Grégory Lemarchal

French singer Grégory Lemarchal captured the first male victory on the hit television competition Star Academy, even though he had received a cystic fibrosis diagnosis during childhood. His debut studio album Je Deviens Moi appeared in 2005, followed the next year by the concert recording Olympia '06. He earned multiple honors, among them NRJ Music Awards Breakthrough Artist of the Year, while Je Deviens Moi achieved platinum status in France. Lemarchal died on April 30, 2007, only weeks before turning 24. Several months later the posthumous collection La Voix d’un Ange surfaced, featuring previously unavailable tracks such as the single “De Temps en Temps” along with cover performances originally presented on Star Academy. Proceeds from the million-plus copies sold throughout Europe went to the Association Grégory Lemarchal, the foundation established in his name to support cystic fibrosis patients. In November 2009 the compilation Rêves arrived, gathering every single, two new unreleased songs, and reinterpretations of works by artists including Céline Dion and Daniel Balavoine.