Françoise Hardy, an illustrious French singer and 60’s icon, has died at the age of 80, as announced by her son, Thomas Dutronc, on social media.
Recognised internationally, Hardy was the sole French representative amongst 200 of the top singers in the American magazine, Rolling Stone, in 2023.
Having battled cancer since 2004, in an interview with Paris Match in 2023, Hardy expressed her wish to die swiftly, without significant trials such as the inability to breathe.
In 2021, Hardy voiced her support for euthanasia to the AFP, labelling it as inhumane to make an incurable person endure insufferable pain until death.
Hardy will be remembered, not just for her hit single “All The Boys And Girls” or for her relationship with singer Jacques Dutronc. Her elegance, an embodiment of French sophistication, also captivated international audiences including Mick Jagger, Bob Dylan and David Bowie.
With over 2 million copies sold, Hardy’s career truly took off in 1962 with her hit single “All the Boys And Girls” which she both wrote and composed.
Despite being launched in the middle of the Yéyé wave, Hardy’s work, laced with melancholy, did not quite fit this label.
Her androgynous features and restraint were a stark contrast to fellow French star Brigitte Bardot, but her look was nonetheless influential.
Her tumultuous relationship with Jacques Dutronc, father of her son Thomas and noted singer himself, played out beyond the public eye in their Parisian flat.
This bittersweet marriage would widely influence Hardy’s work, from her 1973 hit “Message personnel” to her final album “Personne d’autre” in 2018.
Amongst her other popular songs included “Mon amie la rose” (1964) and “Comment te dire adieu” written by Serge Gainsbourg (1968).
For Hardy, who only got her first guitar at the age of 16, all this was a remarkable achievement for a young Parisien girl who was raised by a single mother alongside her sister.
To quote Hardy from an interview back in 2018 with AFP, she said "All my life, I’ve been on the lookout for beautiful melodies. Listening to them makes me feel over the moon."
She also revealed that singing did not come naturally to her, and that she was quick to abandon the stage despite her passion for astrology.
Often candid about her health, Hardy believed that death was but a liberation of the soul from the physical essence of the body. However, she professed that she was as fearful of death as anyone else.
