About
Few French artists have had a career as varied as Florent Pagny. Born in Chalon sur Saône, he started out as an actor, appearing in films before pivoting to music in the late 1980s. His debut album ran into trouble with the press, and for a while things looked rocky, but everything shifted when Jean Jacques Goldman stepped in and wrote material for him under the alias Sam Brewski. That collaboration helped Pagny find his footing as a performer, and the 1995 semi compilation Bienvenue chez moi became a genuine smash. From there, he built one of the most commercially successful catalogues in French pop history. Three of his singles, "N'importe quoi", "Savoir aimer" and "Ma Liberté de penser", all hit number one in France, and by 2018 he had shifted more than 10 million albums. His range is hard to pin down: he has recorded chanson, pop rock, techno influenced covers, a full album of opera songs, and a tribute record dedicated entirely to Jacques Brel. Since 2012 he has also been a fixture on the French version of The Voice as a coach, racking up more winner seasons than any other coach on the show.
