Bobby Bazini

Bobby Bazini au Théâtre St-Denis à Montréal
Le vendredi 20 mai au Théâtre St-Denis à 20 heures.

Depuis un an, un nom se retrouve sur toutes les lèvres : celui de Bobby Bazini, un jeune auteur-compositeur-interprète, natif de Mont-Laurier. Il chante avec la voix envoûtante et l’âme poignante de ceux qui puisent leur inspiration dans les racines de la musique du Sud américain (Deep South). Un soul / R&B teinté de blues et de folk ainsi qu’une voix unique se distinguant par sa surprenante maturité : il est difficile de croire que le jeune homme derrière le succès radio I Wonder n’est âgé que de 22 ans seulement! Découvert dans les Hautes-Laurentides par un animateur de radio locale, il a conquis le public québécois avant même d’avoir enregistré un disque. À l’instar de son idole Johnny Cash, Bazini impressionne avec les chansons de son premier album, Better In Time.

Son premier extrait, I Wonder, est demeuré à la tête des palmarès québécois pendant neuf semaines consécutives. L’album a été lancé en mars 2010, prenant la quatrième position du palmarès des albums canadiens dès sa première semaine de mise en vente et a été certifié platine (plus de 80 000 copies vendues). Better In Time a remporté un Félix en novembre dernier pour « Album anglophone de l’année » et Bobby a été nominé pour deux prix Juno (Meilleur nouvel artiste et Album pop de l’année) le 1er février 2011.
Better In Time a été lancé sur l’étiquette montréalaise Mungo Park Records et a, par la suite, été repêché par Warner Music en Europe pour être distribué dans 28 pays. D’autres nations tentent de s’accaparer le jeune artiste que MusiqueMag.com a nommé « la Révélation Musicale de l’Année. » La publication française notoire Paris Match n’a pas manqué de reconnaître les signes et a dépêché une équipe de reporters à Montréal pour rencontrer Bazini et le voir en concert afin de rédiger un article ensuite publié dans l’édition de mai 2010 du magazine. Cela fut, il va sans dire, un coup d’envoi étourdissant pour sa carrière.
Suite au succès de son premier album, Bobby travaille fort à l’écriture du prochain mais le tourbillon de spectacles et de promotion se poursuit sans baisser d’ardeur. Bazini, accompagné de ses talentueux musiciens les Brass Tacks, seront en tournée à travers le Québec ce mois-ci, pour terminer en grand avec une soirée plus que prometteuse le 20 mai au Théâtre St-Denis.

« Il est un jeune homme avec une vielle âme » – ROLLING STONE

« La voix de Bobby Bazini est étonnante, très typée, marquante, celle de quelqu’un qui aurait beaucoup vécu,
mais qui se retrouverait par hasard dans une enveloppe charnelle d’à peine 20 ans. » – Marie-Christine Blais, LA PRESSE

« Il ouvre toute grande la porte sur son monde intérieur. Et c’est beau, très beau ! » – Valérie Lesage, LE SOLEIL

Plus d’infos sur www.bobbybazini.com

Mots-clefs : Bobby Bazini, chanteur, guitariste, musique, Théâtre St-Denis
- Montreal.tv

Juno Week: Bobby Bazini

Marie-France Coallier / Postmedia news
Bobby Bazini is up for a best new artist Juno
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Special to National Post Mar 23, 2011 – 7:30 PM ET | Last Updated: Apr 28, 2011 3:13 PM ET

The Juno Awards are taking place this Sunday in Toronto. Who will take home the most statuettes? Will Justin Bieber or host Drake elicit the most teenage screams? All this week we’re looking at some of Canada’s brightest Juno nominees. Today, Leah Collins talks to Bobby Bazini.

There are songs on Bobby Bazini’s Juno-nominated album, Better in Time, that date back to the Quebecois singer-songwriter’s teen years. For instance, I Wonder, the first single off his debut album, is the oldest track on the disc.

Maybe Bazini’s not that many years from teenaged; he’s 21. But since Better in Time was released a year ago, the musician has found some distance between where he was then and now. When asked what he thinks of his record when he listens to it now, he doesn’t hesitate to share his impressions.

