Ginette Reno (born Ginette Raynault; 28 April 1946) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

author, composer, singer, and actress. She has received nominations for the

Genie Jinn ( ar, , ') – also romanized as djinn or anglicized as genies (with the broader meaning of spirit or demon, depending on sources) – are invisible creatures in early pre-Islamic Arabian religious systems and later in Islamic myt ...

and Gemini Awards and is a multi-recipient of the Juno Award. She is a gold and platinum selling

musician.

Early life

Reno was born Ginette Raynault in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, Canada, she began singing in 1960 and won the talent contest "Les Découvertes de Jean Simon" (Jean Simon's Discoveries). With this success, three clubs in Montreal (Café Caprice, le Café de l'Est and the Café Provincial) offered Reno her first professional contract. Simon suggested she adopt the stage name Reno—a phonetic spelling of her real last name (as pronounced in

Canadian French Canadian French (french: français canadien) is the French language as it is spoken in Canada. It includes Varieties of French#Canada, multiple varieties, the most prominent of which is Quebec French, Québécois (Quebec French). Formerly ''Can ...

Career

Music

Reno is a gold and platinum selling

artist. She has recorded in both

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

and French. Her biggest hit in English was her 1970 song "Beautiful Second Hand Man". It reached No. 8 on the

RPM Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or with the notation min−1) is a unit of rotational speed or rotational frequency for rotating machines. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 defines a unit of rotation as the dimensionl ...

singles chart. The song was from her third album '' Beautiful Second Hand Man'' released in 1971 on Parrot Records. The song was re-released on the French record label Melon-Miel on a two disc compilation ''Vocally Yours Vol. 7 & 8'' in 2004. Among her recordings is a Lynsey de Paul song "Dans la vie tout s'arrange" ( Storm in a Teacup) with French lyrics provided by Marcel Stellman. She mostly performs in Quebec. During her four-decade career, she has recorded approximately 60 albums. In March 2019, she was one of 11 singers from Quebec, alongside

Céline Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...

Diane Dufresne Diane Dufresne, (born 30 September 1944) is a French Canadian singer and painter, and is known for singing a large repertoire of popular Quebec songs. Dufresne was born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. She lived in Paris from 1965 to 1967 where ...

, Isabelle Boulay,

Luce Dufault Luce Dufault (born August 19, 1966 in Orleans, Ontario) is a Canadian singer. She is of French descent. She performed in two musicals from Luc Plamondon, La Légende de Jimmy and Starmania. She recorded a few hits including ''Soirs de scotc ...

Louise Forestier Louise Forestier (born Louise Belhumeur on August 10, 1942) is a Canadian singer, songwriter and actress. Biography Born in Shawinigan, Quebec, Canada, Forestier was trained in acting at the National Theatre School in Montreal, but it was as a ...

Laurence Jalbert Laurence Jalbert (born Lise Jalbert, 18 August 1959 in Rivière-au-Renard, Quebec) is a pop and rock singer-songwriter from Quebec. Background She began her career with the band Volt in 1985."Quebec singer's struggle pays off". '' Edmonton Jou ...

Catherine Major Catherine Major (born February 18, 1980) is a Canadian pop singer and songwriter from Quebec. She is most noted for her 2011 album ''Le désert des solitudes'', which was a Juno Award nominee for Francophone Album of the Year at the Juno Awards o ...

Ariane Moffatt Ariane Moffatt (born 26 April 1979) is a Canadian singer-songwriter. Known for working across multiple musical genres, Moffatt's music combines elements of electronica, jazz, folk, and pop. A francophone, she is bilingual and has recorded track ...

Marie Denise Pelletier Marie Denise Pelletier (born 3 April 1960) is a francophone Canadian singer. She served as President of Artisti, a copyright collective for music artists operated by Quebec's l'Union des artistes (UDA). Biography While studying literature and ...

and

Marie-Élaine Thibert Marie-Élaine Thibert (born April 18, 1982) is a Canadian adult contemporary and pop singer based in Quebec. Thibert was first notable for being the runner-up in the first season of Star Académie in 2003, the Quebec singing idol reality show. Sh ...

