The Québec music industry took over Montréal’s Quartier des spectacles on Nov. 5, 2025, during the first two galas of the 2025 ADISQ Awards. Hosted by SOCAN member Sarahmée, the Premier Gala de l’ADISQ and the Industry Gala saw 46 Félix Awards handed out in ceremonies held at MTELUS and the Piano Nobile at Place des Arts, respectively.
Diane Pinet
Among the SOCAN members being honoured, Lou-Adriane Cassidy and Klô Pelgag emerged as front-runners with 13 artistic and technical nominations each across all galas, including those for the main event taking place on Sunday, Nov. 9, 2025. Cassidy swept nearly everything, picking up eight trophies so far – including Album of the Year – Critic’s Choice, Pop Album of the Year, and Arrangement of the Year (Alexandre Martel, Lou-Adriane) for Journal d’un loup-garou.
Klô Pelgag didn’t leave empty-handed, taking home two Félix Awards: Alternative Album of the Year for Abracadabra and Video of the Year for Le goût des mangues, directed by Laurence “Baz” Morais. She also received the Prix Étoiles Stingray, which comes with a $5,000 grant. Matt Lang also walked away from the Premier Gala with his first two Félix Awards: Anglophone Album of the Year (for All Night Longer) and Anglophone Show of the Year.
The Industry Gala also highlighted the essential work of SOCAN’s publisher members. The Félix for Publishing Team of the Year, presented by APEM, was awarded to Éditions Bloc-Notes Musique for the second year in a row. Diane Pinet, publisher and member of SOCAN’s Board of Directors, accepted the award on behalf of her team.
Backstage at the Premier Gala, we caught up with several winners, including Viviane Audet, whose album Le piano et le torrent has seen tremendous success since its release. She shared her initial reactions and gave us an update on an unusual story involving Donald Trump, to whom she had sent a copy of her album in February of 2025:
Select the image to access the SOCAN video interview with Viviane Audet
Other awards were presented to:
- Pierre Lapointe : Adult Contemporary Album of the Year, for Dix chansons démodées pour ceux qui ont le cœur abîmé
- Pierre Kwenders : Album of the Year – Bilingual and Other Languages, for Tears on the Dancefloor
- Guylaine Tremblay: Album of the Year – Country, for C’est ma vie
- Misc : Album of the Year – Jazz, for Beat Bouquet
- Qimutjuit: Album of the Year – Indigenous Languages, for Qimutjuit
- thaïs : Album of the Year – Electronic music, for Personne
- François Dompierre: Album of the Year – Classical, for Requiem
- Ramon Chicharron : Album of the Year – Global Music, for Niebla
- Shah Frank: Album of the Year – R&B/Soul, for Aura
- Souldia: Album of the Year – Rap for Nouvelle vie
- Bon Enfant : Album of the Year – Rock, for Demande spéciale
- Clay and Friends: Live Show of the Year – Indigenous languages/Bilingual and other languages, for Stunt
- Elisapie: Show of the Year – Variety / Re-interpretations / Musicals, for Inuktitut / Uvattini
At the Industry Gala, a deeply moving tribute was paid to Alain Simard, a towering figure in the Québec music industry. A pioneer of the counterculture in his early days, this arts entrepreneur is best known for founding three of Québec’s biggest festivals: the Montreal International Jazz Festival, Les Francos de Montréal, and the Montréal en Lumière festival — including its Nuit blanche.
And that’s not even counting his role in the creation and growth of the Place des Festivals. As founder of Équipe Spectra and its many concert, recording, and television subsidiaries, Simard has worn every hat in the business: producer, promoter, event organizer, venue owner, career builder – and manager, having personally guided the careers of SOCAN members Michel Rivard, Claude Dubois, Paul Piché, Beau Dommage, Offenbach, Louise Forestier, Jean Leloup, and Carole Laure, to name just a few.
Billie Du Page received the $5,000 Bell Media Discovery Grant, as well as an additional $5,000 prize, awarded by public voting, as part of the Ma première nomination project. Also awarded for a fourth year, the Prix collégial de la chanson de l’année – a $5,000 prize – went to Ariane Roy for the second time, for her song “Dogue,” during the Industry Gala. The award was presented by two students who took part in the jury, which included representatives from 20 colleges across Québec. Around 100 students selected the winning artist by analyzing the 20 nominated songs, using active listening and critical judgment to determine the standout track.
Several outstanding SOCAN members performed at the Premier Gala de l’ADISQ, including Aswell, Choses Sauvages, Claudia Bouvette, Jonathan Roy, Marie-Pierre Arthur, Naomi, Shah Frank, thaïs, and Viviane Audet.
The broadcast will be available on telequebec.tv and the Télé-Québec app, and will re-air on Sunday, Nov. 9, 2025, at 4:00 p.m. ET on Télé-Québec. The annual celebration of Québec’s recording and live performance industries continues at 8:00 p.m. the same evening, at Place des Arts’ Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier, with the main televised gala – airing on ICI Radio-Canada Télé – hosted by comedian Pierre-Yves Roy-Desmarais.
For a complete list of the Premier Gala and Industry gala winners, visit the ADISQ website.