Quebec pays a final tribute to Karl Tremblay, singer of Cowboys Fringants

All of Quebec mourned Tuesday evening the death of Karl Tremblay, the singer of the famous Quebec group Cowboys Fringants who died on November 15, during an emotional tribute ceremony. “Beyond the singer, it is a great being that Quebec has lost,” confides Marie-Josée Poirier, a 58-year-old fan who waited several hours to be the first in the queue.

Among the thousands of fans present, some distributed paper airplanes to recall one of the group’s songs, others playing the great classics to warm up the crowd in freezing weather.

“He sings about life, each song represents a moment we lived,” says Katherine Daoust, 32, adding that his death is a “shock for Quebec culture.” She no longer counts the number of times she has seen this group “which brought together several generations” in concert.

For Alex Pelletier, a forty-year-old wearing a bright black and green tie around his neck reminiscent of the singer’s, Karl Tremblay is nothing less than an “icon”. “His voice brought together all Quebecers, even France, the entire French-speaking world is affected” by his death, he said.

“The whole nation recognizes itself in Karl”

Since the announcement of his death on November 15, the entire political class has saluted the legacy left by the 47-year-old artist. The Prime Minister of the province praised Tuesday a “man who left his mark on Quebec.” “The entire Quebec nation recognizes itself in Karl and in the cowboys,” declared François Legault, dressed all in black, in front of journalists.

The approximately 15,000 free tickets to attend the ceremony in Montreal were sold out in less than half an hour on Thursday. The Quebec flag was lowered to half-mast in front of the National Assembly on Tuesday, and a register of condolences made available to the public online.

Karl Tremblay has been battling prostate cancer in recent years. The group had to cancel several concerts in recent months after a final tour in the summer of 2023 which culminated in a final concert in Quebec, bringing together more than 90,000 fans. In 27 years of career, the Cowboys Fringants had become a real social phenomenon in the French-speaking province of Canada. The group also performed regularly in France.