“Well, I would change it if I could,” he says, soft-spoken and matter-of-factly. “I would change the lyrics. You improve as a writer. Even today, I listened to my record and I would change all the lyrics on that,” he chuckles. “And it’s nice to see that — because my English has improved, my writing, all of it.”

As it stands, though, Bazini’s home province has found Better in Time just fine. I Wonder was a Top 3 hit in Quebec for eight weeks. In the press, he seems to get labelled as the “next Celine Dion” a lot — which is funny, considering a twentysomething dude warbling twangy love songs is nearly the opposite of Our Lady of Las Vegas. He recently collected a Felix (Quebec’s Junos) for English album of the year. And going into the Juno Awards this weekend, Bazini has two nominations, including nods for new artist of the year and pop album of the year. (In that latter category he’ll face off against Justin Bieber, Down with Webster, Faber Drive and Sarah McLachlan.)

“It’s just amazing,” says Bazini. “It’s cool to be alongside great artists, as well.”

He got to this point remarkably quickly. Bazini is “close to 22” now. He was just 15 when he first picked up a guitar.

“My dad taught me to play guitar, and my granddad taught my dad to play. So, you know, it’s a family thing, music,” Bazini explains. (His younger brother, Kevin, is also a pop singer, though he performs under the family name Bazinet.)

He says he had never played anything else before that, but shortly after his dad taught him “some tricks,” he was driven to write his own songs.

The catalyst, he says, was in his grandmother’s record collection. Sent to live with her at 15 — shortly after his parents split and not long after getting acquainted with a six-string — Bazini was suddenly exposed to a variety of new-to-him artists: Bob Dylan, Otis Redding, Johnny Cash. (About the latter, Bazini plays a little Folsom Prison make-believe in his latest video, Oh Katy — though there sure weren’t any pretty little blond girls in the Man in Black’s audience.)

Hanging at grandma’s house in Mont-Laurier, Que., a few hours north of Montreal, other kids might have Googled some guitar tabs and blown their afternoons learning covers. Bazini was inspired to follow his idols in another way: by writing his own songs, just like them.

Though French is his first language — he’s been speaking English since 14 or 15 — Bazini says he was automatically drawn to writing in English. “I’ve always been writing - The National Post

Singer-songwriter Bobby Bazini is up for two awards at the 40th Annual Junos: New Artist of the Year and Pop Album of the Year.
Photograph by: Marie-France Coallier/Montreal Gazette, Marie-France Coallier/Montreal Gazette
There are songs on Bobby Bazini’s Juno-nominated album, Better in Time, that date back to the Quebecois singer-songwriter’s teen years. For instance, “I Wonder,” the first single off his debut album, is the oldest track on the disc.

Maybe Bazini’s not that many years from teenaged; he’s 21. But since Better in Time was released a year ago, the musician has found some distance between where he was then and now. When asked what he thinks of his record when he listens to it now, he doesn’t hesitate to share his impressions.

“Well, I would change it if I could,” he says, soft-spoken and matter-of-factly. “I would change the lyrics. You improve as a writer. Even today, I listened to my record and I would change all the lyrics on that,” he chuckles. “And it’s nice to see that -- because my English has improved, my writing, all of it.”

As it stands, though, Bazini’s home province has found Better in Time (how’s that for a title?) just fine. “I Wonder” was a top 3 hit in Quebec for eight weeks. In the press, he seems to get labelled as the “next Celine Dion” a lot -- which is funny considering a 20-something dude warbling twangy love songs is nearly the opposite of Our Lady of Las Vegas. He recently collected a Felix (Quebec’s Junos) for English Album of the Year. And going into the Juno Awards this weekend, Bazini has two nominations, including nods for New Artist of the Year and Pop Album of the Year (in that latter category he’ll face off against Justin Bieber, Down with Webster, Faber Drive and Sarah McLachlan.)

“It’s just amazing,” says Bazini. “It’s cool to be alongside great artists, as well.”


How he got to this point seems remarkably rapid. Bazini’s “close to 22” now. He was just 15 when he first picked up a guitar.

“My dad taught me to play guitar, and my granddad taught my dad to play. So, you know, it’s a family thing, music,” Bazini explains. (His younger brother, Kevin, is also a pop singer -- though he performs under the family name, Bazinet.)

