Rebecca Makonnen is a Canadian television and radio broadcaster, currently host of the weekly talk and interview series De l'huile sur le feu on Ici Radio-Canada Première.Arianne Lebreux-Ebacher, "Rebecca Makonnen se dévoile dans ce nouveau projet plus personnel"]. 7 Jours, October 4, 2024.
Background She was born in Ethiopia to Adunya Makonnen, a medical doctor married to Virginie Michaud, a Canadian nurse from New Brunswick who was working in the country.Julie Roy, "3 bonnes raisons de lire Dans mon sang, de Rebecca Makonnen". L'actualité, November 8, 2024.
Despite having grown up in Quebec with Michaud, her 2024 autobiography Dans mon sang publicly revealed for the first time that Michaud was not her biological mother, and in fact she had been conceived in an extramarital affair that her father had with another woman while Michaud had traveled back to Canada for an extended visit prior to divorcing Adunya.Silvia Galipeau, "Le moment de vérité". La Presse, October 14, 2024. Despite this, Michaud actively asked for custody of Rebecca following the divorce, and raised her in a loving household; Makonnen has stated that she considers Michaud to be her real mother regardless of the situation, and never experienced any desire to meet or connect with her biological mother.Anne-Frédérique Hébert-Dolbec, "Rebecca Makonnen: récit des origines". Le Devoir, October 12, 2024.
Career After studying journalism at Concordia University,Brendan Kelly, "Unexpected radio stardom suits Rebecca Makonnen". Montreal Gazette, January 30, 2015. she began her career as a production assistant at MusiquePlus in 1999, transitioning to an on-air role as a VJ and reporter in 2000.Brendan Kelly, "My Pandemic Year: Rebecca Makonnen comes up for air". Montreal Gazette, December 22, 2020. In 2006 she joined TQS as a reporter on the entertainment news magazine Flash,Isabelle Massé, "Le studio de Rebecca". La Presse, October 11, 2008. and joined Radio-Canada in 2008 as an arts reporter for the Ici Radio-Canada Première morning show C'est bien meilleur le matin and the Ici Radio-Canada Télé arts magazine On fait tous du show business, and host of the music television show Studio 12.
She subsequently hosted Circuit Makonnen on the Ici Musique network from 2012 to 2017, and has continued to host both radio and television programming for Radio-Canada. She also voiced the character of Ana Harvey in the French version of the animated television series Doomsday Brothers (Les Frères Apocalypse)."Rebecca Makonnen prêtera sa voix à un personnage dans un dessin animé". Ici Radio-Canada, September 2, 2019.
Personal life She has been in a relationship with singer-songwriter Louis-Jean Cormier since the late 2010s.Sandrine Vincent, "Une première sortie publique pour Rebecca Makonnen et Louis-Jean Cormier". Le Journal de Montréal, March 21, 2019. They keep their relationship relatively private, although she was the inspiration for some of the songs on his 2020 album Quand la nuit tombe.Raphaël Gendron-Martin, "La nouvelle vie de Louis-Jean Cormier". Le Journal de Montréal, March 21, 2020.
She was previously romantically linked with electronic musician Maxime "DJ Champion" Morin."DJ Champion se dit guéri du cancer". TVA Nouvelles, August 11, 2015.
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