Francoise Hardy Dead: French Music and Pop Culture Icon died after battling cancer

The 80-year-old French singer Francoise Hardy, who was renowned for her lilting, melancholic voice, tragically passed away. Thomas Dutronc, a musician, her son, announced her death in an Instagram post. He sent Hardy a picture of himself when he was a baby along with the message “maman est partie,” which translates to “mum is gone.” After receiving a lymphatic cancer diagnosis in 2004, Hardy had to endure years of treatment. She had a brief spell of unconsciousness in 2015 after she started having trouble breathing, swallowing, and speaking.

Life and Career

Her life was so severely affected by the cancer and its treatments in 2021 that she became an advocate for euthanasia and even called France “inhumane” for not legalizing the practice. Hardy, who was born in 1944 in Nazi-occupied Paris, had spoken of having a mother who was quite reclusive and a father who was emotionally distant from him.

In 1962, she released “Tous les garçons et les filles,” her debut hit. It topped the French charts and sold two million copies. “Je Suis D’Accord” and “Le Temps de L’Amour,” her follow-up singles, performed equally well and solidified her place at the top of the European pop music market. Hardy placed fifth in the 1963 Eurovision song contest while representing Monaco. She recorded songs in English, German, and Italian during the 1970s and worked with some of the most well-known performers of the time, such as Serge Gainsbourg, Patrick Modiano, and Catherine Lara.

She went on to feature in a number of movies, including American comedy What’s New Pussycat? (1965), American director Jean-Luc Godard’s Masculin/Feminin (1966), and John Frankenheimer’s Grand Prix (1966). In addition, Hardy was a style icon who graced numerous magazine covers. In addition to modeling for Paco Rabanne, André Courrèges, and Yves Saint Laurent, she was also shot by Richard Avedon for Vogue.