Françoise Hardy died at the age of 80

Françoise Hardy has died. The French singer and actress was diagnosed with lymphoma in 2004 and died today in Paris of throat cancer. She was 80 years old.

Her son Jacques Dutronc announced the news on Instagram. In recent years, as her condition worsened, she expressed her desire to seek euthanasia.

Hardy was born in Paris, Nazi-occupied France, during World War II. She had a lonely and harrowing childhood and started playing guitar at 16. She soon began performing in clubs and auditioning for record labels. At 18, she signed with Disques Vogue and they released her first EPs, which were then compiled into her eponymous debut album, better known as All boys and girls. The iconic LP includes her hits “Tous les garçons et les filles”, “Le temps de l’amour” and “J’suis daccord”. A pioneer of the Yé-Yé movement, she released over 30 studio albums and collaborated with songwriters such as Serge Gainsbourg, Patrick Modiano, Michel Berger and Catherine Lara. She made her acting debut in 1963 and later also became an astrologer.