Few voices are as instantly recognisable as Catherine Ringer's. It could laugh, rasp, scream, and soar, carrying love, desire, or madness in equal measure. That voice, which refused to be categorised, fell silent on 14 September when Ringer died of cancer at the age of 68. The news has sent a wave of grief through French music and politics, with tributes pouring in from across the continent.
French President Emmanuel Macron led the political response, calling her “unclassifiable, irreverent, profoundly French.” In a post on X, he shared a clip from 2024 in which Ringer sang La Marseillaise during the ceremony marking the enshrinement of abortion rights in the French Constitution. The Élysée issued an official statement tracing the career of this “all-round artist,” born in 1957 in Suresnes, who grew up in an artistic household and first took the stage at the Café de la Gare and the Palace in Paris.
Her life was not without hardship. The presidency’s statement alluded to “darker, more painful experiences” from which she managed to break free. In 1979, she met Fred Chichin, and together they formed Les Rita Mitsouko, a duo whose art was “free and impossible to categorise.” Their breakthrough came in 1984 with the explosive success of Marcia Baïla, a song that injected a punk streak of madness into mainstream French pop.
After Chichin’s death in 2007, Ringer carried on with what the Élysée called “deeply moving dignity,” alternating solo projects with performances that revived the duo’s cult tracks. Described variously as “a diva, a popular singer and an avant-gardist,” she leaves behind “a singular, flamboyant artistic legacy” that has left a lasting mark on French musical life.
A voice for the marginalised
Beyond her music, Ringer was a tireless activist, though never tied to a party. She was a feminist through her actions long before the word became a slogan, standing up to sexists on TV shows and challenging orthodoxies of all kinds. Her political resonance was felt across the spectrum: former Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin paid tribute on X, as did Manon Aubry, a member of the European Parliament for La France Insoumise.
The music world has been united in mourning. Singer-songwriter Benjamin Biolay posted a powerful tribute on Instagram, recalling the formative shock of the album The No Comprendo and honouring “an extraordinary voice” and the poetry of the duo she formed with Chichin. Étienne Daho shared a photo with Ringer, accompanied only by her first name. The American band Sparks, who collaborated with Les Rita Mitsouko, called her “one of a kind,” a “true force of nature,” and a friend whose path they were lucky to cross.
Actors and performers, including Josiane Balasko, Nikos Aliagas, Michèle Laroque, Julie Gayet, Flavie Flament, and Alain Chabat, have also shared their memories. One particularly moving tribute on X, from a young fan, showed that Ringer’s influence reaches across generations.
Her death is a reminder of the fragility of artistic brilliance, but also of its endurance. As the tributes continue, one thing is clear: Catherine Ringer’s voice, and the music she made with Fred Chichin, will remain a soundtrack for many lives. For this writer, a concert in Lyon in October 2000, where they played live, is forever etched in memory.
