Standing in front of my bathroom mirror yesterday morning putting eye makeup on and listening to the radio, this alluring voice came on. I put down my eyebrush and listened attentively. Who was it? A young Parisian woman – une parisienne – named Barbara Pravi. She won the Eurovision song contest last year and will be representing France in the 2021 Eurovision song contest with her song, Voilà.
Born in Paris in 1993, Barbara’s paternal grandfather is Serbian; her mother is Iranian.
Watching her in the video below, one can almost see the ghosts of Aznavour, Brel and Piaf in her studied body gestures. It’s not an easy song. It’s rare and refreshing to see a young new singer bring back the tradition of the cabaret style of the 1950s and 60s. It’s also true that the beauty of the French language is enhanced in song. Here she is in the sound studio of RTL radio station –
(191) Barbara Pravi – Voilà (Live) – Le Grand Studio RTL – YouTube
Somehow I have stopped following the Eurovision song contest in recent years, so I missed out on Barbara Pravi.