Music is a fun and fabulous art form both for the listener and the creator. This is probably why I was drawn to it in the first place. It all started in 1962… (that is, when I was born) :o) I was born in Trois-Rivières, Québec, and grew up in the small town of Shawinigan. I received my very first piano lessons from my mom, who would play for us every night. While studying graphic design at 17 y.o., I had the chance to meet british musician Gary Numan on two different occasions in Montreal, and it had a huge impact on me. Despite his superstar status in those days and his very cold/futuristic persona on stage, Gary was a very shy and extremely kind person. I remember telling him that making music was what I wanted to do too when I grew up, and he was very supportive, giving me the stimulation to just go for it. That opened a lot of doors within me. I suddenly saw it as being possible for me to achieve. After graduating from art school, I bought myself a synthesizer. I’d work as a graphic designer during the day, and would write songs at night. When I got enough material, I started performing in very small venues, using Norman Iceberg as my stage name, and an androgynous image. Putting make up on was a very 'in' thing to do for guys back then, especially for musicians. I guess the statement we were all trying to make was that we, men and/or women, all are equal; well, that’s what I was trying to do :o) I had the pleasure to work with many great different musicians and vocalists through my gigs. Some of them happened to be adorable synth wizard Mario Spezza (who was a member of Rational Youth), and the wonderful Claudine Mercier, with whom I had a very enjoyable time. It was around this period that dance music producer Tony Green, who had had a lot of success with France Joli's big hit "Come To Me", offered me a record deal in 1985, with distribution by RCA (who eventually became BMG in 1987). A decision to give my songs a more commercial and danceable sound was then made. “Be My Human Tonight” was the result of these sessions. Then came ”Person(a)” released the following year with more emphasis on synthesizers (and featuring superb performances by keyboardists Mario Spezza and Lenny Pinkas from Men Without Hats), “Gotta Move” in 1988, and the cheerful and upbeat “Kiss the Beauty” who got a good response on the dance floors in 1990. A fun, catchy and colorful music video was also shot by young film director Érik Canuel for the title track. Working with Érik was a very pleasant experience! Since I never really felt comfortable expressing myself through dance music, the follow-up “We Act” was my very last dance release. 1992 began with different series of fun live performances with a much more spontaneous approach. I started introducing some brand new acoustic songs sometimes along with actor/musician Robert Consoli, and sometimes accompanied by a five-piece band for my engagements at venues such as The Roxy Theatre in Los Angeles. Impressive drummer Pierre Lareau blew me away with his performance on "His Own Story". We played in front of wonderful audiences. I remember people being very receptive, smiling, and really enjoying the sets. What a blast! :o) (After being diagnosed with leukemia in 2004, my good friend Robert Consoli departed on March 5, 2005 at his house in Silver Lake, California surrounded by loved ones. I loved performing with Rob. He was very creative, generous, dedicated and fun to work with. He added a very warm and theatrical touch to the shows. I only have fond memories and a lot of gratitude when I think of him. I believe we all are eternal, and that we always get reunited with our loved ones. It was His time to leave, to turn into an angel, but we’ll see him again! Looking forward to that day. Bless you Rob.) In 1993, I was joined by dancer Viktor Manoel from David Bowie’s "Glass Spider" Tour, with whom I performed notably at Prince’s Glam Slam along with Luca Tommassini and Carrie Ann Inaba both from Madonna’s "Girlie Show" Tour. Viktor was such an outstanding performer. His stage presence was so fabulous I asked him to open the shows. In 1994, accompanied by the immensely talented musician/composer Roberto Deus and Ron Everett, I recorded "The Man Who Never Was" in California as Norman Joseph, just before deciding to finally come back to Norman Bédard, the real me. This was a great move! :o) Back in Montreal, I got together with a few longtime friends and collaborators such as Roberto, and Kevin Komoda, who had worked with Pest 5000, Rational Youth, and Sarah McLachlan. Our intention was just to come up with some new material that would sound good, at least to us. I wrote lyrics around the themes of today’s global village, love, and harmony. We recorded these new stripped-down songs in various locations. Sometimes we’d record the guitars over at Kevin’s place, and I would then record the vocals at my place, and if needed, the keyboards, the cello, the piano, and percussion at some other studio; at some point we also tried to recapture just for fun the sound of the eighties’ synthpop while at Men Without Hats’ home studio. We couldn’t dream of a better place! These recordings would eventually culminate in a series of self-produced albums: ”Fuel” in 1998, ”Light” in 1999, “Vital” and “Home” in 2000, “Born” in 2001, and “Prana”, a collection of my favorite demo songs in 2005. These have been very creative and wonderful years. Either as Norman Iceberg or as Norman Bédard, I was given the amazing opportunity to meet and collaborate with some impressive, generous and talented musicians and composers : Roberto Coriandoli (aka Roberto Deus), Cheng-Feng Lin, Kevin Komoda, Yoshi Mochizuki, Robert Consoli, Mario Spezza, Lenny Pinkas, Martin Lambert, Jivko Georgiev, Ron Everett, Joe Drock Johnson, Pierre Lareau, Richard Poissant, Ron Roseboro, Joe Jammer, David Pertzborn... just to name a few... Thank you so much for the amazing time we spent together, and all the fun and the richness of your creativity. I feel blessed. Together we did our best trying to make beautiful music... produced with love! I'm always looking forward to keep creating with musicians who also see music as a way to spread love and make people happy, and see each of us as a work in progress trying to make the world a better place. So, my main goal is simply to bring as much light, hope and love as possible! :o) Back to top   Norman in Shawinigan, 1965 With Claudine Mercier (left), 1984 With Robert Consoli (right), 1992 With Carrie Ann Inaba, 1993 With Kevin Komoda (left), 1998