The French singer Françoise Hardy, who reached international stardom in the 1960s with her melancholic hits, has passed away.
Her son confirms her death.
Françoise Hardy was born in Paris in 1944, in the midst of World War II. Her father, who was married elsewhere and not particularly present during her upbringing, gave her a guitar on her 16th birthday at her mother's request.
For a couple of years, she sang on local stages, such as the Moka Club, and auditioned for various record companies – without success. After taking singing lessons and attending Le Petit Conservatoire de la chanson, a kind of school for future radio entertainers, she got a record contract with Disques Vogue.
Breakthrough at 18
Françoise Hardy had her major breakthrough with her self-written song "Tous les garçons et les filles" in 1962, and became a leading figure in the so-called yé-yé music wave. It mainly consisted of young female singers with an innocent air, singing pop songs inspired by British and American pop music.
She quickly became an icon, not only for her music but also as a model in the fashion world and as an actress.
In 1963, she represented Monaco in the European Championship with the song "L'amour s'en va", which came in fifth place. Her songs began to be translated into other languages, and she started performing abroad, including on the legendary British TV programme "Ready Steady Go".
In 1967, she began a relationship with Jacques Dutronc, also one of France's biggest artists. They got married in 1981, separated six years later, and remained friends without ever divorcing. Together, they had a son, Thomas, in 1973, who later pursued a music career as an adult.
Comeback after cancer
In 1994, Hardy collaborated with the group Blur and together they recorded "To the End", a song written by, among others, Damon Albarn, where Hardy sang her verses in French.
In 2004, she was diagnosed with lymphatic cancer. The struggle against the disease, which Hardy overcame in stages with heavy chemotherapy, she described as hell. She was close to giving up in 2015, when she was put into an artificial coma, but miraculously survived.
Despite the ordeals, she continued to release music. The album "Personne d'autre" from 2018 was the last in her music career, which had then spanned nearly six decades.
Hardy's son Thomas Dutronc confirmed her passing on Instagram on Tuesday.
She was 80 years old.
