Richard "Bugs" Burnett

Fierté Montréal Festival is the largest LGBTQ+ gathering in the Francophone world. In addition to the city’s welcoming LGBTQ+ bars and hangouts, Montreal is putting on a star-studded show that's focused on community and involvement. What is the theme for Montreal Pride this year? The 2025 parade theme, "Blossom here, now!", celebrates the right of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community to grow, thrive, and love openly.  Montreal’s first Pride march was held in June 1979 to mark the 10th anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising of 1969. La Brigade Rose organizers in Montreal drew 52 marchers in 1979. Forty years later, in 2019, total attendance at Montreal Pride topped 3 million. This summer’s festival features live in-person performances, concerts and activities on the Esplanade of the Olympic Park—Montreal Pride’s main site—as well as in the LGBTQ+ Village and downtown.  What time is the Pride Parade in Montreal? The 2025 Pride parade is on Sunday, August 10 at 1 p.m. This 19th edition of Fierté runs from July 31 to August 10, 2025. What are the festival highlights? Expect major free shows with more than 200 artists. Free admission to all outdoor events on the Esplanade Tranquille downtown in the Quartier des spectacles and on the Esplanade of the Olympic Park.  Find Time Out's programming highlights below, and for the full programming visit fiertemtl.com. RECOMMENDED:Where to go after the parade? Check out the best LGBTQ+ bars and clubs

Le Festival Fierté Montréal est le plus grand rassemblement LGBTQ+ dans le monde francophone. En plus des bars et lieux accueillants pour la communauté LGBTQ+ de la ville, Montréal propose un spectacle étoilé axé sur la communauté et l’engagement. Le thème du défilé 2025, « Fleurir ici, maintenant ! », célèbre le droit de la communauté 2SLGBTQIA+ à grandir, s’épanouir et aimer librement. La première marche de la Fierté à Montréal a eu lieu en juin 1979 pour commémorer le 10e anniversaire de l’émeute de Stonewall de 1969. Les organisateurs de La Brigade Rose à Montréal ont réuni 52 marcheurs en 1979. Quarante ans plus tard, en 2019, la participation totale à la Fierté Montréal dépassait les 3 millions de personnes. Le festival de cet été propose des spectacles et concerts en présentiel, ainsi que des activités sur l’Esplanade du Parc olympique — site principal de la Fierté Montréal — ainsi que dans le Village LGBTQ+ et au centre-ville. Quelles sont les dates du Festival Fierté Montréal 2025 ? Cette 19e édition de la Fierté se tient du 31 juillet au 10 août 2025. À quelle heure commence le défilé de la Fierté à Montréal ? Le défilé de la Fierté 2025 aura lieu le dimanche 10 août à 13 h. Quelle est la programmation du Festival Fierté Montréal 2025 ? Attendez-vous à de grands spectacles gratuits avec plus de 200 artistes. L’accès est libre à tous les événements extérieurs sur l’Esplanade Tranquille au centre-ville dans le Quartier des spectacles et sur l’Esplanade du Parc olymp

Three-time Juno Award winner Kim Richardson is one of the finest singers of her generation who has worked and sung with everybody from Céline Dion and Corey Hart to Barry White and Stevie Wonder. The daughter of Canadian stage legend Jackie Richardson, Kim moved to Montreal in 1988 where she became one of the most in-demand studio vocalists in the business, recording jingles and appearing on more than 550 albums. She also recorded two albums of her own, Kaléidoscope in 2006 and Mes Amours in 2011, regularly sings the anthems at Canadiens and Alouettes home games, and teaches one-on-one Private Study Jazz Vocal lessons at Concordia University’s Department of Music. But her first love remains performing live: Richardson stole the show as Motormouth Maybelle in the $3-million blockbuster French-language Montreal remount of Hairspray at Theatre St-Denis, regularly tours and appears on television, and headlined the free outdoor Mundo Disko concert at the Fierté Montréal Festival on August 2, 2025. The music legend sat down with Time Out Montreal for a candid Q&A. Photograph: Melany Bernier You were only 19 when you won a Juno in 1985—what stands out from that night? It was a pretty big deal for me because my date that evening was a guy that I had a hardcore crush on for years in high school! I did not expect to win the award, so when they called out my name, I was blown away. It was pretty surreal. What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned in 40 years as a singer and what do you

