The public and a jury of Eurovision professionals selected, on Saturday January 30, the singer Barbara Pravi, with a retro style very marked by the song to text like Edith Piaf, to represent France in the competition, which will take place in May. 

She and her song "Voilà" were preferred to eleven other artists, at the end of the program "Eurovision France, it's you who decides", broadcast on France 2.

>> See also on France 24:

À L'AFFICHE - Barbara Pravi, new poetic muse of text pop

Barbara Pravi came out on top of both the votes of the public, who could vote by phone, and of the ten members of the jury chaired by singer Amir, among whom the couturier Jean-Paul Gaultier or Marie Myriam, the last French winner of the 'Eurovision (in 1977).

His song with the heady chorus ("Here, there, there, here is who I am ...") is by his own admission based on his personal experience.

She interprets it in a broken voice, with gestures that evoke Piaf.

✨ BAM Pride immense ✨


“VOILÀ” is pre-selected to represent France at Eurovision France !!!!!!!!!

✨https: //t.co/EU1EE2XK5K pic.twitter.com/2TUzwZ7Fyo

- Barbara Pravi (@Babpravi) December 10, 2020

"She picks up the arrow left by Edith Piaf or Barbara and sends it even further", commented after her performance the composer and pianist André Manoukian.

A moving performance 

Several others had tears in their eyes after the song.

Professional singer under contract with the Capitol label, Barbara Pravi also writes for other artists: she notably co-signed the song "J'imagine" for the young Valentina, winner of the Eurovision Junior competition in November 2020.

Saturday, at the end of the show presented by Laurence Boccolini and Stéphane Bern, she notably beat Corsica Casanova, the electro duo Pony X, whose DJ is disguised as a pony, or another singer, Juliette Moraine, who had received on Twitter the support of the Secretary of State for Tourism, Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne.

Eurovision had been canceled in 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

It was Tom Leeb who should have represented France if the competition had been able to take place. 

He had been chosen by a committee.

But this year, France Télévisions wanted to return to a method of designation in which the public would have a say.

The final of the 2021 edition is scheduled for May 22, in Rotterdam.

With AFP

The summary of the week

France 24 invites you to come back to the news that marked the week

I subscribe

Take international news everywhere with you!

Download the France 24 application

google-play-badge_FR