Concert, Lyon
Julien Doré
Julien Doré was born (1982) in the town of Alès, the capital of the Cévennes region in France’s south-central Occitania. Alès is the site every summer of Les Fous Chantants music festival that pays tribute to a prominent French “chansonnier.” He is sometimes uncertainly identified as a “great-great-grandnephew” of 19th century French visual artist Gustave Doré. His upbringing in rural France imbued him with a lasting appreciation for nature and the environment. He spent his later childhood in Lunel, a town between Montpellier and Nîmes where he studied at the Lycée Louis Feuillade, an institution associated with the film industry.
He became well-grounded in the arts, studying 5 years in Nîmes at the “Ecole des Beaux Arts.” During that time, he founded and played in the music groups “Dig Up Elvis” and “The Jean d’Ormesson Disco Suicide” group that covered pop and disco songs. The latter was named after a famous French writer and Dean of the Académie Francaise whom Julien admired. In 2007, Doré unexpectedly captured the “win” in the fifth season of the reality talent TV show “Nouvelle Star” competition with his unconventional interpretation of pop songs.
He became well-grounded in the arts, studying 5 years in Nîmes at the “Ecole des Beaux Arts.” During that time, he founded and played in the music groups “Dig Up Elvis” and “The Jean d’Ormesson Disco Suicide” group that covered pop and disco songs. The latter was named after a famous French writer and Dean of the Académie Francaise whom Julien admired. In 2007, Doré unexpectedly captured the “win” in the fifth season of the reality talent TV show “Nouvelle Star” competition with his unconventional interpretation of pop songs.
His debut single in 2007 was a successful “cover” of Alizée’s 2000 hit Moi, Lolita, which he had sung in the competition. It rose to #2 in France and #1 in Belgium. He followed in 2008 with an EP “Les Limites,” which was also successful. His first album Ersatz brought recognition in 2009 from Victoires de la Musique (VdM, or French Grammies) as “Album Révélation,” followed by a second album in 2011 named “Bichon” (a small, curly-haired lap dog) and a third in 2013 named “LØVE.” In 2016, his 4th album named “&” hit the top of the charts. It was followed in 2020 by “Aimée,” named after his grand-mother, and in 2024 a “cover” album (“Imposteur”).
Like clockwork, studio albums and single releases fostered concert tours, TV/radio appearances, professional awards and recognitions. He became a guest judge on “The Voice Kids” and a multiple awardee at the “Victoires de la Musique” including 2015 “Male Artist of the Year.”
Doré’s esthetic profile inclines to minimalism enlivened by occasional “outré” excursions into the baroque. Minimalism characterizes his lyrics and music, the titles of his albums (generally one word), and his canny use of symbols and signs. The “baroque” extends mainly to the content of his videos. Adjectives commonly used to describe his video work range from “quirky,” to “wacky,” “offbeat” and “surrealistic.” These are all pretty accurate, both individually and together. His playful music videos pursue a distinctive visual narrative that is often out of kilter with the lyrics. Besides the songs presented on this website (which focus on the music), his inventive touch is evident in videos replete with novelties like pre-historic dinosaurs, spaceships-on-the-beach (“Nous”), a globe-headed person (“La Fievre”), and panda bears (“Coco Câline”).
During concert tours, Doré cultivates audiences with engaging live performances, inventive design and high-energy showmanship. He sports an appealing smile, blue eyes and long curly hair atop a frequently scant-clothed torso adorned with body art featuring a prominent left-shoulder Celtic cross. His gravelly voice and open personality project authenticity. His eclectic style and repertoire and his offbeat video productions have garnered an appreciative and diverse base of fans.
A product of arts education, Julien is adept with visual symbols, spare prose and album names, all with a minimalism that primes the imagination. Without falling too deep into the weeds of semiotics, several examples demonstrate his affinity for curated visual expressions. In early days, his ukelele served a lighthearted role to differentiate him from the pack of other solo performers. His long, tousled hair became a signature feature, along with body art and a wolf-emblazened jacket.