, who participated in a supergroup recording of

Renée Claude Renée Claude (born Renée Bélanger; July 3, 1939 – May 12, 2020) was a Canadian actress and singer Denise Ménard, Suzanne Thomas and Benoît L'Herbier"Renée Claude" ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'', January 20, 2010. who was known as an inter ...

's 1971 single "Tu trouveras la paix" after Claude's diagnosis with Alzheimer's disease was announced.

Film

Reno played the mother in

Jean-Claude Lauzon Jean-Claude Lauzon (September 29, 1953 – August 10, 1997) was a Canadian filmmaker and screenwriter. Born to a working class family in Montreal, Quebec, Lauzon dropped out of high school and worked various jobs before studying film at the Unive ...

's 1992 film ''

Léolo ''Léolo'' is a 1992 Canadian coming of age film, coming of age-fantasy film by director Jean-Claude Lauzon. The film tells the story of a young boy named Léo "Léolo" Lauzon, played by Maxime Collin, who engages in an active Fantasy (psychology), ...

''. She played Laura Cadieux in Denise Filiatrault's 1998 film ''

It's Your Turn, Laura Cadieux ''It's Your Turn, Laura Cadieux'' (french: C't'à ton tour, Laura Cadieux) is a Canadian comedy film, directed by Denise Filiatrault and released in 1998. The film was based on the comedic novel by Michel Tremblay. The film centers on a group of ...

(C't'à ton tour, Laura Cadieux)''. The role earned her a Genie Award nomination for Best Actress. She reprised her role for the 1999 sequel ''

Laura Cadieux II ''Laura Cadieux II'' (french: Laura Cadieux...la suite) is a Canadian comedy film, directed by Denise Filiatrault and released in 1999. A sequel to the 1998 film ''It's Your Turn, Laura Cadieux (C'est à ton tour, Laura Cadieux)'', the film placed ...

(Laura Cadieux...la suite)''. She was again nominated at the 2000 Genie Awards. She played the role of Maria Barberini in the 2003 Canadian

independent film An independent film, independent movie, indie film, or indie movie is a feature film or short film that is produced outside the major film studio system, in addition to being produced and distributed by independent entertainment companies (or, i ...

'' Mambo Italiano''. She played Blanche in the 2006 film '' A Family Secret (Le secret de ma mère)'', earning her a Best Actress in a leading role Genie Award nomination. In 2022, Ginette Reno came back to the big screen after 16 years in

Martin Villeneuve Martin Villeneuve () is a Canadian screenwriter, producer, director, actor, and art director. He was nominated at the Canadian Screen Award (formerly Genie Award) in 2013 for Best Adapted Screenplay, for '' Mars et Avril'', his feature film debut ...

's '' The 12 Tasks of Imelda (Les 12 travaux d'Imelda)'', co-starring playwright

Robert Lepage Robert Lepage (born December 12, 1957) is a Canadian playwright, actor, film director, and stage director. Early life Lepage was raised in Quebec City. At age five, he was diagnosed with a rare form of alopecia, which caused complete hair l ...

, in which she plays Martin and Denis Villeneuve's maternal grandmother Simone, Imelda's lifelong adversary.

Television

Reno was twice nominated for a

Gemini Gemini may refer to: Space * Gemini (constellation), one of the constellations of the zodiac ** Gemini in Chinese astronomy * Project Gemini, the second U.S. crewed spaceflight program * Gemini Observatory, consisting of telescopes in the Norther ...

at the 1999 Gemini Awards and 2000 Gemini Awards.

The Charlebois wedding: the Hell's Angels controversy

On 5 August 2000, Reno performed at the wedding of the Hell's Angel René Charlebois, serenading the Angels with such hits like ''Mon May'', for which she was paid $1 million, and at the same wedding posed for photographs with Maurice "Mom" Boucher, the leader of the Angels in Quebec at the time.Cherry, Paul ''The Biker Trials Bringing Down the Hell's Angels'', Toronto: ECW Press, 2005 page 96. As Reno has a very matronly and respectable image in Quebec, her willingness to pose smiling next to Boucher, a man convicted of rape amongst other things, caused some controversy.

