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The Kingpins were a Montreal‑based Canadian ska band formed in 1994 by drummer Eric “Boum Boum” Boulanger, bassist Jordan Swift, organist Ian “Hot Tub” Hodkinson and saxophonist‑later‑lead‑singer Lorraine Muller, who earned the nickname “Queen of Ska.” Their breakthrough came with the 1995 single "On The Run"-written by Hodkinson and Muller-which won the Montreal Independent Music Industry Award for Best Single and attracted a growing local audience. The group followed with the 1997 album Watch Your Back, their first full‑length release, then broke into mainstream media in 1999 with Let's Go To Work, a more traditional‑skate album that earned spots on the Warped Tour, the Montreal Jazz Festival and extensive tours across Canada, the United States, France, Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, Italy, and Japan. In 2000, they released Plan Of Action, a stylistic shift that featured vocal lead by Muller and guest appearances from Dave “JFK” Adams and Mitch “King Kong” Girio, blending ska with new‑wave and breakbeat elements. By 2004, the lineup had dwindled to Muller and a new group of musicians, prompting the band to rebrand as Lo and the Magnetics; the Kingpins’ last tour concluded that year. The band’s legacy includes a dedicated fan base, award recognition, and a discography that captures the evolution of Canadian ska from the mid‑1990s through the early 2000s.
