COEUR DE PIRATE
THE PAST YEAR HAS BROUGHT MAJOR CHANGE TO MANY, INCLUDING BÉATRICE MARTIN, also known as Coeur de pirate. She purchased her longtime record label after another artist faced assault allegations, and recently underwent vocal cord surgery that left her without a speaking voice for several weeks.
But, per usual, the Montreal-based singer-songwriter has emerged stronger than ever, ready to shine on her latest album,
Perséides, and to give a fresh start to her label, Bravo musique, formerly Dare to Care.
Perséides features 10 solo piano compositions that find Martin returning to her first instrumental love. After surgery to treat a hemorrhagic polyp on her vocal cords left her completely silent for a few weeks, Martin was stuck with melodies in her head.
“They just came to me,” she says. “I always have music in my head and just the fact that I couldn’t, you know, actually put it in a real song was super frustrating. For me, to just make it with a piano was so, so liberating, and it came pretty instantly. It wasn’t brewing over a long period of time.”
The album’s name comes from the annual meteor shower, the Perseids, that rain down every summer. Even though it doesn’t last more than a few days, it still imprints itself in one’s mind. All the compositions are named after Quebec cities that had an impact on Martin’s childhood. From “Frelighsburg” to “Isle-auxCoudres,” she reminisces on long-lost memories.
“Everything was in my mind. Usually, for a pop album, you start with the skeleton of the song, so the lyrics and the melody, and then you build around it. For this one, it was like, ‘How do I make it the most interesting possible with just piano?’ It’s funny because you can almost hear me sing the right-hand movements. You can still hear the melody, it still always is interesting that way,” she explains.
This past year was a challenging one for Martin, and she’s grateful for the quiet period that took place as she recovered from surgery. She processed everything, assessed her needs, and thought about how she could help people. “This album is kind of my way to help people a little bit too, you know, in my own way to do it,” she adds shyly.
Perséides was one answer, but it wasn’t the only answer. Last fall, Martin bought Dare to Care, the Montreal-based label that has put out all of her albums since 2014. A reckoning within Quebec’s arts and entertainment scene led to multiple abuse allegations against label signee Bernard Adamus. Management was accused of having turned a blind eye to the behaviour of Adamus and other artists, resulting in president Éli Bissonnette stepping down from his role. When the opportunity arose for Martin to acquire the label, she jumped in, thinking about all of the artists’ careers that were impacted by the problematic behaviours of others.
Martin changed the name to Bravo musique, heralding a new chapter for everyone involved with the label. The name Bravo was also a way to acknowledge the success and achievements of artists. “It’s a way to say, ‘Great job! You did it! Bravo!’ and that’s kind of how I’ve been feeling and how I wanted the artists to feel as well,” says Martin. “We are here, we trust you guys, and I want you guys to trust me. Congrats, you’re here now! Let’s do this.”
Martin has always been open about her past abuse and her struggles. Her main goal with Bravo musique is to have clear, open, honest communication with every member of her team. She mentions that, in the past, people used to pressure her to stay silent in the name of her career. She doesn’t want this to ever happen to anyone at Bravo.
She says, “A lot of stuff was swept under the rug or nobody did anything about it. I want people to come to me and say, ‘This is happening,’ and I want to be able to do something about it. It’s about respect and decency. Our work extends everywhere: it extends to how we behave like artists and elsewhere. It wasn’t clear to everyone where work started and ended, and now it’s clearer. So that’s good. Boundaries are important.”
Martin and her team at Bravo are currently working on Bonjour Bravo, a series of virtual shows that will feature collaborative performances between the label’s artists. Martin is excited that this project will put artists including Jérôme 50, Émile Bilodeau, Maude Audet, the Blaze Velluto Collection, Thierry Larose and recent signee thaïs at the forefront and present the global vision behind Bravo musique to everyone.
“When we had the idea, we didn’t know if we were going to be able to do shows or not. So we came with the concept of artists playing as duos or trios. We all have played together and with each other — like, sang each other’s songs. We’ve decided to also film everything in a special place. You know, it’s kind of like a dreamlike sequence. We don’t know where they are, but they’re just performing and they’re with each other. And it’s beautiful.”
As for Martin, her future seems to be filled with anticipation and eagerness, but with a focus on healing. She is taking the time to heal her voice completely from her surgery, and plans on hopefully doing only a couple of shows. She mentions loving her new role at Bravo, where she is in charge of scouting and recruiting new artists.
“It’s like my dream job,” she exclaims. “I get to listen to music and guide people. It’s amazing. I love it. That’s great. That’s what I’ve always wanted to do in the end. What’s the point in having privilege if you can’t help others?”
Martin’s voice is full of light and hope. Her laugh resonates. As much as the Perseids are a beautiful but brief experience, she is the opposite: a star that shines bright through the darkness, sharing light with those around her.
“OUR WORK EXTENDS EVERYWHERE: IT EXTENDS TO HOW WE BEHAVE LIKE ARTISTS AND ELSEWHERE. IT WASN’T CLEAR TO EVERYONE WHERE WORK STARTED AND ENDED. BOUNDARIES ARE IMPORTANT.”