He says he had never played anything else before that, but shortly after his dad taught him “some tricks,” he was driven to write his own songs.

The catalyst, he says, was found in his grandmother’s record collection. Sent to live with her at 15 -- shortly after his parents split and not long after getting acquainted with a six-string -- Bazini was suddenly exposed to a variety of new-to-him artists: Bob Dylan, Otis Redding, Johnny Cash. (About the latter, Bazini plays a little Folsom Prison make-believe in his latest video, “Oh Katy” -- though there sure weren’t any pretty little blonde girls in the Man in Black’s audience.)


Hanging at grandma’s house in Mont-Laurier, Que, a few hours north of Montreal, other kids might have Googled some guitar tabs and blown their afternoons learning covers. Bazini was inspired to follow his idols in another way: by writing his own songs, just like them.

“His [Johnny Cash’s] music got me wanting to start writing my own stuff and playing more and more,” he says. “You know, music has always been in my house,” Bazini continues. His parents, he says, were New Country fans. “But I never really paid attention to it until then, when I heard Johnny Cash. I wasn’t really listening to the radio, I was just -- I think I discovered authenticity through Johnny Cash and also, I mean, plenty of other singers like Bob Dylan and Otis Redding. They have a sound, they all use real instruments, it’s not fake. There’s no computers, no samples. And that’s what I wanted to do in my own record, that’s very important to me.”

(That distinction is an important one to note. The songs on Better in Time have a certain twang, but they’re definitely not to be mistaken for straight-up homages to Bazini’s idols. He’s more frequently compared to Scottish, soul-inspired folkie Paolo Nutini than Johnny Cash.)

Though French is his first language -- he’s been speaking English since 14 or 15 -- Bazini says he was automatically drawn to writing in English. “I’ve always been writing in English. I think my musical culture is English,” he says. “It’s just -- my parents, what they were listening to was always American music,” he explains. “It wasn’t a choice about language.

“I think I like challenges,” he adds with a soft chuckle. “I wanted to be as good as I could in English, I wanted to be as good as Bob Dylan -- but I’m still far away from that.”

At the start, though, he says his grandmother saw his potential. “She was encouraging me,” he says. “I wasn’t very good at school, and I didn’t really like it very much. So I dropped out, you know, because I decided it wasn’t for me. I wanted to do music. I wanted to do something else.”

So, he practiced, he wrote, and while performing at the 2008 Mont Laurier International Theatre Festival, he met up with a guy who became something of his champion, a local radio DJ named Hugo Sabourin. “He wanted to find someone who could help me get signed, or release a record,” Bazini says of his friend. And the short version of the story that follows is, he did -- helping Bazini record his first demo and forge connections with the people who would lead to finding a manager and signing with a record label (Mungo Park Records, from whose offices he phoned for this interview).

Somewhere in that time, Bazini opted to perform under a stage name. “The record company proposed that I change my name,” he says, adding that he was initially hesitant to perform under anything other than his given name, Bazinet. “The first reason was for pronunciation, because we were heading for an English career,” he says. “Bazini is easier to pronounce in another language.”

And while he’s a known commodity in Quebec -- and, arguably, abroad (his record was released in Germany earlier this month) -- he’s still in the process of acquainting himself with the rest of Canada.

He says there are plans to tour outside of Quebec within 2011. At the moment, though, he’s occupied with writing -- learning as he goes while not straying too far from his origins. “It sounds more old-school,” he says of his new material. “I’m closer to my roots, I think -- more country, but still there’s soul and blues. It’s cool. I’m really excited about it.”

Bobby Bazini is nominated for New Artist of the Year and Pop Album of the Year at the 40th Annual Juno Awards.

For more on this year’s New Artist of the Year nominees, check back to www.dose.ca/junos throughout the week.

The 40th Annual Juno Awards will be broadcast live from Toronto on CTV Sunday, March 27.



