Ima

French Canadian singer Ima was born Marie-Andre Bergeron on May 11, 1978. Growing up on the southern bank of Montreal, Ima spent much of her spare time learning dance, theater and song, ultimately choosing to focus on theater. In her adult life she took part in a number of successful film projects, including appearances in The Bone Collector and Eye of the Beholder. Not entirely satisfied with her dramatic career, she decided to turn her attentions to music, taking the performance name Ima, for imagination. After five years Ima recorded her first single, a song called "In Your Eyes" that was featured on an album dedicated to late Brazilian race car driver Ayrton Senna, Tribute to Ayrton Senna Her participation in a series of singing contests in 2000 and 2001 put Ima in contact with François Guy, who strongly encouraged her to make a record in French. Under the direction of drummer/industry veteran Dominique Messier (Celine Dion, Lara Fabian), Ima assembled repertoire from the country's finest songwriters for her 2002 self-titled debut release. A few years and some regional touring later, Ima set to work on her follow-up project with collaborators Tino Izzo and Alessandro Cerondolo. Pardonne Moi Si Je T'aime was released in 2005. Though targeting her French-speaking audience had treated her well, Ima chose a different direction for her third time out in 2007. Smile featured repertoire drawn from the jazz genre, sung primarily in English. Ima has since maintained a busy regional touring schedule in support of the project, which has earned slots on airplay charts throughout Canada. ~ Evan C. Gutierrez