“I freaked out, what saved me was…”

At 70, François Valéry – real name Jean-Louis Mougeot – has no plans to retire. While he is about to release a new album, he has increased his confidences during promotion. The singer and father of two boys, Jérémy (born in 1986) and Michael (born in 1990), looked back on a day that gave him a few cold sweats… He spoke for Paris Match his arrest in the United States while he was on a professional trip with renowned photographer Jean-Claude Higgins.

Why was François Valéry arrested?

While he is at the peak of his artistic career, the singer of hits She dances Marie or Let’s love each other alive traveled to Chicago in 1974 for a photo essay commissioned by a magazine. So, in the company of photographer Jean-Claude Higgins, they did a photo shoot of this stay in the United States which lasted four days. So far, no problem… But, on the last day of his stay, while he goes to a store to do a little shopping and bring back souvenirs for his loved ones, his checkout will cause him a big shock. fear.

For what ? Because, when paying with a 100 dollar bill, the saleswoman asks François Valéry to wait a moment and disappears. Then, the singer saw it coming “four guys, American police officers (…) It’s Midnight Express suddenly, I freaked out”, he said in the video interview of Match. It must be said that the police asked him to follow him immediately. They went to his hotel,”they searched the bags, they turned over the mattresses (…) The situation was annoying” but he knew deep down that he had done nothing.

In fact, the police believed it was counterfeit bill trafficking because he had paid with a counterfeit $100 bill – he had between $400 and $500 on him – but without knowing it! Finally, François Valéry was able to prove his innocence thanks to his mother. “What saved the story was the receipt that my mother put in the envelope” because she had withdrawn and exchanged American money at the bank, at her request, before her trip. “But the joke still lasted two and a half hours“, he added. On his return to France, the artist went “yell at the bankers” and we understand it!

What will become of François Valéry in 2024?

If some of his fans may have missed his absence, they can now rejoice. François Valéry is back. With a new album first, The Directory, and which will pave the way for a unique concert on November 8 in Le Cannet. “I wanted to stop after this album, but I’m not going to stop because I think I still have things to write (…). When I see the public’s reaction, I think I’m not going to say goodbye just yet“, he said on Europe 1.

The one who mentioned on the show At Jordan, in March 2023, earn a good living with monthly income between 5,000 and 15,000 euros, thanks to its “retirement of editor, composer, co-author”seems not to have said its last word!