Alaclair Ensemble Explained

Alaclair Ensemble
Origin:Montreal, Quebec City
Years Active:2008-present
Genre:Canadian hip hop
Label:Disques 7ième Ciel (7ieme Ciel Records)
Associated Acts:Accrophone, Movèzerbe, Rednext Level, Karim Ouellet, K6A, KNLO, Eman X Vlooper, Kaytradamus
Website:alaclairensemble.com
Current Members:Ogden Ridjanovic
Akena Okoko
Claude Bégin
Eman
Vlooper
Past Members:Maybe Watson[1]
Mash
Bueller Tout’nou
Thomas Gagnon-Coupal

Alaclair Ensemble is a Canadian hip hop musical collective based in the province of Quebec.[2] Their musical style draws on traditional Québécois folk music as well as contemporary Hip hop music and Electronic music. They are known for PR stunts and tongue-in-cheek lyrics that border on the comedic.[3]

The group consists of Ogden "Robert Nelson" Ridjanovic (rapper),[4] Akena "KNLO" Okoko (rapper & producer),[5] Claude Bégin (rapper, singer, producer, musician),[6] Eman (rapper),[7] and producer Louis-Nicolas Imbeau, known as Vlooper.[8] The members also release music with their own side projects.

Musical concept

The band's concept is based around an alternate history in which the Patriotes won the Lower Canada Rebellion of 1838 and established a state based on the Declaration of Independence of Lower Canada. In the band's Bas-Canada (Lower Canada) mythology, the nation suffers none of the linguistic tensions between Anglophones and Francophones that exist in contemporary Quebec and Canadian society, and the band performs lyrics in both languages.[9]

History

The collective was formed in Quebec City, after several of the members had participated in Bande à part's 93 tours project in 2007.[10]

They released their debut album, 4,99, on Bandcamp in 2010.[11] [12] That was followed by Le Roé C'est Moé and Touladis in 2011,[13] [14] and, in 2012, Un Piou Piou Parmi Tant D'autres[15] and America.[16] In December 2012, they performed a "hip-hop Nocturne" at the Musée d'art contemporain de Montréal.[17]

The group's 2013 album Les maigres blancs d'Amérique du Noir,[18] [19] whose title is a satirical pun on Pierre Vallières' Quebec revolutionary manifesto Les nègres blancs d'Amérique, was released on Google Records and was a long-listed nominee for the 2013 Polaris Music Prize.[20]

Toute est impossible, was released in 2014.[21] [22] [23] In 2016, they released the album Alaclair Acapellas,[24] and were then signed to Disques 7ième Ciel (7ieme Ciel Records).[25] They then released their first priced album, Les Frères Cueilleurs,[26] and went on a tour of Quebec and parts of Europe.[27] [28] At ADISQ 2017, Alaclair Ensemble garnered nominations for the Critics' Choice Award, Show of the Year, Producer of the Year, Engineer of the Year, and Songwriter of the Year. Their video for the song "Ça que c'tait" won Video of the Year[29] and Les Frères Cueilleurs won Hip Hop Album of the Year.[30]

The album Le sens des paroles was released in 2018. At ADISQ 2019, Alaclair Ensemble received several nominations; the video for the song "La Famille" won Video of the Year,[31] and the album won Rap Album of the Year.[32] [33] [34] The album's lyrics are more serious than those of their earlier work.[35] That was followed by America, Vol. 2 in 2019.[36]

Also in 2019, the city of Laval, Quebec commissioned the group to create a song and video to encourage recycling. The result, Mets du respect dans ton bac (put some respect in your recycling bin), immediately went viral, with the video viewed 1.5 million times in its first five days.[37]

In 2020, Alaclair Ensemble released the album Capitaine Canada.[38] [39] In 2021, Claude Bégin was a competitor in the Quebec edition of Big Brother Célébrités.[40]

