Zaz

A French pop singer with a Gypsy jazz-influenced style and vocals that are often compared to those of Edith Piaf, Zaz made her chart-topping eponymous debut in 2010. Her fourth studio LP, 2018's Effet Miroir, offered a less anachronistic and more contemporary pop-oriented sound.

Born Isabelle Geffroy on May 1, 1980, in Tours, France, she performed as a singer for much of her life. As Zaz, she made her full-length solo debut with a Play On-issued self-titled album in 2010. Featuring a few songs written and produced by Raphaël, the album was well-received by critics and spawned the Top 40 single "Je Veux." As positive word-of-mouth spread, Zaz steadily rose to the top of the French albums chart; the album eventually went double diamond in France. Her international following grew, and during 2012, Zaz toured throughout Europe, Japan, and Canada. One year later, she released her second album, Recto Verso. Like her debut, Recto Verso went double diamond in her native France, and it was certified gold or platinum is several other European countries.

Her third album, Paris, was conceived as a love letter to the capital and included a sequence of songs associated with Paris, including Cole Porter's "I Love Paris" (featuring Nikki Yanofsky) and Charles Trénet's "La Romance de Paris" (featuring Thomas Dutronc). The joyous results, released in 2014, resulted in Top Ten chart placings across Europe. She followed it with the hit live album Sur la Route in 2015. It included her highest-charting French single to that point, "Si Jamais J'oublie," which reached number 11. Still with the Play On label, her next LP, 2018's Effet Miroir, reached the Top Five in France, Germany, and Switzerland. ~ Jason Birchmeier