Izïa Higelin (born 24 September 1990), more commonly known by her stage name Izia, is a French rock singer, guitarist and actress. Her most recent album, ''La Vitesse'', was released in 2022.

Early life

Izïa was born in Paris on 24 September 1990 to

Jacques Higelin Jacques Joseph Victor Higelin (; 18 October 1940 – 6 April 2018) was a French pop singer who rose to prominence in the early 1970s. Early life Higelin was born on 18 October 1940. His father, Paul, a railway worker and musician of Alsatian de ...

, a famous French singer of Belgian and Alsatian descent, and Aziza Zakine, a dancer and chorist of Tunisian descent. She comes from a family of artists; beside her father and mother, her two half brothers are

Arthur H Arthur Higelin (born 27 March 1966), better known under his stage name Arthur H (), is a French pianist, songwriter and singer. He is best known in France for his live performances—four of his albums were recorded live. Life and career He is ...

and

Kên Higelin Kên Higelin (born 11 February 1972) is a French stage and film actor, theatre director and music video director. After having worked at a young age with theatre director Peter Brook, most notably in ''La Tempête'', a French adaptation of Shakes ...

. She was influenced by music from an early age when her father introduced her to jazz and British

pop music Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom. The terms ''popular music'' and ''pop music'' are often used interchangeably, although the former descri ...

. At the age of seven, she formed a duo with her father; she provided the vocals while he played piano.

Career

Music

When she was 13 Izïa started to take an interest in rock bands such as

Nirvana ( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lampRichard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colombo.' ...

and

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...

. At this time, she wrote her first song, titled "Hey Bitch", which later featured on her debut album. A year later she met Caravan Palace bassist Antoine Toustou through her parents and the pair played their first live show in 2004. Six months later, her backing group was expanded to three people when Izïa and Toustou were joined by Sébastien Hoog and Vincent Polycarpe. She left school at the age of 15 in order to concentrate on a career in music. In 2006, Izïa released her first extended play and the following year she opened for Iggy & the Stooges at the

Printemps de Bourges Le Printemps de Bourges is an annual music festival that is held in Bourges, France, over the course of five days. It is now a major event in France and Europe. History The festival was created in 1977 (by , , and ). With its span of 35 years ...

music festival. She consequently embarked on a tour of France, which consisted of over thirty dates. On 8 June 2009, her eponymous debut studio album, ''Izia'' was released in France. In some reviews, the album garnered comparisons to Janis Joplin. The album performed reasonably well in the

French albums chart French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with France ...

, achieving a peak position of #31 and staying in the top 100 for 17 consecutive weeks. Izïa has since released three more albums that reached the charts in France: ''So Much Trouble'' (2011), ''La Vague'' (2015), and ''Citadelle'' (2019). In 2021, Izïa contributed a cover of the Metallica song "My Friend of Misery" to the charity tribute album ''

The Metallica Blacklist ''The Metallica Blacklist'' is a various artists tribute album featuring covers of every track from Metallica's 1991 self-titled album (commonly known as ''The Black Album''). The collection was assembled in conjunction with the original album' ...

''.

Film

Izïa made her film debut in 2012, appearing in the film '' Bad Girl'' under her full name, Izia Higelin. She was nominated for several awards for her performance in the film, including the

César Award for Most Promising Actress The César Award for Most Promising Actress (french: César du meilleur espoir féminin) is one of the César Awards, presented annually by the Académie des Arts et Techniques du Cinéma to recognize the outstanding breakthrough performance of a ...

. Since then she has continued to act sporadically, appearing in the 2015 film '' Summertime'' and playing

Camille Claudel Camille Rosalie Claudel (; 8 December 1864 19 October 1943) was a French sculptor known for her figurative works in bronze and marble. She died in relative obscurity, but later gained recognition for the originality and quality of her work. The ...

in the 2017 film '' Rodin''.

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

Filmography

References

External links

*
Izia official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Izia 1990 births Living people Musicians from Paris French rock musicians French people of Belgian descent French people of Tunisian descent French film actresses 21st-century French actresses Most Promising Actress César Award winners