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Les Cowboys Fringants - Compagnons des arts et des lettres du Québec

Prix et reconnaissances

On June 10, 2024, Les Cowboys Fringants (Jean-François Pauzé, Marie-Annick Lépine, Jérôme Dupras and Karl Tremblay) received the insignia of the Ordre des arts et des lettres du Québec, a prestigious distinction bestowed to personalities whose exemplary achievements reflect the artistic and literary development of Quebec. Discover the tribute paid to them by the Council.

Since the end of the 1990s, bandmates Jean-François Pauzé, Marie-Annick Lépine, Jérôme Dupras and the late Karl Tremblay have rocked and shaken Québec with activist songs addressing the sociopolitical and environmental challenges of their times. Forging ahead with their heads held high, the cult band Les Cowboys Fringants has endured the test of time and conquered the world.

For close to 30 years, Jean-François Pauzé has been writing lyrics with punch, set to sublime anthems from the masterful musicianship of Marie-Annick Lépine, and conveyed with passion by the unforgettable voice of Karl Tremblay, with rhythms by Jérôme Dupras’s bass. Singing about the complexity of our lives that sometimes hang by a thread, Les Cowboys created the soundtrack to millions of hearts, never running out of steam.

Their journey as spirited combatants was marked by countless sold-out tours, overflowing festival audiences, seas of fans at the Bell Centre and the Olympia in Paris, 21 Félix Awards, two Miroirs de la chanson d’expression française, the Prix RIDEAU tribute award and the Medal of Honour of the National Assembly.

The Québec of Les Cowboys was lifted up on the hope of the November 15, 1976, election of René Lévesque, it was knit together by tears, on November 15, 2023. In the winter wind, the shooting star of Karl Tremblay faded away, but Les Cowboys Fringants have not had their last word. In the rear-view mirror of a posthumous album, history continues to be written.

About the Ordre des arts et des lettres du Québec

The Ordre des arts et des lettres du Québec This link will open in a new window is a distinction of the Council which aims to honor people who have made a remarkable contribution, through their commitment and dedication, to the development, promotion or influence of the arts and letters of Quebec. .

The Council would like to thank its partners, the Caisse de la Culture and the newspaper Le Devoir.

Discover the other recipients This link will open in a new window

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