Olivia Ruiz
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Olivia Blanc (born 1 January 1980), known as Olivia Ruiz, is a French pop singer of partial Spanish descent belonging to the nouvelle chanson genre.Olivia Ruiz
RFI
She gained fame after reaching the semi-finals of the French ''
Star Academy ''Star Academy'', called ''Operación Triunfo'' ("Operation Triumph") in Spanish-speaking countries, is a highly successful television pop music talent contest with viewer voting and reality show elements. Format There are many versions of t ...
'' series in 2001.


Biography

Ruiz was born 1 January 1980 in
Carcassonne Carcassonne (, also , , ; ; la, Carcaso) is a French fortified city in the department of Aude, in the region of Occitanie. It is the prefecture of the department. Inhabited since the Neolithic, Carcassonne is located in the plain of the ...
(
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
), daughter of musician Didier Blanc, though later taking her grandmother's maiden name, Ruiz. Her family on her mother's side is Spanish and fled Nationalist Spain to go to Marseillette, in the village's concert hall (subject of her second album). She has a brother, Anthony, born in 1985. He is a rap composer known by the nickname Toan. She studied in Carcassonne but went to college in
Montpellier Montpellier (, , ; oc, Montpelhièr ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of ...
, where she studied performing arts, before changing to a BTS in communication. At the age of 15, Ruiz started getting involved in music. She left her parents' house to live with her aunt in Narbonne, where she took theater and dance classes with her friends from
Comigne Comigne (; oc, Cominha) is a commune in the Aude département in southern France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territori ...
, the band Rock Five. Together, they did some opening acts in order to make some money by singing
the Cranberries The Cranberries were an Irish rock band formed in Limerick, Ireland. Originally named the Cranberry Saw Us, the band were formed in 1989 by lead singer Niall Quinn, guitarist Noel Hogan, bassist Mike Hogan and drummer Fergal Lawler. Quinn was ...
’ or
Lenny Kravitz Leonard Albert Kravitz (born May 26, 1964) is an American singer-songwriter. His style incorporates elements of rock, blues, soul, R&B, funk, jazz, reggae, hard rock, psychedelic, pop and folk. Kravitz won the Grammy Award for Best Male Roc ...
's songs. She also took dance classes at the Pelizzon School in Carcassonne and
Trèbes Trèbes (; oc, Trebes) is a commune in the Aude department, southern France. It is around 7 km east of the centre of Carcassonne. History Located on an important river crossing, Trèbes was originally known as Tresmals (Three Fords) bu ...
. She entered the Médiévales de Carcassonne, a group of small artists, for their summer show. She started performing in different bars, along with Frank Marty (from the bands THC, Les Croquants and La Varda) a multi-instrumentalist from Narbonne. They mainly performed songs from old artists like
Fréhel Fréhel (; born Marguerite Boulc'h; 13 July 1891 – 3 February 1951) was a French singer and actress. Biography Born in Paris to a poor and dysfunctional Breton family, Marguerite Boulc'h was a child left to a life on the streets in the sordid ...
,
Yves Montand Ivo Livi (), better known as Yves Montand (; 13 October 1921 – 9 November 1991), was an Italian-French actor and singer. Early life Montand was born Ivo Livi in Monsummano Terme, Italy, to Giovanni Livi, a broom manufacturer, Ivo held strong ...
and
Gilbert Bécaud Gilbert Bécaud (, 24 October 1927 – 18 December 2001) was a French singer, composer, pianist and actor, known as "Monsieur 100,000 Volts" for his energetic performances. His best-known hits are "Nathalie" and "Et maintenant", a 1961 release t ...
, but also songs from the new generation and Spanish standards. In 2001, she was a prominent contestant in the first French edition of ''
Star Academy ''Star Academy'', called ''Operación Triunfo'' ("Operation Triumph") in Spanish-speaking countries, is a highly successful television pop music talent contest with viewer voting and reality show elements. Format There are many versions of t ...
'', a popular TV reality show and musical contest. She was defeated in the semi-final by eventual winner
Jenifer Bartoli Jenifer Yaël Juliette Dadouche-Bartoli (born 15 November 1982), known by the mononym Jenifer, is a French singer. Since winning the first season of ''Star Academy France'' in 2002, she has had a number of hit singles on the French, Belgian a ...
but according to an interview on Europe 1 she claimed that she never wanted to win and, following a post-series tour, worked to distance herself from the Star Ac image. For her second studio album ''La Femme Chocolat'', Olivia Ruiz was recognised by the ''
