French Mandopop
French Mandopop (Chinese: 法式华语流行音乐) is a subgenere of mandopop that characterized by the fusion of French pop music sensibilities with lyrics in Mandarin Chinese. The earliest mentions of the French Mandopop category appeared in 2007 following the release of artist Dantès Dailiang's album Parfums d'extrêmes.
| French Mandopop | |
|---|---|
| Stylistic origins | Manopop, French Pop, Chanson |
| Cultural origins | Late 2000s, France, China, Taiwan |
Characteristics
[edit]French Mandopop is characterized by the following features: French speaking singers who perform in Mandarin Chinese, with instrumentation and lyrical themes and imagery borrowed from Chanson and other French Pop music genres. French Mandopop is also characterized by a French way (or western way) of performing on stage with little reference to Chinese visual aesthetics.[1][2]
History
[edit]2000s: Origins
[edit]The pioneer of French Mandopop and sinologist, Dantès Dailiang (Chinese: 戴亮), is credited with being the first native French musical artist who sings in Mandarin Chinese[3][4] to be signed by a Chinese record company for his albums Parfums d'extrêmes (Chinese: 我记得你) in 2007 and Dailiang (Chinese: 下有戴亮) in 2009.[5][6][7][8] Another key figure in the development of the French Mandopop genre is Djang San (born Jean-Sébastien Héry in Bordeaux, France).[9] During a trip abroad to Shanghai, he connected with musical acts of the Beijing underground. In contrast to Dailiang, his musical style includes the use of traditional Chinese instruments such as the zhongruan.[10]
2010s: Rise in Popularity
[edit]In 2010, as part of French Pavilion Day at the Shanghai World Expo, France launched the Fête de la Musique, global event dedicated to celebrating the summer solstice and music in 350+ cities, for the first time in China.[11][12] Along with free concerts and street performances, the festival commenced with a performance by a choir of 500 children from the city's local French language school.[13]
On June 14 2017, French singer Joyce Jonathan ( Chinese: 喬伊絲) released Ça Ira = 守護幸福 (精選+新歌) under the label Universal Music Taiwan, an album of her greatest hits sung in Mandarin. In an interview with France 24 to promote the album and her upcoming Asia tour, she explained her childhood spent living in China, decision to take Mandarin as a language class in school, and the growing international music scene in the country as an inspiration.[14] She has gone on multiple tours across Asia, including in the years 2017 and 2024.[15]
2019-Present
[edit]Dantès Dailiang joins musician Chinese-born musician Eva Wren to create the duet act, Eva & Dantes and release a self-titled album in 2019 under the Plaza Mayor Company label.[16] According to his personal website, Dantès noted that after meeting Eva while performing in China, "the two artists wanted to create a duet that was missing in the Franco-Chinese musical world."[17] Following their debut album, they have released the single Young and Happy in Sanya (2021), the EP Shan De Liwu (2022), and single Le Rêve (一个梦) (2022).[18]
Labels
[edit]Artists
[edit]References
[edit]- ↑ http://www.cnlive.com/playvideo/index.action?pagename=showIndex&mediasId=15398[permanent dead link]
- ↑ Xinjiletu Zhao. Démarches interculturelles et construction de la relation altéritaire et subjective. Récit d’une expérience en classe de FLE dans un lycée à Shanghai. Linguistique. Université Grenoble Alpes, 2019. Français.
- ↑ "Interview : Dantès Dai Liang, Le savoyard qui chante en chinois". Mordus 2 Savoie (in French). 2023-02-11. Retrieved 2026-08-19.
- ↑ Richet, Marie-Eve (2013-12-17). "CHRISTOPHE HISQUIN ALIAS DANTES DAI LIANG". Le Petit Journal.com (in French). Archived from the original on 2026-08-22. Retrieved 2026-08-22.
- ↑ Hisquin, Christophe. L’industrie musicale en Chine au début du XXIe siècle. [The Music Industry in China at the beginning of the 21st century]. 2008. Université Jean Moulin Lyon 3. PhD dissertation. GIS Asie,
- ↑ "Il déclare sa flamme à Lyon en musique… et en chinois !". Vivre Lyon (in French). 2019-01-17. Retrieved 2026-08-19.
- ↑ KHENG, Vincent (2020-01-27). "Découvrez Dantès Dai Liang avec son nouveau single « Meili li'ang »". Just Music (in French). Retrieved 2026-08-19.
- ↑ "DANTÈS DAI LIANG : Interview pour la sortie du titre DES CIMES". UP FOR MUSIC (in French). 2021-06-29. Retrieved 2026-08-19.
- ↑ "Zhang Si'an". Chine-Nouvelle.com. Archived from the original on 2026-08-24. Retrieved 2026-08-24.
- ↑ Cassar, Laurent (01-04-2014). "L'alchimiste musical français qui séduit les Chinois". China Today.com. Archived from the original on 2026-08-26.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ↑ "French bring 'Fete de la Musique' in China". www.china.org.cn. 23 June 2010. Archived from the original on 2026-08-19. Retrieved 2026-08-19.
- ↑ "CRI News Report: French Pavilion Presents 'Fete de la Musique' June 21". m.kekenet.com. 2010-06-22. Archived from the original on 2026-08-19. Retrieved 2026-08-19.
- ↑ "A Shanghai, une première Fête de la musique très sage". La Dépêche (in French). 2010-06-20. Archived from the original on 2026-08-19. Retrieved 2026-08-19.
- 1 2 "arts24 - Singer Joyce Jonathan, Mandopop's French touch". France 24. 2017-05-15. Archived from the original on 2026-08-19. Retrieved 2026-08-19.
- 1 2 "Chine: la chanteuse française Joyce Jonathan remporte le célèbre concours de chant «Cheng Feng»". RFI (in French). 2024-06-28. Retrieved 2026-08-19.
- ↑ ""Eva & Dantes" - Album". 24 Presse. 2019-10-29. Archived from the original on 2026-08-22. Retrieved 2026-08-22.
- ↑ "Eva & Dantes". Dantesdl.com. 2020-05-06. Archived from the original on 2026-08-22. Retrieved 2026-08-22.
- ↑ "Eva & Dantes". Spotify. Retrieved 2026-08-22.
- ↑ "Parfums d'Extrêmes 我記得你 (我记得你）". Spotify. Retrieved 2026-08-19.
- ↑ "Joyce Jonathan = 喬伊絲 - Ça Ira = 守護幸福 (精選+新歌)", Discogs.com, 2017-06-14, retrieved 2026-08-26
- ↑ "Variété française : Jil Caplan". french.china.org.cn. Archived from the original on 2025-12-06. Retrieved 2026-08-22.
- ↑ San, Djang (2021-06-05). "Djang San + Band on tour as part of the Fête de la Musique in China, coming to a town near you !". Bejing Underground. Archived from the original on 2026-08-19. Retrieved 2026-08-19.