Chloé Sainte-Marie

Chloé Sainte-Marie is a Canadian singer and actress from Quebec whose post-millennial albums Je Marche à Toi (2002) and Parle-Moi (2005) each won a Félix Award. Born Marie-Aline Joyal on May 29, 1962, in Saint-Eugène-de-Granthan, Quebec, she initially established herself as an actress in the 1980s prior to launching her recording career as a contemporary folksinger in the 1990s. She made her full-length album debut in 1993 with L'Emploi de Mon Temps, yet it was her second album, Je Pleure, Tu Pleures (1999), released a long six years after its predecessor, that proved her seriousness as a musical artist. Her third album, Je Marche à Toi, garnered more acclaim for the actress turned singer, winning her a Félix Award, among other accolades. The follow-up album, Parle-Moi, was similarly successful, winning her a second Félix Award. Sainte-Marie's fifth album, Nitshisseniten E Tshissenitamin (2009), was a departure from its predecessors. Though sung in Innu-aimun, the language of the indigenous Innu people of eastern Quebec and Labrador, Nitshisseniten E Tshissenitamin nonetheless proved popular enough to reach the Canadian albums chart. The album's title translates to Je Sais Que Tu Sais in French, and the songs were written by Innu singer Philippe McKenzie. ~ Jason Birchmeier, Rovi