphe Belmer said the goal is to position TF1+ as the leading entertainment platform in these new markets. The move places TF1 in direct competition with Canal+, which already has a strong presence in Francophone Africa and is currently extending its footprint into English-speaking markets through its acquisition of MultiChoice. In addition to geographic expansion, TF1 is set to introduce a new micro-payment model for TF1+, aimed at diversifying its revenue streams beyond traditional linear and digital advertising. Inspired by mobile gaming economics, the system will allow viewers to choose between ad-supported and ad-free viewing options on a per-episode basis. This will launch in France on September 1. As Belmer explained, audiences will have the flexibility to watch flagship programmes such as Koh-Lanta either with commercials or without, depending on their preference. TF1's push for innovation also made headlines last week with the surprise announcement that Netflix subscribers in France will soon have access to live TF1 channels and on-demand content from TF1+ directly through the Netflix platform. Although Belmer declined to offer specific details on the partnership, he confirmed that the deal will help extend TF1's reach within the advertising market. With these moves, TF1 is signaling a clear intent to broaden its international footprint and adapt to evolving viewer preferences while tapping into new monetisation models and strategic partnerships.
Time of India
2 days ago
- Health
- Time of India
'Oh s***': Canadian senator Patrick Brazeau collapses during debate; recovering now
Canadian senator Patrick Brazeau Canadian senator Patrick Brazeau collapsed on Wednesday afternoon (local time) while participating in a debate on the federal government's major projects bill. Also Read | Who is Canadian Senator Patrick Brazeau challenging Donald Trump Junior to a charity boxing match According to Canadian media outlet CBS News, Brazeau, who is from the French-speaking Quebec province, had posed a question to Conservative member Leo Housakos. The former then stood up to ask a second question. At this point, Brazeau could be heard over the microphone deeply exhaling before saying, "Oh s***," and falling over sideways. Senators and staff could be seen quickly standing up or rushing over to the independent politician's seat as the proceedings were suspended. According to a statement from a Senate spokesperson, the 50-year-old was receiving medical attention and "he appears to be recovering." Ottawa paramedics, who arrived on the scene and took Brazeau to a hospital, told the website that they responded to a "non-life-threatening" incident on the Rideau Street - the location of the Senate building. As per a senator, Brazeau was conscious when the paramedics helped him out of the building. Proceedings resumed nearly half an hour later. Senate Speaker Raymonde Gagné thanked security and emergency personnel and the debate continued.
Montreal Gazette
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Montreal Gazette
Kelly: Revered Quebec singer Serge Fiori was loved by both solitudes
Music When Les Cowboys Fringants singer Karl Tremblay died in November 2023, I wrote a column about how the two solitudes were still very much a thing ici — and, yes, they still are today. I vented my frustration about how Tremblay's death was an absolutely huge thing for French Quebec and yet so few English-speaking folks 'round these parts had any idea just how important Tremblay and his band were for their franco neighbours. But that narrative doesn't work nearly as well with Serge Fiori. The Montreal singer-songwriter, who died Tuesday at age 73, was, of course, way better known by French-speaking music fans, but Fiori and Harmonium, the iconic progressive-rock band he founded in the early '70s, had a surprisingly strong following among English-Canadians. Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying Fiori's as famous in the ROC (Rest of Canada) as, say, Gord Downie or Gordon Lightfoot. But back in the day, Harmonium was one of the only francophone bands to break out beyond the borders of Quebec. First, a little background for those of you who don't know him. Fiori is positively revered in Quebec for the very good reason that he is one of the greatest musical artists of his generation. If you don't believe me, slap on Pour un instant or L'Exil or Un musicien parmi tant d'autres and tell me those tracks aren't as good as anything else produced by the best British, American or Canadian tunesmiths back in the '70s. Actually, don't tell me. Because you'd be wrong. Fiori, with his falsetto vocals, sang like an angel, and he was an unbelievably gifted composer. There's a tuneful accessibility to most of what he penned, but there's also a rich complexity, with fine-textured guitar lines and, especially as time went on, almost orchestral takes on British progressive rock. Harmonium's third and final album, L'Heptade, released in 1976, is considered their masterpiece, and it's inspired folky prog-rock that can win over a guy like me who loves to hate progsters like Genesis and Gentle Giant. By 1978, the band split up and, astonishingly enough, Fiori never performed on stage again, plagued by anxiety. In fact, he disappeared from sight for much of the 1980s. In the '70s, Harmonium as much as any other group personified the hopes and aspirations of un peuple, a mantle that Fiori was never comfortable with. He was a committed nationalist, but he was also a remarkably down-to-Earth Italian-Montrealer who had difficulty seeing himself as a saviour. He didn't write all that much music in the 40-plus years since L'Heptade, but when he did, like for his very good solo album from 2014, it was as great as ever and became a huge hit. After he died on June 24, the day of La Fête de la Saint-Jean, so many online were talking about the heavy symbolism of him leaving us on Quebec's national holiday. He was as loved as any contemporary Québécois artist and was a tireless defender of the French language and culture here right up to the end of his life. Given all that, it's quite the rich irony that the local French-language music biz here was initially cool to Harmonium. I've met and interviewed Fiori many times over the years and he often told the story of how French radio in Montreal wasn't into the band in the early days. The first station to play Pour un instant was CHOM, and because of that Fiori always had a soft spot for the anglo classic-rock station. The band also signed with a Toronto-based disco label, rather than with any of the Montreal record companies. They often toured Canada to packed venues and even played throughout California, opening for Supertramp. Three years ago, my old friend Geneviève Borne and I did a podcast interviewing local musicians in both of Canada's official languages, and we had a great conversation with Fiori. I asked him how it was that English-Canadians were so into Harmonium. 'I don't know, but it was the first time a (Quebec) band was going there, all through Canada, with nights and nights booked in every city,' Fiori said. 'You'd go on stage and there's like 3,000 people at the Orpheum in Vancouver. And they sing the words in French, and that's very rare.' The record company CBS offered to pay him to re-record the Harmonium songs in the language of Lennon and he turned them down. That day in the fall of 2022, I asked him why he said 'no'. 'Cause I'm nuts,' he said with a laugh. 'First of all, there's something about writing rock 'n' roll in French that is extremely hard. It's pretty easy in English. It sounds good with nothing. Once you get it (in French), it's so profound. The song is so amazing, so even translating that in English, for me it wouldn't work… and I think if I would have done that, Quebec would have turned against me.' He said the reaction in Western Canada was exactly the same as it was here in Quebec — people just adored Harmonium. They told him they didn't care what language the songs were in, 'It was just the music.' He recalled travelling to Toronto with the band to meet with the executives at Quality Records and on the spot the label gave them five grand to make an album in Montreal, something no local label was willing to do. 'We were too weird (for the Montreal record companies),' Fiori said. But so accessible as well, you touched the heart of everyone, said Borne. 'Yeah, but they didn't believe that,' Fiori said. To which I chimed in, 'proving my theory that the vast majority of these record-company people know nothing.' 'Thank you very much,' Fiori said quietly. Then he started laughing. 'You said it!'