Montreal Canadiens

During the 2014 Stanley Cup playoffs, Reno was a surprise selection to perform

O Canada "O Canada" (french: Ô Canada, italic=no) is the national anthem of Canada. The song was originally commissioned by Lieutenant Governor of Quebec Théodore Robitaille for the 1880 Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day ceremony; Calixa Lavallée composed the mus ...

during the

Montreal Canadiens The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...

' playoff run. She had just returned from heart surgery, and her rendition of the anthem was very well received. She has since returned to sing for the 2015 and 2017 Stanley Cup playoffs. She previously did the anthems for the

Quebec Nordiques The Quebec Nordiques (french: Nordiques de Québec, pronounced in Quebec French, in Canadian English; translated "Quebec City Northmen" or "Northerners") were a professional ice hockey team based in Quebec City. The Nordiques played in the W ...

as well in the 1980s and 1990s.

Honours

Reno won the Top Female Vocalist at the Gold Leaf Awards of 1970. She was awarded a 1972 Juno and a 1973 Juno in the category Outstanding Performance of the Year – Female. Reno was nominated for a

Juno Juno commonly refers to: *Juno (mythology), the Roman goddess of marriage and queen of the gods *Juno (film), ''Juno'' (film), 2007 Juno may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional characters *Juno, in the film ''Jenny, Juno'' *Ju ...

in 1998 in the category Best Selling Francophone Album for her album ''Versions Reno''. She was again nominated at the

Juno Awards of 1999 The Juno Awards of 1999 honouring Canadian music industry achievements were held in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The primary ceremonies at Copps Coliseum on 7 March 1999 were broadcast by CBC Television and hosted by Mike Bullard. Nominations we ...

for Best Female Vocalist. In 2001 she won a

Juno Award for Francophone Album of the Year The Juno Award for Francophone Album of the Year is an annual award presented by the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS) for the best French-language album in Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten pro ...

for her album ''Un Grand Noël d'amour''. In 2010 Reno was nominated for a

Juno Fan Choice Award The Juno Fan Choice Award is an annual Juno Award presented since 2003 by the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS) to the favourite artist or group of the year as voted by Canadian music fans. This is the only award that the winn ...

. In June 1982, she was made an Officer of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

. In 1999, Reno was awarded the

Governor General's Performing Arts Award A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

for Lifetime Artistic Achievement, Canada's highest honour in the performing arts. In 2000, she was inducted into

Canada's Walk of Fame Canada's Walk of Fame (french: link=no, Allée des célébrités canadiennes) in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, is a walk of fame that acknowledges the achievements and accomplishments of Canadians who have excelled in their respective fields. It is a ...

. In 2004, she was made a Knight of the

National Order of Quebec The National Order of Quebec, termed officially in French as ''l'Ordre national du Québec'', and in English abbreviation as the Order of Quebec, is an order of merit in the Canadian province of Quebec. Instituted in 1984 when Lieutenant Governo ...

. The

Canada Gazette The ''Canada Gazette'' (french: Gazette du Canada) is the official government gazette of the Government of Canada. It was first published on October 2, 1841. While it originally published all acts of the Parliament of Canada, it later also publ ...

announced on 30 April 2011 that Mme Reno was appointed as a Knight of the

Order of Arts and Letters The ''Ordre des Arts et des Lettres'' (Order of Arts and Letters) is an order of France established on 2 May 1957 by the Minister of Culture. Its supplementary status to the was confirmed by President Charles de Gaulle in 1963. Its purpose is ...

by the President of the French Republic. The

announced on 24 April 2021, that Reno was appointed as a Knight of the National Order of the Legion of Honour, in which she was invested in on 28 April 2022. In 2002 and 2012, Mme Reno received the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal and Diamond Jubilee Medal, in particular due to her induction as an Officer in the Order of Canada.