Read more: http://www.dose.ca/Juno+Profile+Bobby+Bazini/4492102/story.html#ixzz1d4TDP7aT - The Vancouver Sun

Bernard Perusse, Postmedia News
Published: Wednesday, March 16, 2011
If Bobby Bazini, not yet 22, didn't think like an old soul trapped in the body of a very young man, he'd be tough to take seriously.
Although the singer-songwriter grew up listening to soul giants and country-music greats, he bought his first disc, the Doors classic L.A. Woman, when he was 18 -- a bit more than three years ago.
In a recent interview situation, Bazini frequently laughs nervously and shows a sweet eagerness to please. If his questioner hears a crucial word incorrectly, for example, he's the one to hastily apologize. When the conversation is over, the francophone Mont Laurier native expresses worry about his English pronunciation -- which is, by the way, absolutely fine.

Singer-songwriter Bobby Bazini is nominated for two Juno Awards this year, best new artist and pop album of the year. His debut record, Better in Time, is out now.
Marie-France Coallier


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Clearly, this is no jaded veteran settling into raconteur mode. But how could he be? He has released only one album, albeit a Juno-nominated one. His best stories are ahead of him, rather than in the past.
What makes Bazini a more engaging subject than his slim biography might suggest is a beyond-his-years obsession with authenticity. He's vaguely countercultural in that regard. He wants real instruments on his records. He likes a well-placed mistake in a song. He's appalled when he hears machine-made music.
"I don't listen to the radio, I have to be honest," he says during an interview at a Montreal cafe. "Even the voices sound like they're arranged by computers now. That's why I've always listened more to old songs."
Make no mistake, though: Bazini's debut, Better in Time, didn't get certified platinum in Canada, win an ADISQ award last fall and snag him two Juno nominations -- Pop Album of the Year and Best New Artist -- by sounding like a six-beer jam. Anchored by Bazini's Marc Bolan-esque quiver (which is actually more robust than that sounds), the album goes down very smoothly and without threat. Crucially, its velvety mix of pop, soul, country and rock 'n' roll works, because the rhythm behind the music is a human heartbeat.
Part of the credit goes to producer and arranger Tino Izzo. Best known for his work with larger-than-life singers like Celine Dion and Garou, Izzo clearly decided to hang back and let Bazini's natural presence carry the day. The album's biggest production strength, it seems, is that it doesn't really sound produced.
Reminded that it's rare for rookie singers to get their way in the studio, Bazini laughs and says Izzo listened when he made his case for the unadorned sound he wanted. "I've always pushed hard for that. Some of my team say I'm a very stubborn kind of fellow."
How better to describe himself than by evoking the title of a 1962 single by Marvin Gaye? Gaye and Otis Redding played a large role in making this white francophone youngster want to sing in the first place. When you hear "Learn Again," you immediately know whom Bazini was thinking of.
Bazini says he still remembers being transfixed by a video of Redding singing "I've Been Loving You Too Long" at the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival. "That performance was amazing. One of the best," he says. "The voice! At that time, there were a lot of soul singers, but he was very different from the others."
Country runs even deeper in Bazini's blood, as one can clearly hear in the Nashville Skyline-ish two-step of "Mellow Mood." "It comes out naturally, always. It's still there and always will be. It makes me feel good."
Country music, in its modern power-ballad, arena-rock incarnation, doesn't do it for him, he acknowledges. He's more Hank Williams than Lady Antebellum.
Bazini's parents, who both sang non-professionally, were devotees of the genre. His father bought him his first guitar, a blue acoustic Jay Jr., when he was 16, and taught him how to play. Bazini practised, drawing on memories of family gatherings, where instruments were passed around and voices blended on songs by Willie Nelson, Garth Brooks and Alan Jackson.
When Bazini's parents split up shortly after a family move to Montreal, Bazini returned to Mont Laurier and moved in with his grandmother, basking in the sounds of her Johnny Cash collection. With her encouragement, he found himself playing at the Mont Laurier International Theatre Festival in 2008. In a life-changing moment, CFLO radio station DJ Hugo Sabourin jumped on stage to play drums with him. They played soul and rock covers, sneaking in a few Bazini originals.
After the performance, Sabourin made it his mission to get Bazini discovered. "He wasn't a manager. He was trying to get someone to take me on, because he believed in what I did," Bazini says. An Ottawa-based friend of Sabourin's had a home studio, where a demo of Bazini's first composition, "I Love You," was recorded and fired off to promotion man Daniel Bibeau, who jumped on board.
Music publishing bigwig Diane Pinet, head of Editions Bloc-Notes Publishing, was approached. In short order, Pinet got her contacts in France interested. Bazini has since appeared on the popular French variety show, Taratata. Rolling Stone's French edition came calling for an interview. Paris Match did a profile.
Pinet's husband, Cesar Boesten, became Bazini's manager and Pinet's Mungo Park Records released the singer's debut single, "I Wonder," in the fall of 2009. The full-length album came out only six months later.
It all happened at the speed of sound for a kid who, seemingly yesterday, was picking out his first couple of chords.
Warner Brothers has signed on to distribute Better in Time in 28 countries. Germany has released it and showcases across the ocean are beckoning. Which leaves, of course, the all-important American market.
Bazini's management is trying to make inroads toward getting the album released there, he says. "We're hoping it will come out there as soon as possible. The music I always listened to was American. It's a great opportunity to be able to release the disc in Europe, but I'm really looking forward to the States."
His dream departure point? One that makes complete sense, given the repertoire of those early family musical gatherings that made such a big impression. "I've always wanted to start with Nashville," he admits cautiously. "That's where I want to go."
Better In Time is in stores. The Juno Awards will be broadcast live March 27 on CTV. - The Montreal Gazette

