On 15th March Ortal won the French national final, singing Chacun pense à soi. Ortal, still only 26, brings R&B to a mainstream audience, and her populist touch leads her to become known as the muse of R&P (rhythm and pop).
Esctoday.com talked to the French representative for the 2005 Eurovision Song Contest.

Interview by Dominique Dufaut

Can you tell us a bit more about your singing vocation ? When did it all begin?

I started singing at the age of 16, in a lot of small groups, while working in differents places, mainly restaurants. Then, I did castings in Spain and that's how I was chosen to be part of the Gypsy Sound group. Together, we toured across the world, backing Alabina, during two years. One year and a half ago, Saad and I signed a recording contract with Warner France.

What kind of experience do you have on stage? Is there any funny or uncommon one?

In fact, I think I am much more experienced on stage than in studio! I belonged to several cover bands, I sang in piano-bars. At the age of 18, I also performed in an Afro-Cuban group.

About my unexpected experience, I would say… having performed together with Bruce Willis. We met a lot of big stars when we stayed in the USA. We used to play in Las Vegas and that's the kind of places where everything can happen!