Jacques Cartier (December 31, 1491 – September 1, 1557) was a French explorer of Breton origin who claimed what is now Canada for France. He was the first European to describe and map the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and the shores of the Saint Lawrence River, which he named "The Country of Canadas", after the Iroquois names for the two big settlements he saw at Stadacona (Quebec City) and at Hochelaga (Montreal Island).

Jacques Cartier was born in 1491 in Saint-Malo, the port on the extreme north-east coast of Brittany. Cartier, who was a respectable mariner, improved his social status in 1520 by marrying Mary Catherine des Granches, member of a leading family. His good name in Saint-Malo is recognized by its frequent appearance in baptismal registers as godfather or witness.

In 1534, the year the Duchy of Brittany was formally united with France in the Edict of Union, Cartier was introduced to King Francis I by Jean le Veneur, bishop of Saint-Malo and abbot of Mont-Saint-Michel, at the Manoir de Brion. The king had previously invited (although not formally commissioned) the Florentine explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano to explore the eastern coast of North America on behalf of France in 1524. Le Veneur cited voyages to Newfoundland and Brazil as proof of Cartier's ability to "lead ships to the discovery of new lands in the New World".

François Pérusse (born October 8, 1960, in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada) is a Québécois comedian and musician famous for his radio sketches featuring puns and absurd humor. His best-known sketches are from the series Les 2 minutes du peuple (The Peoples' 2 Minutes).
Pérusse is also known for spawning a new genre of comedy that had not been fully explored before.

Pérusse was born to Charlotte and Adélard Pérusse. At 12 he made his debut in local radio, and by age 17 he was playing as a bassist in bands with his older brother Marc.

"Les 2 minutes du peuple" first aired in August 1990 on CKOI-FM as part of the program "Y'é trop d'bonne heure" (It's Too Early): his sketches and songs became instantly well-known throughout Quebec. After a little over a year, a compilation of his best sketches and songs was released: L'Album du peuple – Tome 1 (The Album of the People – Volume 1), which has sold more than 80,000 copies.

Pérusse has released 6 more "Albums du peuple" in the main series, plus 2 albums in France and a spinoff called L'Album pirate (The Pirated Album). His fourth album, which he expected to be his last and which he called L'Album du peuple final – Tome 4 (The Final Album of the People – Volume 4), sold well, prompting him to continue making albums.