Isabelle Geffroy, better known by the nickname Zaz, is a French singer-songwriter. Her mother was a Spanish teacher, and her father worked for an electric company. In 1985, she entered the Conservatoire de Tours with her sister and her brother, attending courses from the ages of 6 to 11. She studied music theory, specifically the violin, piano, guitar, and choral singing. In 1994, she moved to Bordeaux. In 1995, she took singing lessons and played sports for a year in Bordeaux. In 2000, she won a scholarship from the regional council, which allowed her to join a school of modern music, the CIAM (Centre for Musical Activities and Information) of Bordeaux. Her musical influences included ‘Four Seasons’ by Vivaldi, jazz singers such as Ella Fitzgerald, as well as African, Latin, and Cuban rhythms. In 2006, she moved to Paris.
In May 2010, French magazine Telerama announced: “Rumour has swelled in recent weeks: Zaz is an extraordinary voice, and she will be the revelation of the summer!”. On 10 May 2010, Zaz released her first album. It contains songs she wrote (“Trop sensible”) and co-composed (“Les passants”, “Le long de la route”, “Prends garde à ta langue”, “J’aime à nouveau”, “Ni oui ni non”). Kerredine Soltani produced the album on the label “Play On” and wrote and composed the hit single “Je Veux”. In 2010, she signed a contract for her tours with Caramba and publisher Sony ATV. She was invited to make several television appearances and was featured in several programs on the radio. In October 2013, Zaz appeared on The Andrew Marr Show in London and sang “Je veux”.
Zaz then toured France, most of Europe and Canada. That autumn Zaz topped the charts in Blegium, Switzerland, and Austria. Matthieu Baligand, her manager and producer at Caramba Entertainment, explained to Liberation: “We talk a lot of her right now and people are waiting her at the turn… Despite the demand, it seems preferable to do her first tour in fifty small places which will render her credible. Zaz is a popular, intuitive artist, who is familiar with music, who can sing, but doing a quality show is something else.” In November 2010, the debut album Zaz became double platinum and she was awarded “Revelation Song” by the Academie Charles Cros. She was named the French artist most played abroad in 2010. According to a survey published by L’Internaute, Zaz was the most popular French singer in the 2010 ranking.
She is also featured on the song “Cœur Volant” for the soundtrack of the 2011 film, Hugo. Her live CD and DVD Zaz live tour Sans Tsu Tsou was revealed. Her song “Eblouie Par La Nuit” was featured in the 2013 American neo-noir crime thriller, “Dead Man Down”. In 2012, Zaz went on tour and held concerts in various countries around the world. With her album Paris she won the 2015 Echo Award for best international female rock/pop artist.
