The French national final will take place in March. Preliminary to the final, there will be a special Showcase as we reported earlier this week. Medi-T and Valerie Louri have already been announced to participate, and now three more names are completing the list. There are five more names to be revealed soon, so stay tuned!
The biggest name amongst the first 6 is probablyLes Wampas. Back in 2003 they had a big hit in France called 'Manu Chao'. One year later they were awarded one of the most prestigious music prizes in the country the 'Victoire de la musique' Award. In 2006 they hit the French music charts as well with the song 'Chirac en prison', a political protest against the French president Jacques Chirac.
The group is chiefly famous for frontman Didier Wampas (real name Didier Chapedelaine), whose trademark is deliberately off-key, and often high-pitched singing. Gigs are often high-energy and characterised by crowd-surfing by the band members, and a great deal of audience interaction.
The other participants are less known; Fatals Picards, Kenny Margant, Médi-T and Valérie Louri. Fatals Picards might ring a bell to some of our French readers. They are known for there humorous lyrics and the band is about to releasea new album, 'Pamplemousse mécanique'.
By clicking on the names of the artists you will be directed to their official sites and blogs (where available). The article will be updated soon with biographical information on them.
France willbe competing straight tothe final of the Eurovision Song Contest in Helsinki this year, as they are one of 'the big four'. However, France has suffered some poor results in the last few years. Last year's participant Virginie Pouchain finished 22nd with only 5 points.