Discography

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Founding member Maybe Watson kicked out, July 2020 . montreal.ctvnews.ca . CTV News . 27 November 2021.
  2. https://montrealgazette.com/entertainment/music/alaclair-ensemble-rewrites-history-through-hip-hop "Alaclair Ensemble rewrites history through hip hop"
  3. Web site: Future Classic...July 2014 . musicismysanctuary.com . Music is My Sanctuary . 27 November 2021.
  4. Web site: Ogden Ridjanovic . imdb.com . IMDB . 27 November 2021.
  5. Web site: Akena Okoko . discogs.com . Discogs . 27 November 2021.
  6. Web site: Claude Bégin . coyoterecords.ca . Coyote Records . 27 November 2021.
  7. Web site: Desjardins . Félix . Eman: Still hungry . panm360.com . PanM 360 . 27 November 2021.
  8. Web site: Vlooper . discogs.com . Discogs . 27 November 2021.
  9. Web site: Oliver . Huw . Parlez-vous Franglais?, Sept 2015 . theguardian.com . The Guardian . 27 November 2021.
  10. https://www.ledevoir.com/culture/musique/161978/en-bref-hip-hop-93-tours-et-puis-reviennent "Hip-hop: 93 tours et puis reviennent"
  11. Web site: Boisvert-Magnen . Olivier . The Ultimate Guide to the Alaclair...June 2020 . socanmagazine.ca . SOCAN Magazine . 27 November 2021.
  12. Web site: Alaclair Ensemble – 4,99 . discogs.com . Discogs . 27 November 2021.
  13. Web site: DON’T SLEEP: Alaclair Ensemble . producersiknow.com . Producers I Know . 27 November 2021.
  14. Web site: Alaclair Ensemble – Le Roé C'est Moé . discogs.com . Discogs . 27 November 2021.
  15. Web site: Alaclair Ensemble – Un PIOU PIOU Parmi Tant D'autres . discogs.com . Discogs . 27 November 2021.
  16. Web site: Alaclair Ensemble – America . discogs.com . Discogs . 27 November 2021.
  17. Web site: Nocturne of December 2012 . macm.org . MAC Montreal . 27 November 2021.
  18. Web site: Alaclair Ensemble – Les Maigres Blancs d'Amérique Du Noir . discogs.com . Discogs . 27 November 2021.
  19. Web site: Troy . Marcus . Music: Alaclair Ensemble “Les Maigres Blancs D’Amérique Du Noir” . marcustroy.com . Marcus Troy . 27 November 2021.
  20. http://exclaim.ca/News/polaris_music_prize_unveils_2013_long_list "Polaris Music Prize Unveils 2013 Long List"
  21. Web site: Alaclair Ensemble – Toute Est Impossible . discogs.com . Discogs . 27 November 2021.
  22. Web site: Future Classic...July 2014 . musicismysanctuary.com . Music is My Sanctuary . 27 November 2021.
  23. http://voir.ca/nouvelles/actualite-musicale/2014/06/15/alaclair-ensemble-devoile-une-pochette-tres-conservatrice-pour-tout-est-impossible/ "Alaclair Ensemble dévoile une pochette « très conservatrice » pour Tout est impossible"
  24. Web site: Alaclair Ensemble – Alaclair Acapellas . discogs.com . Discogs . 27 November 2021.
  25. Web site: 7ieme Ciel Records . discogs.com . Discogs . 27 November 2021.
  26. Web site: Leijon . Erik . Alaclair Ensemble go back to school, June 2016 . montrealgazette.com . Montreal Gazette . 27 November 2021.
  27. Web site: Paleo Festival 2017 . yeah.paleo.ch . Paleo Festival . 27 November 2021.
  28. Philippe Renaud, "L’autre tour de piste d’Alaclair Ensemble". Le Devoir, September 29, 2018.
  29. Web site: Alaclair Ensemble - Ça que c'tait . youtube.com . YouTube . 27 November 2021.
  30. Web site: Archives 2017 - ADISQ . adisq.com . ADISQ . 27 November 2021.
  31. Web site: Alaclair Ensemble - La famille . youtube.com . YouTube . 27 November 2021.
  32. Web site: Archives 2019 - ADISQ . adisq.com . ADISQ . 27 November 2021.
  33. Web site: Parazelli . Eric . Alaclair Ensemble wins Rap Album of the Year . socanmagazine.ca . Socan Magazine . 27 November 2021.
  34. Alexis Boulianne, "Alaclair Ensemble dans tous les sens". Métro, October 1, 2018.
  35. https://ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle/1128529/alaclair-ensemble-le-sens-des-paroles-nouvel-album-tout-le-monde-en-parle "Les rappeurs d’Alaclair Ensemble veulent qu’on écoute leurs paroles"
  36. Web site: Alaclair Ensemble – America Volume 2 . discogs.com . Discogs . 27 November 2021.
  37. Web site: Dunlevy . T'Cha . Laval gets hip with viral rap recycling video . montrealgazette.com . Montreal Gazette . 27 November 2021.
  38. Web site: Capitaine Canada . discogs.com . Discogs . 27 November 2021.
  39. Web site: Desjardins . Félix . Capitaine Canada . panm360.com . PanM 360 . 27 November 2021.
  40. Marc-André Lemieux, "Big Brother Célébrités : donnons la chance à tous les coureurs". Le Journal de Montréal, January 10, 2021.

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