Only recently, Zaho de Sagazan (born 1999 as Zaho Le Moniès de Sagazan) was regarded as a rapidly “emerging” artist born in the town of Saint-Nazaire on the French Atlantic coast. In the course of one year, her meteoric rise set her as an established artist at the age of 24 with only a single album under her belt. Her early interest in dance and music showed the influence of an artistic family including her father Olivier de Sagazan, a painter/sculptor/performer and her cousin Lorraine de Sagazan, an actress and director. Her mother is a teacher. As a child, her enhanced emotional disposition earned her the nickname “Petite Tempête” (Little Storm), a personal reality that seems formative. British singer Tom Odell, French singer Barbara and Belgian singer Stromae were inspirations as was Kraftwerk’s “cold wave” synthetic sound and Jacque Brel’s tortured performance minimalism.
Choosing a modern-day alternative to Renaud’s street-corner for auditions, Zaho took instead to posting music videos of herself on Instagram in 2015 and made her first performances in a local theater in Saint-Nazaire. She then moved on to music festivals like the “Vendages musicales” in Beaujolais and “Trans musicales” in Rennes. Readers of this website can only chuckle at memories of George Brassen’s “chemin saint de la chanson” (Chanson Pilgrimage Road) in the 1950s, when he rode his bicycle across Paris at 3 a.m. with his guitar on his back returning from performance venues in Montmartre to his home in Montparnasse.
In 2023, Zaho released her debut album “La Symphonie des éclairs” (The Symphony of Lightning), followed by promotional media and stage appearances. In February 2024, she was nominated in five categories at the Ministry of Culture’s Victoires de la musique ceremony (i.e. Grammys) and won an exceptional (first in history) four prizes including original song and album of the year. In a stroke of genius, at the opening of the 2024 Cannes Film Festival in May, Zaho danced across the stage singing a cover of David Bowie’s “Modern Love” in tribute to Greta Gerwig, the festival’s jury president. Gerwig had featured that same song in her 2012 film “Frances Ha.” That performance can be viewed here. In August 2024, Zaho performed “Sous le ciel de Paris” (a cover of Edith Piaf’s classic song). at the Summer Olympics closing ceremony at Paris' “Jardin de Tuileries.” To cap an eventful year and signal the re-release and update of her album, her US tour in December 2024 led to sold-out venues in New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles.
Williamsburg Music Hall, Brooklyn, New York
Zaho’s instruments of choice are piano and voice, dressed-up by electronics. Her voice has great range with expressive timbre and pinpoint control. Her performance garb is eclectic, ranging from tight-fitting cyclist shorts to flouncy smocks. She patrols a minimalist stage with occasional bursts of physical movement that reveal glimpses of free-form dancing. The playlist can build from placid piano ballads to mosh-pit rave. It’s a full serving of “chanson,” but with condiments of contemporary issues (cannabis, climate, addiction), movement, synth-electronica, rawness and freedom.
Zaho de Sagazan Songs
La Symphonie des éclairs (The Symphony of Lightning), 2023
Je rêve (I Dream), 2023