(Québec) Quand on parle d'une année qui change une vie... C'est ce qui vient d'arriver au jeune Bobby Bazinet, de Mont-Laurier. Mieux connu sous le nom de Bobby Bazini, un garçon à la voix si renversante qu'il a été propulsé au rang de vedette, en moins de temps qu'il n'en faut pour crier «rythm'n'blues».

Son premier album, Better in Time, sorti il y a à peine un an, a connu un succès fulgurant. Écoulé à plus de 80 000 exemplaires, il lui a valu le Félix de l'album anglophone de l'année au dernier gala de l'ADISQ. Il sera en nomination demain aux Juno, pour l'album pop de l'année et révélation de l'année. Better in Time a été lancé en France, en Suisse, et vient de paraître en Allemagne. L'Italie et d'autres pays européens s'ajouteront bientôt à la liste.

Tout ça en un an, seulement. Bien que très heureux de la situation, le principal intéressé a gardé les pieds sur terre, et parle avec humilité de sa jeune carrière. «C'est vrai qu'on a été assez surpris du succès de l'album», confirme en souriant timidement Bobby Bazini. «Tout est allé très vite, je me suis même demandé pourquoi ça fonctionnait à ce point. Ça amène à te poser des questions, c'est sûr», explique le sympathique jeune homme de bientôt 22 ans.

En plus de son succès sur disque, Bazini présente ses spectacles devant des salles pleines, au public conquis, ce qui n'est pas pour lui déplaire, évidemment. L'été dernier, il a fait un passage remarqué au Festival d'été, mais a été chassé de scène par l'orage. Il s'est repris en octobre, pour quatre soirs à guichets fermés, au Théâtre Petit Champlain. Au retour d'une tournée de promotion en Europe, c'est au Théâtre Capitole, les

31 mars et 7 avril, que le jeune auteur-compositeur-interprète revient nous visiter. Accompagné de ses cinq musiciens, Bobby Bazini présente les pièces de son album à succès, de même que quelques reprises des Rolling Stones, Johnny Cash ou Otis Redding, entre autres.

Et il a déjà de nouvelles chansons à proposer. «J'en ai assez pour un prochain album. Des chansons qui ont surtout été composées dans des chambres d'hôtel!» ajoute-t-il. Il n'y a pas encore de date précise pour la sortie de ce deuxième opus très attendu, au même style soul et rythm'n'blues, mais qui ne sera pas «un deuxième Better in Time», tient à préciser le jeune artiste. Dans un monde idéal, Bobby Bazini aimerait bien présenter son nouvel album avant la fin de 2011. Pour ensuite conquérir le reste du monde, qui sait. - Le Soleil

Disque d’or en quelques semaines avec son album Better in Time, déjà habitué du plateau de la prestigieuse émission en France Taratata et ses deux spectacles au Festival de jazz sont parmi les plus attendus, le jeune Bobby Bazini, de Mont-Laurier, doit maintenant s’habituer à gérer son nouveau statut de star.

