Jacques Higelin

Jacques Higelin — Biography

Jacques Joseph Victor Higelin, born on 18 October 1940 in Brou-sur-Chantereine (Seine-et-Marne) and deceased on 6 April 2018, was a French singer, songwriter, composer and actor. He ranks among the most distinguished practitioners of the auteur-compositeur-interprète tradition, in which a single artist writes, composes and performs his own songs, and he became one of the defining personalities of the French music scene, particularly throughout the 1970s and 1980s.

Drawn to the world of entertainment from childhood, he trained as an actor at the Cours Simon in Paris and began his career in film, appearing in productions such as Saint-Tropez Blues (1961), Bébert et l'Omnibus (1963), Erotissimo (1969) and Elle court, elle court la banlieue (1973). Backed by the producer Jacques Canetti, he then turned to music; his debut album, 12 chansons d'avant le déluge, was released in 1966. From the mid-1960s he forged a lifelong artistic closeness with Areski Belkacem and Brigitte Fontaine.

His music, grounded in chanson, drew on hot jazz, blues, rock'n'roll, reggae, funk, new wave and Arabic influences, while a number of his songs revealed an experimental and theatrical character. He sang mainly in French, now and then in English. Albums including Higelin & Areski (1969), BBH75 (1974), Irradié (1976), Alertez les bébés ! (1976), No Man's Land (1978), Champagne pour tout le monde (1979), Higelin 82 (1982), Aï (1985) and Tombé du ciel (1988) secured his rise. He also worked with the Art Ensemble of Chicago and Youssou N'Dour, and earned renown for his commanding stage presence.

During the 1990s, Illicite (1991) and Aux héros de la voltige (1994) restored him to public favour, and he carried on recording and performing well into the new century with Paradis païen (1998), Amor doloroso (2006), Coup de foudre (2010) and Beau repaire (2013). His bond with the theatre never lapsed, and he occasionally returned to the cinema; among his later screen parts was the role of Dalio in Jappeloup (2013). He received the Prix Raoul-Breton and was made a Commander of the French Order of Arts and Letters.

His political and activist commitments, especially alongside associations supporting the underprivileged, occasionally put him in the media spotlight. He married three times: Nicole Courtois, Kuelan Nguyen and Aziza Zakine. All three of his children became artists: the singer Arthur H, the actor Kên Higelin and the singer Izïa Higelin. His grandchildren include Kên's daughter Kim Higelin and Arthur's daughter, the singer Marcia Higelin.