Biography

Mitsou Gélinas has brightened Québec’s cultural landscape since her television debut in the mid-seventies. At just 17 years old, Mitsou electrified the musical industry in Québec with the release of Bye Bye mon cowboy, an audacious hit single from her album El Mundo. This marked the beginning of her musical career, consisting of 7 albums and 17 music videos that garnered success in Québec and across English Canada (Les Chinois, La Corrida, Mademoiselle Anne, Dis-moi Dis-moi, Lettre à un Cowboy, Le Yaya, Comme j’ai toujours envie d’aimer, Everybody Say Love, Deep Kiss). For her musical work, Mitsou has won two Félix awards for Best New Artist and Best First Album.

Coming from a family of artists, Mitsou was introduced to the Quebec audience as an actress at the age of 9, playing the role of Annouck Jaquemin in the TV-Series Terre humaine. TV hosting would later play an important part in her career. In 2005 she reconnected with English Canada through the small screen at the helm of Au courant, a talk show with compelling interviews broadcast on CBC Newsworld. The show was nominated in 2006 for a Gemini Award. In 2009 she hosted the cultural magazine La liste, a production of Marie-France Bazzo on ART TV and Radio-Canada’s Kampaï! À votre santé. Mitsou was nominated for best female host of a service show at the Artis gala.2013 started strong for Mitsou, a big fan of Oprah Winfrey, since she had the privilege to introduce the grande dame of television when she visited Montreal as part of her “An Evening with Oprah” tour in April 2013. In the Fall of the same year, she is the host of Tout part de soi, a television show broadcast on the Moi et Cie channel and the TVA network. Every week, a guest is offered a three-day break where they can reflect on their situation and initiate major changes in their life. Once again, on the Moi et Cie channel, she takes on a new challenge in the Fall of 2014 with Dis-moi, a show where she has the opportunity to meet some of the most inspiring women in Quebec. During the show, she follows these professionals from all backgrounds in their day-to-day activities before having an open-hearted conversation with them over a meal.

In 1997 Mitsou and her partner Iohann Martin founded the music production house Dazmo, offering services as soundtrack specialists in cinema, television and advertising. Six months later, Andrew Lapierre joined them in the creation of an audio-visual equipment rental house named Vidéo Assist. In 2000, they established the camera rental company Vidéo MTL, a pioneer of the HD industry in Québec.A true fashion lover, Mitsou took on the role of business partner and ambassador for Minitrade.ca in the Summer of 2014. This ingenious and sustainable online store offers an alternative to all fashionistas who wish to keep up with the latest trends without spending a fortune.

In 2000 and for almost 12 years, Mitsou co-hosted C’t’encore drôle at NRJ 94.3, the number one morning show aimed at 18-34 year olds. In the Fall of 2012, the radio station Rythme FM 105.7 featured Mitsou hosting Heureux! Montréalwith Sébastien Benoit. A year later, she started hosting her own midday show called Mitsou et Musique, which was broadcast every weekday on the entire Rythme FM network. Sébastien Benoit, her accomplice on the air, joined her in January 2014 to co-host Mitsou et Sébastien, the number one lunch hour program.

In the Fall of 2001, Mitsou took on the position of Director of the women’s magazine Clin d’œil. For seven years she wrote a monthly editorial for Quebec’s No. 1 fashion magazine. She left in 2009 to become the new face and “beauty ambassador” of the Lise Watier cosmetics house until 2011. Mitsou continues to share her passions with readers through the blog she created and which carries her name: Mitsou.com.

Enjoying considerable success in Québec as in English Canada, Mitsou was quickly noticed as an actress on the big screen with Prince Lazure in 1991 and Coyote in 1992. She brought the character of Little Red Riding Hood to life in Denise Filiatrault’s L’Odyssée d’Alice Tremblay.

2003, Mitsou played yet another role in Denys Arcand’s celebrated Oscar winning film Les Invasions barbares, and L’enfant prodige in 2010, a film inspired by the life of Québec pianist André Mathieu. In 2012 she lent her voice to the French version of the American animated film Paranorman.

Since 2005, Mitsou does charitable work as the official spokesperson of the Quebec Breast Cancer Foundation, a cause which she continues to honour to this day.To show her continued support to the Fondation du Centre des auteurs dramatiques (CEAD), Mitsou has taken on the role of spokesperson of the Gratien-Gélinas Prize for new voices in playwriting. Created in 1994 and bearing the name of her grandfather, it is the most important award for emerging francophone playwrights across Canada.