First, the Nova Scotian country sounds of Baie Sainte-Marie band P’tit Béliveau et les Grosses Coques made everybody smile and stomp their feet. Lastly, Alex Burger showed that he was able to evolve his rock music at lightning speed, presenting an even more powerful performance than he did in the semi-finals, with the addition of a second drummer. In between, jazz-rap combo O.G.B. – which stands for Original Gros Bonnet (Original Big Wig) – skillfully snuck up to first place.
All this in the finals of the 2019 Francouvertes competition, held Monday, May 6, 2019, with results determined by the combined votes of the jury and audience. In addition to the $10,000 cash prize, O.G.B. also received several other prizes, as did P’tit Béliveau and Alex Burger.
Eric Parazelli, the SOCAN online magazine Francophone editor, was there and met with the septet to capture their reaction to this win as soon as they stepped off the stage:
The night opened with the last of the “J’aime mes ex” performances, presented by SOCAN, featuring event spokespersons Karim Ouellet and his sister, rapper Sarahmée, who performed a few songs prior to the finalists’ performances.
Alex Burger won the Paroles & Musique Award – including a $1,000 cash prize and a stay at the Paris or Nashville SOCAN House, offered by SOCAN. The honour recognizes the excellent writing of the songs he performed during the semi-finals. The contest winner will, of course, be invited to perform in the “J’aime mes ex” series during the 24th edition of the Francouvertes, next year.
The winner of SOCAN’s Paroles & Musique award, Alex Burger (right) and his musicians alongside SOCAN’s Eric Parazelli (centre) during the Francouverte’s semifinals at Montréal’s Lion d’Or venue (Photo: Frédérique Ménard-Aubin/Francouvertes)
For a complete list of the prizes given out to the 2019 finalists, visit the Francouvertes website.
The finals of the Francouvertes were broadcast via Facebook Live on the ICI Musique page, and you’ll be able to hear them again on May 15, at noon on Influence Franco—SiriusXM 174 (and again on Friday, May 17, at 6:00 p.m.).
SOCAN congratulates O.G.B. on this important win in their budding career.