Françoise Hardy

Françoise Hardy was the quintessential chanteuse who earned her spot in the pantheon of French icons thanks to incredible talent and impeccable style. Hardy debuted amid a wave of early-’60s French “yé-yé” singers crooning sultry pop songs; however, she stood out from the pack by writing most of her own tunes. Her 1962 album, Tous les garçons et les filles, established her as a glamorous voice with a talent for evoking lovelorn feelings set to a stripped-down, jazzy beat. The title track was a smash hit that made the famously shy Hardy an international star, crashing the boys club that had once dominated French pop. What followed was a decades-long career of successful, genre-bending albums, including 1971’s bossa nova-tinged La question and 1996’s alt-rock inspired album Le danger. In addition to film roles and a career as an astrologer, Hardy continued releasing albums into the 21st century, including 2018’s Personne d’autre. She passed away in June 2024, age 80.