Isabelle Racicot (born March 9, 1972) 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 ...

television and radio host.

Early years

Racicot was born in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...

, Quebec to a

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...

an father and a French Canadian mother. She was adopted by French Canadian parents and grew up with three brothers. In 1995 she graduated from

Concordia University Concordia University (French: ''Université Concordia'') is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College and Sir George Williams University, Concordia is one of the th ...

with a BA in Communication Studies.

Career

Racicot began her career in 1997 as a researcher at

MusiquePlus Elle Fictions (stylized ELLE Fictions) is a Canadian French language specialty channel owned by Remstar Media Group. The channel broadcasts general entertainment programming targeting young adult women. It was first established in 1986 as the mus ...

(Quebec Canada's MTV) and quickly moved to a position in front of the camera. Between 1999 and 2006, she traveled the globe interviewing stars for the Canadian daily entertainment program, Flash'' and covering the

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films ...

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a perman ...

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,6 ...

, the

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

and the

People's Choice Awards The People's Choice Awards is an American awards show, recognizing people in entertainment, voted online by the general public and fans. The show has been held annually since 1975, with the winners originally determined using Gallup Polls unt ...

. She has interviewed stars such as

Sir Paul McCartney ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only a ...

Tom Cruise Thomas Cruise Mapother IV (born July 3, 1962), known professionally as Tom Cruise, is an American actor and producer. One of the world's highest-paid actors, he has received various accolades, including an Honorary Palme d'Or and three Go ...

Julia Roberts Julia Fiona Roberts (born October 28, 1967) is an American actress. Known for her leading roles in films encompassing a variety of genres, she has received multiple accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and th ...

, and

John Travolta John Joseph Travolta (born February 18, 1954) is an American actor. He came to public attention during the 1970s, appearing on the television sitcom '' Welcome Back, Kotter'' (1975–1979) and starring in the box office successes ''Carrie'' (1 ...

. Racicot is bilingual, and has worked as a contributor to English television in

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Government of Canada, 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 ...

between 2002 and 2004 for the CBC and CBC Newsworld. She was also the host of a French interior design show ''Des Idées de Grandeur'' on Women's Network

Canal Vie Canal Vie is a Canadian French language specialty channel owned by Bell Media. Canal Vie airs lifestyle and entertainment programs aimed at women in the form of talk shows, documentaries, reality TV series, and films. Programs focus on a variety o ...

from August 2007 to October 2010. Racicot has hosted two shows on Canada's number one French television network TVA. From 2000 to 2012 she was with the morning talk show ''Deux Filles Le Matin'', which remains the number one morning show, covering family, human interest subjects, kids, and music. On Friday nights she hosts the number one talk show ''Ça Finit Bien La Semaine'' where Canadian and international personalities sit down with her for one-on-one in-depth interviews. On August 25, 2012, Racicot joined

CJFM-FM CJFM-FM (95.9 FM) is a commercial English-language radio station located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Owned and operated by Bell Media, the station broadcasts a Top 40/CHR format branded as ''95.9 Virgin Radio''. CJFM-FM broadcasts with an eff ...

as a host.

Awards and charity

Racicot has been named "Female Personality of the Year" at the Sounds of Blackness Awards in Quebec three times in 2008, 2009, and 2010. She also won the anglophone radio personality award at the Dynastie Gala. Racicot is the spokesperson for the

Girls Action Foundation Girls Action Foundation provides funds and training to over 100 girls’ programs in communities across Canada. It also offers programs, research and support to a network of over 300 partnering organizations and projects, reaching over 60,000 Ca ...

whose goal is to help young women develop confidence and leadership skills.

Magazine covers

Racicot has been featured on the cover of several French Canadian magazines: * ''Vita'', May 2010 * ''Souché'', September 2010 * ''Moi & Cie'', Holiday 2012 * ''Guide Beauté'', August * ''Le Lundi'', March 2012 * ''Mieux-Être'', April 2011Mieux Être, Plourde, Marie, "Bonheur en Banlieue", No 47, April 2011, French

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Racicot, Isabelle 1972 births Living people Canadian people of Haitian descent Concordia University alumni