Victoires de la Musique Victoires de la Musique (; en, Victories of Music) is an annual French award ceremony where the Victoire accolade is delivered by the French Ministry of Culture to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry. The classical and jazz ...
'' as the Female Artist of the Year in 2007. For the live performances accompanying the record, she also received the prize in the category of Musical Show, Tour or Concert of the Year. The album topped the French chart and was certified as a diamond record for selling more than 750,000 copies in FranceLes certifications
Disque en France.com
and made it to the top 50 of the Walloon and Swiss charts. Off the album, the music videos of the tracks "J'traine des pieds" and "La femme chocolat" were placed on rotation on the MCM French TV channel in 2006.Tous les clips de Olivia Ruiz
MCM
The singles made it to the top 50 of the French and Walloon charts. Olivia Ruiz wrote all the lyrics for her third studio album ''Miss Météores'', co-orchestrated the music and employed a crew of guest stars including the
rapper Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...
Buck 65 Richard Terfry (born March 4, 1972), better known by his stage name Buck 65, is a Canadian alternative hip hop artist. Underpinned by an extensive background in abstract hip hop, his more recent music has extensively incorporated blues, country, ...
, the
indie Indie is a short form of "independence" or "independent"; it may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Gaming *Independent video game development, video games created without financial backing from large companies *Indie game, any game (board ...
band
Noisettes Noisettes are an English indie rock band from London, currently composed of singer and bassist Shingai Shoniwa and guitarist Dan Smith. The band first achieved commercial success and nationwide recognition with the second single of their seco ...
and the
folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...
and dark cabaret project
Lonely Drifter Karen Lonely Drifter Karen are a multi-national pop band, based in Brussels, Belgium. The band consists of Austrian singer Tanja Frinta, keyboarder and producer Marc Melià Sobrevias from Spain and the two Frenchmen Maxime Malon on drums and Clément ...
and featured the styles of nouvelle chanson,
punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
, folk and Hispanic rock.Olivia Ruiz. Miss Météores
RFI
The record topped the French and Walloon album charts in 2009.Olivia Ruiz – Miss Météores
Lescharts.com
Off the album, the single "Elle panique", with the music written by Buck 65 peaked at #2 of the Walloon chart. The music video of the song was placed on rotation on the MCM in May 2009. Her ex-partner is Mathias Malzieu, the lead singer of the band
Dionysos In ancient Greek religion and myth, Dionysus (; grc, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstasy, festivity, and theatre. The Romans ...
. During an interview, Ruiz said that she did not want to "stuff people" with her music and preferred waiting at least two years before releasing a new studio album. From August to October 2011, she shared the screen with Gérard Jugnot and François Berléand in ''Un jour mon père viendra'', a French movie by Martin Valente. She also participated in the project ''Les Françoise'', with Jeanne Cherhal, Emily Loizeau, Camille, La Grande Sophie and Rosemary Standley (from the band Moriarty). During an interview for L’Express, Ruiz said that she started recording her fourth album after going to Cuba alone to take a break. The title of her album is ''Le calme et la tempête''. It was released on 3 December 2012. This album was also a success with 150 000 copies sold. In February 2013, she won her third
Globes de Cristal Award The Awards (English: Crystal Globe Awards) is a set of awards bestowed by members of the France, French Press Association recognizing excellence in home art and culture. The annual formal ceremony and dinner at which the awards are presented happ ...
as the Female Artist of the Year. (2007, 2010, 2013). In October 2013, she played Candela, the gypsy in '' L’Amour sorcier'', a ballet d’action written by
Manuel de Falla Manuel de Falla y Matheu (, 23 November 187614 November 1946) was an Andalusian Spanish composer and pianist. Along with Isaac Albéniz, Francisco Tárrega, and Enrique Granados, he was one of Spain's most important musicians of the first hal ...
in 1915. In May 2014, she announced that her fifth studio album would be released by the end of 2014 or the beginning of 2015. However, the album, entitled '' À Nos Corps-Aimants'', was released on 18 November 2016.


