Interview with Gabrielle and Jeffrey

Founders of “FK en musique”

Meet two FK members who founded the NPO FK en musique (FKM), an innovative and creative project for the fibrocystic community!

Can you introduce yourself?

GABRIELLE: Gabrielle Phaneuf, 29, creative, different, different, ambitious, determined, very involved in my projects. I am the girl who adapts to everything, but who does not Fit nowhere. I love yoga, dancing, cooking, and electronic music! I met Jeffrey Carpentier in May 2020 when I called him to offer him a crazy idea.

JEFFREY: Jeffrey P. Carpentier, 26, event organizer, bartender, volunteer since 2019 with FK Quebec and organizing member of Cystic Fibrosis en Musique (FKM). I met Gabrielle Phaneuf through my volunteer involvement in 2020.

Tell us about your background.

GABRIELLE: I wanted to rebel against my chronic conditions for a long time. I was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis at the age of 12 and diabetes at 18. I spent a lot of years living with symptoms that I didn't understand. I grew up with chronic pain and a profound sense of living. After living in the dark for many years and reaching rock bottom, I started to see my life differently. By volunteering for cystic fibrosis from 2013 to 2019, I developed a sense of belonging and “empowerment” towards my disease and discovered a close-knit community. Building on these life experiences, I chose to see my illness differently and to use it wisely as a driver of action. Little did I know that, two years later, I would manage a non-profit organization with a great volunteer team (Jeffrey, Julie, Charley and Anaïs).

Since Jeffrey also has cystic fibrosis, we built relationships very quickly. Being from the same generation, liking the same music, and sharing the same diagnosis brought us closer together from the first call.

JEFFREY: It all started five years ago when I joined the Cégep Montmorency Entrepreneur Club. I was an event promoter at the La P'tite Grenouille bar in Montreal and I was itching for an idea: to organize a party with all my friends. I had the opportunity to organize the official “End of Session Four Loko Montmorency” party. The love for events was immediate and passionate. After realizing this first event, I knew that this was the way to go. I then changed my program to focus on event management and business launch. I graduated in 2019 and the same year, I spearheaded the creation of an electronic music festival that I named Cap sur l'île because of the location where it was taking place. As part of this festival, it was important for me to include a donation for cystic fibrosis. I donated some of the money from ticket sales to the cause. The festival was a great success. It gave me the urge to get more involved in the cystic fibrocystic community.

What is Cystic Fibrosis in music?

GABRIELLE: Cystic Fibrosis in Music (FKM) is a unique concept in philanthropy that combines music and cystic fibrosis. On May 10, 2022, we registered FKM as an NPO with the Registraire des Entreprises du Québec. FKM refers to the music played for the FK cause during our fundraising and awareness campaigns. We are a non-profit organization that aims to raise awareness about cystic fibrosis disease while raising funds. We aim for an average of two events per year.

We organize virtual and face-to-face events that bring together passionate people, artists, artists, DJs, musicians and humans who volunteer musical performances. Our events are festive, dynamic, educational, educational, unifying and youthful.

JEFFREY: Our event service offer is rich and diversified. We organize several types of events and all are for the cause: family day, underground DJ party club version or mainstream version, variety show, yoga event, music event, and more. We explore new ideas with each edition. We like doing business with Montreal retailers and local partners who encourage and support us in exchange for a bit of visibility or simply to do the right thing.

What is your relationship with music?

JEFFREY: My mother taught me the benefits of music at a very young age as well as the openness to the diversity of music around us. I am a music lover and I believe that every type of music has its time to be listened to. Rarely can I get around without music because I feel like something is missing. It is also the primary tool that feeds all my events. Music is unifying and universal. GABRIELLE: My relationship with music is natural and visceral. No matter where I am in the world, she is a part of me and a part of my personality. My musical preferences have changed over the years. When I was a kid, my dad played music on Saturday mornings for breakfast. My dad was a DJ himself in his day. He passed on his passion to me during our karaoke evenings where the whole family sang. I knew all the words by heart. My passion for music developed further in high school, during which I spent two years in the school symphony orchestra where I played French horn and clarinet. I took dance lessons for 15 years and was part of the dance troupe. Whether I am well or not, music consoles me, fascinates me, makes me cry or makes me smile. It's one of the most beautiful things in the world.

How did you come up with the idea?

GABRIELLE: By the time the pandemic arrived, we were about to start a big event for cystic fibrosis. I was very involved, but when the date of March 13, 2020 fell, it was no longer possible to do so and the company decided to cancel all of its fundraising events. I didn't accept the idea of giving up and I looked for another way to do something. The idea came to me thinking of my DJ friends and imagining myself dancing for the cause. I called Jeffrey to offer him a virtual financing concept for FK with live electronic music performances. We were going to call it: FK in music.

JEFFREY: When 2020 arrived, Gabrielle and I were well involved in a committee for the FK March. We had to be ambassadors for the cause and raise large amounts of money for the organization. It immediately clicked between her and me when she called me. I thought his idea was original and fun. I got on board right away, because I already knew several DJ artists thanks to the festival I organized. We set out to work together to create this new concept of virtual fundraising.

GABRIELLE: By mobilizing electronic music producers in Montreal, we gathered over 25 DJ sets and managed to raise over $2,000 in just four days. We continued while refining our concept. We are now in our third annual cystic fibrosis and wellness fundraiser and our goal is $7,000.

What are your best memories?

GABRIELLE: My best memory is the December 2020 edition, when we filmed music performances at Salon Daomé, a very well known and popular club in Montreal. In less than six weeks, we managed to put together a complete program of four days of musical entertainment, with big names on the local scene, such as the artist duo Hicky & Kalo, that of Horla, that of Horla, Jimmy Strip and Guillaume Michaud. My friend DJ Julie/Anne helped me with the visual production of the performances. We managed to find cameras thanks to a contact at Solotech and to edit, all on a voluntary basis. This edition will remain forever etched in my heart and in my head, because it was the real kickoff of FKM. Following this edition, we won the Youth Award for Excellence in Philanthropy—category 18 to 35 years old to recognize our efforts.

What are your next projects?

JEFFREY: We have a long-term vision. We want FKM to become an annual fundraising tradition for the cystic fibrocystic community and the music community in Montreal. We imagine that, in five years, we will be able to talk about a goal of $25,000 for the fundraising campaign.

GABRIELLE: We are developing the market in Quebec for now. Eventually, I would like to extend our concept to other Canadian provinces in French and English. In five years, we will have developed a turnkey organizational and musical entertainment component for events related to cystic fibrosis or awareness-raising. People will hire the company and its Brand to animate their events.

In 10 years, our company will have created an annual philanthropic tradition, where people would donate to the cause every year. The business will have grown. Our evenings will have gained notoriety and credibility with major donors and actors affected by CF in Quebec.

We will have a committee in several municipalities and cities to be well represented throughout Quebec. We will have a branch that will take care of the rest of Canada in its entirety.

We will be the organization Lighthouse and preferred in the field of musical events for cystic fibrosis. We stand out in several innovative ways in order to get our message across. We will do what no one else has done before. The feats will be achieved over the next few years.

Would you like to add anything?

JEFFREY: Absolutely, but a face-to-face interview would probably be better to elaborate further.

GABRIELLE: I never thought I would go this far with just one idea! This is a sign that when you believe in something, you have to go for it. If I had listened to those who did not believe in it, I would never have succeeded. Believe it yourself!