Catherine Ringer has died at the age of 68. Multiple reports confirm the legendary pop singer died on Sep. 14 after battling cancer.
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Catherine Ringer Was a Woman With Many Talents
Ringer was born in Suresnes, France, on Oct. 18, 1957. Her mother was an architect, and her father was an artist.
Ringer's creative career began in the late 1970s, starring in several theater and dance productions and appearing in several adult films. But she turned to music in 1979 after meeting Fred Chichin. The duo founded the new wave group Les Rita Mitsouko.
The group went on to release a dozen critically acclaimed albums. In the 1980s, they worked with producer Tony Visconti, who helped define David Bowie's sound, on a pair of hit albums.
One of those collaborations, the song "Singing in the Shower," was a duet with the American band Sparks. It became a huge hit in France and received considerable airplay on dance radio stations in the United States. Later, in 1993, they collaborated with punk icon Iggy Pop for the track "My Love is Bad."
After Chichin died of cancer in 2007, Ringer went on to release three solo albums.
French President Emmanuel Macron Paid Tribute to Ringer
News of Ringer's death drew many tributes. Among them, Emmanuel de Buretel, the founder of the record label Because Music, called her one of the greatest French singers of the past 50 years.
"This extraordinary artist was an example to others," he said. "Always completely devoted to her art, she was a lyricist, composer, performer and producer. But above all, she remained deeply devoted to her family. Catherine possessed a rare combination of improvisation and hard work, self-questioning and risk-taking. She moved forward with complete freedom, never seeking to be opportunistic or to follow trends. Her modesty, independence and exacting standards made her a unique and profoundly sincere artist.
"The general public often knows Catherine through a handful of popular songs that brought several generations together," he added. "But her artistic legacy is far broader. She leaves behind a poetic, musical and free-spirited body of work that deserves to place her among the great artists of French chanson."
French President Emmanuel Macron described Ringer as "unclassifiable, irreverent, profoundly French."