Quebec drag and pop icon Mado Lamotte has done it all. Mado has posed for her own wax figure at the Grevin Wax Museum, hosted mega outdoor shows at Juste Pour Rire, recorded a pop music album, wrote the bestselling 2023 memoir Une Madographie, and runs the legendary Cabaret Mado drag nightclub in the Village. Famed for her sharp wit, Mado—a.k.a. former UQAM theatre student Luc Provost—is hitting the road with her new La Bitch Joyeuse Tour accompanied by her pianist Nick Burgess.  Mado recently sat down with Time Out Montreal for a candid Q&A about the world of drag and her love for Montreal.  Photograph: Martine Poulin You got your start as a shooter bitch and cigarette girl at Poodles and Club Lézard in Montreal in 1987. How has Mado changed over the years? I’ve been playing the role of Mado for 38 years. But Mado has changed and adapted with the times. Mado is not as provocative as she used to be because these days people just want to be happy and not reminded of the stupid man in the Oval office in the United States. We want to be entertained and forget about politics, forget about climate change, wars, all the drama. So I evolved with the people. I just want to make audiences happy, and that’s what we’ll be doing on this tour. What was it like to attend Wigstock with your drag sister Nana de Grèce in 1995? So many people took photos of us that we got flash burn! I was wearing a big wedding bell on my head. It was huge! And so funny. As we left our hotel I remember peopl

Shining a light on a community of many noteworthy Black figures, theatre, dance and musical concerts are among the many highlights during the 34th annual Black History Month in Montreal.  This year’s theme is “All That We Carry” (Tout ce que nous sommes), and we've rounded up some must-see 2025 Black History Month events to add to your list of the best things to do in Montreal right now. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Mois de l'Histoire des Noirs / Black History Month (@moishistoiredesnoirs) 1. Queen of Rock n Roll The North American tour of TINA – The Tina Turner Musical about the extraordinary life and times of the Queen of Rock n Roll Tina Turner headlines Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier at Place des Arts from February 4 to 9. Photograph: Manuel Harlan | TINA – The Tina Turner Musical 2. Black Theatre Workshop  Canada’s oldest professional Black theatre company, Black Theatre Workshop presents the English-language play Vierge which – with heart and humour – follows four Congolese-Canadian girls as they navigate Christianity, virginity and teenage hormones. Runs at the Segal Studio at the Segal Centre for the Performing Arts from February 12 to March 2. Photograph: Vierge 3. Nuits d’Afrique Productions Nuits d’Afrique presents several Black History Month concerts: Dalie Dandala (Congo) on February 2, Lerie Sankofa (Ivory Coast) on February 6, Jab Djab with Mello G (Trinidad and Tobago) on February 8, and Malian bluesman Samba Touré – protégé of th

One of Canada’s most beloved and revered guitarists, Steve Hill returned to his adopted hometown of Montreal to launch his new album Hanging On A String which was recorded in Los Angeles at Dave Grohl’s Studio 606. Born in Trois-Rivières in 1974, Hill began playing the bar circuit at age 16, turned pro a couple years later when he joined the legendary Bob Harrisson Blues Band before launching his award-winning solo career. Over the years, Hill has shared the stage with many of his heroes, including Ray Charles, B.B. King and Jeff Beck. Photograph: Scott Doubt Hill has released 12 albums since his 1997 solo debut, exploring everything from country and metal to jazz and the blues. Produced by 10-time Grammy winner Darrell Thorp (Foo Fighters, Radiohead, Paul McCartney), Hanging On A String features Hill’s one-man band in which he plays all the instruments at the same time. Photograph: Steve Hill Hanging On A String, released on November 1 and followed by a North American tour, included a much-anticipated Montreal “homecoming” show at the Beanfield Theatre featuring both Hill’s one-man-band and his iconic power trio. The music legend sat down with Time Out Montreal for a candid Q&A. What is the theme of your new album Hanging On A String?  If there’s a theme I think it would be perseverance. You know, the state of the music business, the state of the world, we just keep on keeping on no matter what. It’s a very personal record. You had a car accident in California last year.

Arts and culture journalist Richard “Bugs” Burnett knows Montreal like a drag queen knows a cosmetics counter. Montreal drag star Kiara is one of 12 finalists on RuPaul’s new show Canada’s Drag Race. But Kiara is not just competing to become “Canada’s First Drag Superstar” and win a $100,000 grand prize, she is also proud to represent Montreal’s LGBTQ+ BIPOC community to Drag Race fans around the world. “I discovered drag queens on RuPaul’s Drag Race before I was old enough to go into bars!” says 21-year-old Kiara, a.k.a. Dimitri Nana-Côté, born and raised in a biracial Quebec City family. “My mom is white and my dad is black, but when I was younger I didn’t have the same consciousness about being black – and queer – as I do today.” That changed when Kiara discovered Montreal. A former Concordia University film student, Kiara began performing drag full-time in 2019 and has become a regular headliner in Montreal’s Gay Village. “I’m really proud to be a black drag queen and have the full support of the drag community in Montreal,” says Kiara, who is also pleased to see the Pride movement aligning itself with Black Lives Matters. “Pride started with black women, black drag queens and trans women of colour. We need to acknowledge that. We must also acknowledge that without the black community, the queer movement would not be what it is today.” Kiara continues to deal with racism within the LGBTQ+ community. “When some (white) people hear my Québecois accent, they say stuff like,