3 days ago
- Entertainment
Quebec singer and Harmonium frontman Serge Fiori dies at 73
Serge Fiori, singer, guitarist and founding member of the legendary Quebec band Harmonium, died Tuesday at the age of 73. His manager of 36 years, Serge Grimaux, said in a statement that Fiori died in the early hours of June 24 at his home in Saint-Henri-de-Taillon, Que., in the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region. Grimaux said he died following a long illness. Serge left us the same way he lived — with that legendary smile that lit up everyone who knew him, everyone he brought immense joy to, and the country that was his, in his heart and in his eternal passion, Grimaux said. He leaves behind his family, his friends, and all those in whom the songs he wrote and the harmonies he created will forever resonate. Premier François Legault praised Fiori in a lengthy social media post, saying he left a lasting mark on Quebec through songs filled with poetry, depth and sensitivity. With Harmonium, Legault said, Fiori touched the hearts of several generations of Quebecers, starting with the band's first album. By pushing the boundaries of rock music, he broadened the horizons of an entire era, Legault wrote. His work helped redefine the place of music in Quebec. Harmonium's three albums have become cult classics for our nation. He put words and melodies to what we were living and who we were. Fiori also helped bring Quebec music to the world stage, the premier noted. From Mount Royal to the stages of Europe, his voice resonated everywhere. Born in Montreal in 1952 to an Italian father and a French-speaking mother, Fiori founded Harmonium in the early 1970s with Michel Normandeau and Louis Valois. The band's three folk-rock albums — Harmonium (1974), Si on avait besoin d'une cinquième saison (1975) and L'Heptade (1976) — became hallmarks of Quebec's musical identity. The band stood out at a time when most Quebec acts leaned toward chanson-style music, combining complex lyrical and instrumental arrangements that helped it gain a following beyond provincial borders. Despite singing exclusively in French, Harmonium became one of the few Quebec bands of the 1970s to gain some recognition in the United States. The group's debut album, recorded in just six days, sold more than 100,000 copies and quickly topped the charts. It included Pour un instant , Harmonium's first commercial success, as well as Un musicien parmi tant d'autres . In 1978, Harmonium toured California, with Fiori joining then-premier René Lévesque in a showcase of Quebec music's vitality in the U.S. The group dissolved shortly after, worn down by relentless travel. Fiori, emotionally and physically exhausted, struggled with the effects of LSD use, which had caused a neurotransmitter disorder — a condition he described in his 2013 biography S'enlever du chemin , written by longtime friend Louise Thériault. After Harmonium disbanded, Fiori teamed up with Richard Séguin to release Deux cents nuits à l'heure in 1978, an album that won three Félix awards. He later contributed music to Yvon Deschamps's stage shows and released a self-titled solo album in 1986. He collaborated over the years with artists including Diane Dufresne and Nanette Workman. Fiori stepped away from the public eye for many years before returning in 2014 with the album Serge Fiori — his first in nearly 30 years. The record featured Le monde est virtuel , which was nominated for Song of the Year at the 2015 ADISQ gala and won Félix awards for best-selling album and adult contemporary album of the year. He also composed music for films, including the 2009 feature Babine , which earned a Félix for best original soundtrack. On Tuesday, Parti Québécois Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon called Fiori a true ambassador of Quebec culture. Serge Fiori was an immense lyricist and melodist whose songs have accompanied us for more than 50 years — and will continue to do so, St-Pierre Plamondon said, offering condolences to his family and loved ones. CBC News written by Isaac Olson, with files from Radio-Canada
Cision Canada
4 days ago
- General
- Cision Canada
Message from the Governor General of Canada on Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day 2025 Français
OTTAWA, ON, June 24, 2025 /CNW/ - On June 24, we come together to celebrate Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day, a proud and deeply rooted tradition that honours the vitality, unity and cultural richness of French-speaking communities across Quebec and Canada. The origins of this cherished celebration date back thousands of years and have evolved into the parades, bonfires and community gatherings we know today. Whether you're celebrating in La Belle Province, where it is known as la Fête nationale, or anywhere else in the country, at a music venue, having a backyard party or simply enjoying time with loved ones, it is also an occasion to reflect on the vibrant Francophone culture that continues to shape our collective identity. Happy Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day! Mary Simon
