“Nothing is over”, she warned, cautiously, in March 2023 upon the release of her first album, “La symphonie des éclairs”. A year and a half later, Zaho de Sagazan plays everywhere in venues, Zénith or Arena, armored up to the hangers. The girl from Saint-Nazaire is 24 years old, a platinum record (100,000 copies sold) and a single of the same title which has more than 40 million streams. Ah, we forgot: four Victoires de la musique won in February 2024. Don’t throw any more away.
The secret of the tornado is, as is often the case, mysterious. Between solid quality of songs where the text is as careful as the electro textures, cultural reflection of this child of a teacher and visual artist. Where the measured production and musical diversity allow the public who loves traditional French songs but also those of contemporary music (rap, electro, etc.) to find their way there. “La symphonie des éclairs” has strong titles (“Tristesse”, “Mon corps”, “Les dormantes”), and is also irregular, sometimes bordering on the soothing but has an undeniable personality.
Values
That of the young artist is also no stranger to her breathtaking success: Zaho de Sagazan displays a disarming simplicity and naturalness, steeped in demands and commitments stemming from her humanist heritage, and from her career before music too. Her regular evocation of invisible and crucial professions (she spent a year as a care assistant in a nursing home) advances the cause more than three national campaigns by the Ministry of Health. His opposition to the extreme right and its Hanounesque derivatives, his heart at the crossroads of genres, end up anchoring him in a youth quietly standing against the obscure.
Opening of the Cannes Film Festival, closing of the Olympic Games but also and above all a record tour: a reassuring success in view of the values defended. Will the big bad wolf of overexposure get the better of an artist who, as her concerts prove, is still in the making? Fingers crossed.
Thursday November 28 (8:30 p.m.) in Floirac, Arkéa Arena. From 39 to 49 euros.