De Paris, où il vient d’enregistrer une autre émission en France et dont une participation à un spécial sur Charlotte Gainsbourg, Bobby Bazini a la voix calme et rassurée.

«Ce n’est pas évident, tout ce stress-là, mais j’ai la grande chance de faire ce que j’aime; donc, je fonce», me lance-t-il au bout du fil.

À LIRE AUSSI:
Bobbi Bazini chante sur le plateau de Taratata
La nouvelle star montante en Europe
Adam Lambert et Bobbi Bazini à Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu
Il est dix heures dans la Ville lumière et les entrevues et rencontres se sont multipliées tout au long de la journée. Tranquillement, il sent que la France l’adopte.
«Je vais revenir pour des spectacles cet automne. Sur le plateau de Taratata, ils m’ont demandé de chanter a capella ma chanson I Wonder, c’était sympathique.»

Ses parents et ses cinq frères et soeurs le ramènent dans la réalité et surtout, ses grands-parents à Mont-Laurier lui redonnent l’équilibre, un monde de paix.

«Oui, je suis très chanceux et je savoure chaque instant de ce beau succès. Mais faut pas se fier aux apparences, c’est pas aussi facile que c’en a l’air. Tout va vite et faut prendre le temps justement de respirer et de se dire que oui c’est fameux tout ça, mais tout est à faire encore», nous dit le jeune de 21 ans, très réaliste.

VEDETTE DU FESTIVAL DE JAZZ
Il rêve d’aller visiter la terre (Nashville) de son idole, Johnny Cash, là où il prend ses inspirations musicales. «J’ai encore tant à apprendre. Toutefois, c’est une belle énergie que je reçois en ce moment en sachant que ma musique plaît aux gens.»

Il se dit inspiré, continue d’écrire et est fin prêt pour ses deux spectacles au Festival de jazz de Montréal.

D’abord, c’était la date du 2 juillet et voilà qu’il a fallu trouver une autre date pour Bobby Bazini. Une supplémentaire aura donc lieu le 28 juin. Eh oui, avant la première date du spectacle initialement prévu. Ce fait montre la popularité du jeune homme puisqu’il faut lui trouver une salle à tout prix. Les gens veulent découvrir Bobby Bazini...ça rappelle l’engouement pour trois gars nommés The Lost Fingers au Festival de jazz.

ROLLING STONE
Paris Match lui a consacré un article et là c’est au tour de la revue Rolling Stone en Europe à le faire. Encore là, Bobby Bazini plaît.

Le journaliste écrit: «Il est des jours où l’on prend un sérieux coup de vieux en trois minutes. Ça m’est arrivé récemment en écoutant le single d’un gamin de 20 ans originaire d’une petite bourgade du Québec. Bobby Bazini, de son vrai nom Bazinet, fait une véritable fixation sur Johnny Cash depuis son tout jeune âge.

Bobby Bazini se confie à Rolling Stone: «J’ai découvert cette authenticité dans la voix qui a bouleversé ma vie, dit-il.» Et l’expert de la revue Rolling Stone, Georges Lang précise: «Je soulignerai l’indéniable talent de songwriter de Bobby Bazini. Ce gars-là possède une vieille âme dans un corps de jeune premier de plus de six pieds. Sera-t-il la prochaine star à s’imposer sur la scène internationale? Wait and see», conclut le reporter.

UN SUCCÈS VÉCU AVEC HUMILITÉ
Rappelons que son titre très populaire I Wonder évoque, selon Bobby Bazini, les amours éternelles de nos grands-parents (il adore les siens) «alors que nous, on ne sait plus s’aimer toute une vie».

Bobby Bazini vit rapidement son rêve, mais il a bien l’intention de rester simple et garder les deux pieds sur terre.

«Ça me rappelle juste que la vie n’est pas juste un succès.»





Quant à l’argent. Encore là, il reste humble... «J’ai juste fini de payer ma vieille voiture plus rapidement», lance-t-il en riant.
Bobby Bazini sera au Club Soda les 28 juin et 2 juillet et au Festival d’été de Québec le 17 juillet au parc de la Francophonie. Toutes les dates de spectacles cet été, sont sur son site, car il participe à plusieurs festivals.
- Le journal de Montréal