News - France : Les Vedettes are back ! | Eurovision Song Contest News - 2009 Moscow, Russia 

Among the ten acts on stage in the 2007 French national selection was a band of crazy Belgian majorettes (cheerleaders, the dictionary writes !), produced by French singer Philippe Katerine. Their first CD has just been released and it includes the song that could have travelled to Helsinki : Vive Papa.

Working title of that song was Papa est mort (Daddy is dead). But it has been changed to the more positive Vive Papa (Long live Daddy). The new title doesn’t change the meaning of the song which is supposed to talk about Chilean dictator Pinochet and how people can feel happy when someone dies: "Just remember how it was when he was alive", it says. 

In their original line-up, the 8 ladies are: Agathe, Jill, Muriel, Monia, Ingrid, Géraldine, Célia and Nadia. Directed by French composer and singer Philippe Katerine, the band was part of the man’s show and he was starring in the video shot for the 2007 French selection. The very first Vedettes’ CD has 14 tracks, with titles that already sound funny and a bit shocking : Your life is rotten, Gang Bang or Move your fart! The song chosen to be promoted first is entitled Joey Starr, the name of one of the most controversial French rappers. The group gave  a concert in Paris on Friday 8 November and one more is scheduled for 16 December at the Centre Wallonie-Bruxelles.

 More on the band here and here.

You can watch Vive papa here and Joey Starr here.