From a young age Anik Jean has been interested in blues music and the entertainment landscape. At 11-years-old she already knew that she wanted to be a musician, singer, songwriter and producer. All it took was one David Bowie concert attended alongside her mother to convince her to devote her life to music. She learned the basics of guitar and of piano, self-proclaiming herself as a freelance artist and in the years that passed Anik set musical roots down in Gaspésie, Los Angeles and in Montreal. Anik’s moving around enabled her to meet such established artists as Jean Leloup, with whom she created her first album.
It was in the spring of 2005 that Anik’s first single, Je Suis Partie, made it’s way to the commercial radio airwaves. The following single entitled Junkie de Toi was met with even more success than the first, reaching the number one position on Nielsen BDS’ radio top 100. Her first studio album, Le Trashy Saloon was released on August 31st of that same year and Anik Jean was quickly embraced by the public and her peers as an authentic musical artist. The album was met with much critical acclaim as well and received a nomination for French Album of the year at the 2005 Juno Awards, a nomination for album of the year at the Adisq Gala in 2006, a nomination for the Grand prix de la relève Archambault in 2005 and a nomination for the Artiste Sacré Talent 2005 by Radio-Canada Music Space. Thanks to her unique style, music and personal audacity, Anik was also able to land a spot as the opening act for the Rolling Stones’ January 2006 Montreal show. In addition to her prominent musical accomplishments, Anik is also known for having standout music videos. Her cooperation with directors Francis Leclerc and Robin Aubert resulted in - among other feats - a nomination at the Much Music Video Awards for the Tendre Sorcière video clip.
In 2008, Anik launched her second studio album Le Ciel Saigne le Martyre upon which the rock star collaborated with producer Mark Plati (David Bowie, Alain Bashung, Louise Attaque and Rita Mitsouko). Surrounded by acclaimed musicians like Earl Slick, Mike Garson, Sam Harrisson, Jean-Sebastien Chouinard, Alec McElcheran, Julien Blais and Antione Gratton, the end result was exceptional: Le Ciel Saigne le Martyre is an intense rock album extremely reflective of Anik as an artist. The first single off of the artist’s second album, Oh Mon Cheri quickly reached the number one position of the Nielsen BDS top 100 and was nominated at the Adisq Gala in 2008 in the Song of the Year category while the album in its entirety was nominated for Rock Album of the Year.
2008 was a busy year for Anik; she became the official spokesperson of the Trophée Roses des Sables’s 8th edition in Morocco. Upon her return, she was offered a promotional deal with BMW Motorrad Canada. She exhibited her paintings at the De la Scène … a L’Atelier art expose alongside other popular personalities like Diane Dufresne, Leonard Cohen and Christiane Charrette and also became the face of lauded designer Marie St-Pierre. Throughout the month of April 2009, Anik was busy at the Musikmesse event in Germany; presenting an original guitar designed by her for the Italian company XOX Audio and being offered a promotional deal with Dimarzio by the founder himself, Larry Dimarzio – making her the first Canadian artist to receive such a promotional contract. Come summer, Anik was chosen to participate in Patrick Huard’s film Filière 13 where she acted alongside Claude Legault. The film is set for release in August of 2010.
Amidst her busy schedule, Anik Jean still found the time to write, record and produce a third studio album - again, working alongside guitarist Earl Slick. Anik’s latest work is riddled with intimate and haunting music – including musical collaborations with the likes of Pierre Flynn and Robert Smith. The first single off of the songstress’ third album is a duet with The Cure’s front man: Robert Smith, entitled J’aurai Tout essayé. Anik’s latest album will be released on April 20th, 2010.
Source : http://www.anikjean.com/
