Amel Bent

French soul diva Amel Bent emerged among the constellation of talents catapulted into instant celebrity by the televised talent contest Nouvelle Star. She entered the world as Amel Bentbachir in Paris on June 21, 1985, spent her childhood in the Joué-lès-Tours commune, and trained as an adolescent in vocal technique at the Maison de Peuple Guy-Moquet, the regional branch of France’s Les Maisons des jeunes et de la culture (MJC) network. While pursuing studies in psychology, she auditioned for the program’s second season during the spring of 2004. Although she departed before the final episode, public enthusiasm propelled her into a major-label contract that yielded her first album, Un Jour d'Eté, by midsummer. The record became a commercial triumph, driven by the chart-topping single “Ma Philosophie” together with the Top Ten releases “La Droit a l'Erreur” and “Ne Retiens Pas Tes Larmes.” In 2007 Bent returned with her sophomore effort, À 20 Ans. Despite falling short of her debut’s commercial peak owing to the absence of another number-one hit, the project still climbed into the French Top Ten and secured gold certification. Her third collection, Où Je Vais, arrived in 2009, again reached the upper echelon of the national chart, and introduced the singles “Le Mal de Toi” alongside its title track. Two years afterward she delivered her fourth album, Délit Mineur.