Born on August 16: Sheila: "I just want to prove to myself that I can still have fun!"

At 80 years old, the singer born in Créteil in 1945 continues her career with astonishing vitality.

Far from the yé-yé surge of her early days, Sheila's longevity defies all trends (to which she has nevertheless sacrificed a great deal) and continues to reconcile generations, with at least 85 million records sold worldwide.

In 1962, the singer, still then called Anne Chancel and with a solid grasp of music theory, joined forces with two brothers whose group took the name Les Guitares Brothers. This fleeting experience, however, allowed her to seduce producer Claude Carrère, who quickly got her parents to sign an exclusive contract since she was still a minor. She then took the stage name Sheila, adapting a song by the American Tommy Roe. During the yé-yé era in France, more or less successful versions of American hits were flourishing, and there was often a fight over who would be the first to hit the scene. In this case, Lucky Blondo overtook her and propelled her "Sheila" into the charts. Her debut was a bit of a miss, despite a respectable 10th place on the charts, but the singer quickly recovered by rapidly accumulating hits, with a second single that spent several weeks at the top. "L'école est finie" remains a staple of her repertoire. "Première surprise parie," "Vous les copains," "L'heure de la sortie," and "Les rois mages," Sheila rarely left the top of the charts for over ten years. While a little childish, her choruses appealed to what was called the "general public."

At some point, however, you have to consider slowly entering adulthood, and Sheila obviously did so... through song. She performed "Laisse les gondoles à Venise" with her husband at the time, Ringo!

Like her rival Sylvie Vartan, who often set up camp in Las Vegas, Sheila also experienced an American epic with B Devotion, a band built from scratch and, above all, with the blessing of Nile Rodgers, Chic's production wizard for the album "Little Darlin'" (1981). With a cover of "Singin' In The Rain" and especially "Spacer," she even managed to pique the interest of Anglo-Saxon countries.

Sheila's artistic journey wasn't over. In the 1990s, she devoted herself to painting, sculpture, writing (with three novels), a commitment to fighting AIDS, hosting a few TV shows, and even a virtual duet with Claude François.

Today, she naturally favors a more mature approach. "A l’avenir" (2025), her 28th album doesn't hesitate to tackle serious subjects, such as the "words that kill" of "Raclée" or even the most intimate beliefs, on an almost techno melody. with "Et Dieu dans tout ça". For this umpteenth artistic renaissance, she surrounded herself with talented authors and composers: Pierre-Yves Lebert, Rachel Khan, Pierre-Dominique Burgaud, Valérie Véga, Amaury Salmon, David Verlant, Daran, Elio Anthony, Davide Esposito and Éric Azhar. A great team! Sheila looks at these twelve new cassons with tenderness but above all the satisfaction of a job well done "I don't want to prove anything to people anymore, I just want to prove to myself that I can still have fun!"

Concerts in Belgium:

December 10: Palais des Beaux-Arts - Charleroi (Belgium)

December 12: Wex - Marche-en-Famenne (Belgium)

December 14: Cirque Royal - Brussels (Belgium)

All dates here: https://www.sheilaofficiel.com/index.php/concerts

Photo: Sheila on the set of the show "Chansons à la Carte" in Brussels (Belgium) in October 1988