Flore Benguigui gives the real reasons for her departure from the pop group L’Impératrice

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For almost a decade, on stages around the world, Flore Benguigui gave the change. Surrounded by the five other members of L’Impératrice, a group from Paris, with a string of successes and tours, it was difficult to imagine the psychological suffering in which the singer found herself.

“I was always told that I was a bad singer”

In September 2024, Flore Benguigui announced his departure of The Empress. In an Instagram post, she explained that she wanted to “protect” her “physical and mental health which has been very seriously undermined in recent years. »

Two months later, Saturday November 23, 2024, the artist gave an interview to Mediapart in which she confides having been “belittled, humiliated” but also having been under influence and having felt “a very strong feeling of isolation”, reports Liberation who had access to the video.

Quickly, the singer’s dream turns out to be less idyllic than expected. “I was always told that I was a bad singerthat I sang out of tune, not loud enough,” she recalls. Demands for her to “sing louder” are becoming more and more vehement.

Despite his efforts, his voice still does not carry enough. The decision was then made to double it during the group’s performances. A test for her. ” I had the feeling of cheatingto lie to the public,” she admits, deploring that the opposite logic has never been considered. “At no time did the group say that the group had to adapt to the voice. It was always the voice that came last. »

“I didn’t deserve success”

Imposter syndrome then sets in. “I told myself that I did not deserve the success of the Empress and that I deserved to be put down.» Little by little convinced that she does not deserve her place, Flore Benguigui tries to compensate by working more than the others. In charge of styling and managing social networks, she “washed and ironed everyone’s stage outfits”.

His main work tool finally gave out. In 2021, she loses her voice. “For a year and a half I tried to sing as much as possible, I was almost in playback. It’s a huge humiliation for a singer,” she recalls.

His mental health takes a hit. “In the evening I cried systematically, everyone saw it,” continues Flore Benguigui. I was depressed, on anxiolytics.» The other members of the group are not of much help. She describes an “alternation of love bombing, I was given a lot of gifts for example” and moments of humiliation where she could be “yelled at in front of the other members of the group. »

She also states that his speech was controlledon stage and off. “I have already been asked to delete things on my social media. »

Her voice returned, she participated in the recording of L’Impératrice’s latest album, Pulsar, and made the decision to leave before the summer tour began. “I don’t know how I could have survived. I had to run away. »

The group’s response

Contacted by Médiapartthe other members of the group claimed to discover “the seriousness of the facts and feelings shared by Flore […] but, the situations described by Flore do not correspond not to the reality of the facts. » According to them, “there was never any control over her speaking engagements” and her qualities as a “singer, composer, performer” were “never” called into question.

A right of reply concluded in these terms: “If the investment and attention we have given it have not been enough, we can only regret. In any case, we wish him all the best for the future. »

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