Sylvie Vartan

About

The most popular and often deemed the toughest of the French ye-ye girls, Sylvie Vartan found success in the mid 60s throughout Europe and America. Due to the state of post-war Bulgaria, Vartan's parents were forced to immigrate to Paris when she was a child without anyone in the family speaking a word of French. Struggling to assimilate, Vartan finally learned French after two years, began absorbing French rock n' roll and eventually started singing with her older brother in high school. Already gaining recognition while she was still in school, Vartan was known as the "twisting school girl." After graduation, Vartan's parents finally allowed her to sign a record deal and the French songstress helped shape the ye-ye genre as one of the first notable French singers to sing and dance at the same time. Though Vartan took a lengthy break from music in the 80s and 90s, she began performing again in francophone countries in 2004.