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Interview from Tetu ( a gay men's magazine)

From VanessaParadis.info

It was translated so there are some grammatical errors.

Vanessa Paradis

"I don't have any regrets!"

It took seven years of reflecting on Vanessa Paradis, but now she's back with a new album "Divinidylle". This occasion (meeting for the interview) brought us to discuss her 20 year career, her collaborations with the amazing M, and her Pirate partner.

Happy Birthday, Vanessa! This year you're celebrating the 20th anniversary of your career.. the occasion of balancing the books?

Balance? No... I've got no regrets! (laughs) I tell myself that above all, it's scary. Surprise me with 20 year old memories. It's amazing, and really impresses me at the same time. I'm starting to realize that I am an adult, but I still have to go back to the things I'm accustom to, I think!

(Sorry.. I really didn't understand the 'bilan" part... or Vanessa's answer Blush )

What feeling do you get when you look back at the last 20 years?

I had an amazing opportunity. I think, above all, of the unbelieveable professional, cinematic and musical adventures. I'm very attached to the people I've met through my musical career, especially Étienne Roda-Gil and Franck Langolff, because they were the ones who gave my career lift-off, and neither of them is with us anymore. (Editors Note: Roda-Gil, who wrote the lyrics to Joe le Taxi passed away in 2004. Langolff, who wrote music, died in 2006.) And of course, there's Serge Gainsbourg! It's difficult to pick just one memory. With cinema, it's easier: even though I've made more films than albums, I would say Patrice Laconte without hesitation. La Fille Sur le Pont was an amazing role.

What do you think of the 14 year old Vanessa?

My poor little girl.. you were so disguised!( laughs). Now that I'm an adult, I can cringe from a mothers point of view. At 14 years old, I only had one desire: to be someone older. Now, looking back, I see a kid.. a teen who was too little, too fragile. Even more, I looked like I was 10 years old! I have a strong memory of a period that was just as incredible as it was painful.

The singer Guesh Patti has mamy memories of you from that era...

Yes, and I definately acknowledge her. She sang "Éteinne, Étienne" and I sang "Joe le Taxi". We did all fo our promo together. She can testify that it was a hellish time for me. Luckily, Guesh was never far away. She was my big sister, always there to offer a shoulder to lean on. This period was really brutal. I couldn't understand all the hatred. A physical hatred.. people pulling my hair, spitting on my in the streets, insulting me. I wasn't anything more than a little girl, who sang a little song. Joe le Taxi turned my life around (?) and I understand how that may have irritated people, but I didn't think it would make them want to hit me!

You didn't want to give up your career, and just become a little girl like the rest?

Yes, I did.. quite often. But the success cancelled out the insults. People would slap me, of course, but 10 minutes later I was headed off to Venice, Florence, or New York where I would met Grace Jones. With backlash, I can say that it did me good. The hard times gave me strength and character. It's possible that without those difficult moments, I would have became someone obnoxious.. convinced of my own greatness. But people never stop making me humble...

So, you don't have one single regret?

When I turned down projects, it was always so that I could accept and focus on the projects I was already attached to. There were always good reasons behind my choices. I'm extremely spoiled that I can say I'm never too eager (greedy).

And it doesn't make you feel uncomfortable that your man occupies the fantasy of many gay men?

I can't say anything more than it doesn't surprise me! I understand how gay men can't keep their eyes off of him! (laughs). He's so beautiful, so special, so amazing... I can understand that he pleases the ladies just as much as the men!

What do you think of, when you see him walking around in those girly pants, in Pirates ?

I have nothing but admiration. I'm very impressed with the man himself, but also with the actor inside of him. You all know that he doesn't take on tailor-made roles.. the majority of what you see on the screen is his creation. Everyone thinks that Pirates is such a great film, now that it's made millions of dollars.. but the first few weeks of filming were really difficult for Johnny. Everyone gawked as if he was some kind of raging lunatic. He told me that he was sure he would be fired. With all the partners and producers from Disney, it wasn't easy. But all he needed was courage. If I may say this, and if you'd like to see a role of creation from my partner, I would suggest the Julian Schnabel film "Before Night Falls" [editors note: Before Night Falls was released in 2001, but is available on DVD]. Here, Johnny plays a transvestite, and he does an astounding job. And, for me, I get to see what our daughter will look like in 30 years. (laughs)

Five albums in 20 years.. You don't seem to be too greedy (eager?)..

