Many of the readers of this blog are from countries around the world, so many of you in Europe and the Middle-East will already know Stromae and his music.   He is also wildly popular in Québec and Francophone Canada.  However to those living in Anglophone Canada, or the US, he is not so well known.   Because this blog is geared mostly to Anglophone Canadians, I need to introduce a bit of his background.

Stromae (a play on words of the French & English word “maestro”) is a Francophone Belgian pop-singer.

Many of the successful pop singers in Europe also find success in Québec and Francophone Canada.  Stromae is no exception.   In fact, following a couple of sold-out concerts at the Molson Centre in Montréal, he’s now giving a sold-out concert this evening here in Toronto, Ontario… one of his last concerts before he takes a break in his musical career to recuperate and gain some inspiration for a future career comeback.

Despite being quite young (born in Brussels in 1985) and only having two albums, his music has gone #1 in Francophone countries in Europe (the countries which speak French in Europe are Belgium, France, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Monaco, and the Aosta Valley region of Italy), as well as several non-Francophone countries across Europe and the Middle-East.

He’s best known for his 2009/2010 hit, “Alors on danse”.  It was constantly top-of-the-charts on Montréal hit radio and other radio stations around the world.

The ensemble of his two albums (Cheese and Racine carrée), videos, dancing, and joint performances with other big names has made him a household name in Québec.  You’ll might recall from an earlier blog post that he was a guest on L’Été indien in Montréal this month.

Despite that he will soon be taking a professional break for a year or two, he says he’ll make a career come-back with a bit more life experience and inspiration behind him, from which to continue to compose and present his music.

His music is for sale online through several venues.  Please only visit officially approved sites when purchasing music and videos, and please do not pirate.