In the realm of signs and symbols, Doré’s 4th studio album in October 2016 fit the bill with an unusual title of “&.” This symbol is called an “esperluette” in French and “ampersand” in English. It is a “sign” that represents the word “et” (“and” in English) and arose historically from Roman times as a practical measure (ligature) to combine “e” and “t.”
How “Et” became “&:”
How “Et” became “&:”
The ampersand sign “&” carries symbolic meanings broader than the simple conjunction “and” with its implied additive function. At a minimum, “&” implies a unifying thread and suggests an organic fusion of disparate parts with effects that are more synergistic than additive thanks to ongoing processes of partnership, collaboration and serendipity. Consequently, the ampersand has become a prominent branding symbol that many companies employ to express higher levels of aspiration or accomplishment (e.g. Ben & Jerry's, Dolce & Gabbana, M&M, H&R Block). It is from the album “&” that our song selections "Le lac" and "Sublime & silence" (below) are drawn.
Furthermore, the ampersand’s upright figure with ending lines that flair in different directions breaks the continuity of the reclining “lazy eight” infinity symbol (∞) that projects endless continuation. This “broken infinity” image and concept signifies that “nothing lasts forever” and that, despite “ups and downs,” there are always new things to come (“hope springs eternal”). Coincidentally, Doré’s album “&” took shape during 2015 in the despondent aftermath of terrorist attacks in Paris when he withdrew to his childhood retreat to make music in the mountains of the Alpes-maritimes department.
Doré’s third album was named 'LØVE.' The title surprises with its insertion of a “slashed O” ((Ø) into a well-warn word like “LOVE.” It invites pause since the “slashed O” sign (Ø) can have various meanings. A frequent use is as an “empty/null set” denoting the absence of something. For example, a common traffic sign means “no entry.” When inserted in the word “love,” therefore, it can suggest a confounding connotation, especially when paired with an image of a lion. What does that mean?
Among other things, Ø is a Scandinavian vowel and “LØVE” is the Danish and Norwegian word for “lion.” The German equivalent word is Löwe, which is spelled differently but pronounced alike. It can also mean a well-known celebrity. A Danish friend reportedly informed Julien that his hair resembled a lion’s mane--hence the name of the album and its graphic on the cover sleeve.
By 2025, Doré had gathered enough momentum to envisage his first cross-Atlantic foray to assay the North American market. He had concluded a succession of sold-out concert tours that traveled throughout France, Canada, Germany and Japan. In December 2025, Metropolitan Entertainment announced the “Juju en Amerique” tour to cities in the United States and Canada for April/May 2026. The West African word “Juju” evokes magical powers of objects or practices.
Unexpectedly, at the end of March 2026 Arachnée Productions announced that the US segment of the tour was cancelled due to “difficulty obtaining work visas” for the team. US performance venues were summarily cancelled and purchased tickets returned, leaving only Montréal and Québec on the tour.
This cancellation occurred in the context of ongoing US political turmoil in cultural sectors of education, art, and music. Many universities were obliged to close their doors to international students. The Kennedy Center went on holiday for 2 years after changing its name. Multiple museums reviewed shows and exhibitions under pressure from prevailing winds of Washington politics. Le Parisien starkly announced: “Julien Doré banned from touring in United States.” Doré’s own reaction on Instagram was blunt: “Dég,” a slang abbreviation for "dégoûté" (“disappointed,” “bummed”).
Fans of French music in North America hardly expected global supply chain glitches from tariffs and political concerns to impact beloved cultural activities. There was no immediate indication whether the situation arose from a defective application process, administrative chaos resulting from DOGE downsizing, a policy of restricting access to American cultural venues, or a specific political decision. One conclusion was immediately clear: the bonds of shared culture are not immune to administrative and political malfunction.