Discography


Albums

* 2003 : ''J'aime pas l'Amour'', produced by Iso Diop & Mitch Olivier * 2005 : ''La Femme Chocolat'', produced by Alain Cluzeau, Mathias Malzieu (
Dionysos In ancient Greek religion and myth, Dionysus (; grc, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstasy, festivity, and theatre. The Romans ...
) & Olivia Ruiz * 2007 : ''Chocolat Show'' * 2008 : ''La Chica Chocolate (La femme chocolat)'' * 2009 : ''Miss Météores'' * 2010 : ''Miss Météores Live'' * 2012 : ''Le Calme et La Tempête'' * 2016 : ''À nos Corps-Aimants''


Singles

* 2001 : ''
Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight) "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)" is a song by Swedish band ABBA. It was recorded in August 1979 in order to help promote their North American and European tour of that year, and was released on ABBA's '' Greatest Hits Vol. 2'' album ...
'' - an
ABBA ABBA ( , , formerly named Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid or Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Frida) are a Swedish supergroup formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. The group's ...
cover sung by a group of Star Academy contestants including Ruiz and
Jenifer Bartoli Jenifer Yaël Juliette Dadouche-Bartoli (born 15 November 1982), known by the mononym Jenifer, is a French singer. Since winning the first season of ''Star Academy France'' in 2002, she has had a number of hit singles on the French, Belgian a ...
that reached No 1 in the French charts
* 2002 : ''Paris'', songwriter Chet. * 2003 : ''J'aime pas l'amour'', songwriter Juliette. * 2003 : ''Pas si vieille'', songwriter Philippe Prohom. * 2003 : ''Qui sommes nous ?'', songwriter Chet and Jérôme Rebotier. * 2004 : ''Le tango du qui'', songwriter Stéphane Balmino and Denis Hénault-Parizel. * 2004 : ''Les vieux amoureux'', songwriter Chet and Jérôme Rebotier. * 2005 : ''J'traîne des pieds'', songwriter Olivia Ruiz and Ben Ricour. * 2006 : ''La femme chocolat'', songwriter Mathias Malzieu. * 2007 : ''Non dits'', songwriter Christian Olivier. * 2007 : ''Goutez-moi'', songwriter Mathias Malzieu. * 2007 : ''Thérapie de Groupe'' * 2008 : ''Bunny Maloney'' with Mathias Malzieu for the TV series of the same name. * 2009 : ''Elle panique'' * 2009 : ''Belle a en crever'' * 2010 : ''Les crêpes aux champignons'' * 2010 : ''Elle panique (Live)'' * 2012 : ''My Lomo & Me (Je photographie des gens heureux)'' * 2012 : ''Volver'' * 2016 : ''Mon Corps, Mon Amour''


DVDs

* 2007 : ''Chocolat Show (Live)'' * 2010 : ''Miss Météores (Live)''


Charts


Albums


Singles


References


External links


Official Olivia Ruiz Website
*

of ''Miss Meteores''

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ruiz, Olivia 1980 births Living people French-language singers French people of Spanish descent People from Carcassonne Star Academy (France) participants French women pop singers 21st-century French singers 21st-century French women singers