Yes, but also 2 live albums 8 films and 2 children. (laughs) But seriously, I feel that I worked a lot in the first decade of my career, and took my time in the second. In the beginning, I had the luxury to be able to refuse projects. It's a great thing to be fortunate enough to really think about how you're going to do things..

This is the case for Divinidylle...

Originally, I wanted to make an album all by myself. I composed 4 songs: Les Revenants, Jackadi, Le Mélodie, and Le Bataille. Then I realized that I needed some help, so I asked my friend Matieu Chedid for his opinion. He arranged a first song, La Melodie, then Franck Monnet stepped in to write the lyrics. From there, everything went smoothly because up to that point I was all alone playing a few chords on my guitar. After that song, I asked Mathieu to produce the whole album. It's such an amazing experience to work with a friend like him because he's so talented and creative. Because I live in the US, it took a while to do the album. I came to France for a week or, ten days here and there, we worked, then after that we might not see each other for 2 months... so the process dragged along slowly. The absence created a surge of excite everytime we found ourselves together again to work on the album, and it helped us concentrate on the same direction.

The new album is less intimate than Bliss, more pop, rock and even raggae!

We tried everything during the work sessions. It was really a lot of work. I remember one night where we were all at bassist Jérôme Goldet's house. We were trying to find an arrangement for Les Revenants. We were headed towards something really rhythmic, then at one in the morning, Jérôme's neighbour came over asking us to make less noise. We started playing more softly, and that's now the slow tempo for the song. It's identity was born from the grace of Jérôme's neighbour, in fact.

Besides M, there are many amazing participants on this album. There's Alain Chamfort for Junior Suite and Brigitte Fontaine for Irrésistiblement...

I'm very proud to talk about Alain Chamfort. I've always been a huge fan of his. He's a man of great talent, and he's quite the songwriter. As for Brigitte, I don't know her. It was a virtual meeting via M. Men are always caught up by her image on the tv, but she's quite the poet. She made me a song that was very cinematic. I hope to met her someday.

If Divinidylle is very different than Bliss, your voice as well, notably on the songs Chet Baker and Dès que j'te vois, where is the warm, enveloping voice coming from?

With M, nothing is out of bounds. We worked together a lot on the songs, so of course, we also worked together on the tones. When I would sing in a deep voice, everyone was pleased with the result. And I must agree with everyone else because I prefere my deep voice over my higher voice.

Something the gay public will probably love. Are you aware that you have a large gay fanbase?

Frankly, I find it a bit narrow-minded to speak of the gay public. If gay people love me, great, it makes me happy.. but I'm scared that I'll make a racist remark against the gay public. Now, I know perfectly well what you want to say, because I have a friend who is a gay fan of Sylvie Vartan. I think that gay people like that I'm feminine. This experience with him for Chanel was fabulous. [Editors note: The famous 1991 ads for Coco perfume] The style was very Hollywood, and Jean-Paul is a genius.

Your gay friends.. are they sensitive about the marriage and adoption issues by homosexuals?

Weirdly enough, it's the other way around! In Los Angeles, my kids go to a very nice school which represents a vast community of different social backgrounds...from billionaires to the disadvantaged. There are many children who have gay parents. I speak with them quite often, because I'm interested in how their adoptions passed. I was mis-informed for friends in France! You know, I'm absolutely for adoption and marriage for gays and lesbians. The most important thing is to love each other and to be good parents. The rest doesn't matter!

Posted
:drool: perfectvan001yt6.jpg

I don't know the photographer of the first Shoot I will see... but this one, the second shooting it's Ellen Von Unwerth!!!

kiss Cinderella and thanks for the interview!! and kis Minus I'm glad you like it!!

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