Biography

Gilles Vigneault, born October 27, 1928) is a Québécois poet, publisher and singer-songwriter, and well-known Quebec nationalist and sovereigntist. A poet deeply rooted in his native Quebec, Vigneault has become an icon at home and Quebec ambassador abroad. He was one of the principal figures of the generation of chansonniers who helped the Quebec chanson find its own identity, even while helping it find a universal dimension. On 24 June 1975, during a Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day concert on Montreal's Mount Royal, Vigneault sang for the first time Gens du pays, a song which has since become a sort of anthem in Quebec.