Canadian singer/songwriter, composer, producer and screenwriter Anthony Aramouni has combined his ear for music and eye for film in this, his richly textural, hypnotically reverent tribute track, āL. Cohenā ā available now.
āThis is my attempt to pay homage to a man who has deeply touched my life through his music, words, and genuineness,ā Aramouni offers of his long-time adoration for the late Leonard Cohen. āHe is forever inspiring me to strive for personal growth and excellence while remaining grounded in, what I think, ultimately unites us all as human beings ā love, sacrifice, kindness, curiosity, ambition, gratitude, and all we deem sacred.ā
With that sentiment deeply ingrained, the Montreal-based artistās long-time inspiration took ultimate hold one afternoon, seemingly out of the blue.
āI was in my apartment, strumming the guitar aimlessly,ā Aramouni recalls. āThe progression of certain chords caught my attention and seemed to be laying themselves out with a certain promise.
āAn idea dawned on me in that moment: to tell the story of Leonard Cohen and his muse, Suzanne Verdal.ā
That, and Cohenās 1967 classic hit, āSuzanne,ā specifically.
āTaking from my personal experience with such short-lived yet incredibly giving relationships, I attempted to tell a universal ā yet personal ā tale of love and sacrifice,ā Aramouni elaborates on his own songwriting for the track. āIt was only moments later the song was born.ā
The recording process would soon prove to be just as organic and seamless a process for Aramouni, who went into the studio to record a few weeks later. āI was accompanied by a brilliant musician and sound engineer in Montreal, Kento Kataoka,ā he shares. āThe recording session was as agreeable as the songwriting process. It was not long before it was officially brought to life.ā
A tour de force and frequent fixture across many creative scenes, Anthony Aramouniās songwriting and productions have been featured in award-winning short films; his latest collaboration with soul/blues artist Eric Mercury is set to be featured in the forthcoming film ā which he also co-wrote and is producing ā Blue Tongues. In addition, Aramouni is the co-founder, CEO, executive producer and music supervisor of Montreal-based film house Film & Blues Production.
This experience naturally led to creating the āL. Cohenā video in-house, as well as a āMaking Ofā detailing the process.
āI took the final version to film director Youcef Beghdadi here at Film & Blues Production to explore ideas,ā he recalls. āAfter several sittings, we decided to recreate shots inspired by a number of Cohenās music videos ā like āFirst We Take Manhattanā and āDance Me To The End Of Loveā ā and also find inspiration in the work of legendary film director Ingmar Bergman.
āWe aimed at telling a visual story that would capture the essence of the song while paying tribute to the work done in his music videos,ā Aramouni expands. āI was blessed to be accompanied by a wonderful artist and writer, Claudia Emmanuelle, whoās featured in the music video as well.ā
āL. Cohenā is available now.

