Christine and The Queens were today unveiled as the ninth winner of the 2016 European Border Breakers Awards (EBBA), the European music awards for emerging artists.
The alter ego of 27-year-old French singer songwriter Héloïse Letissier, Christine and The Queens blends electronica with the classic chanson style. The result is a theatrical, sensual combination that has captivated fans across Europe and beyond.
Letissier has been making music since 2011 but her big breakthrough outside France came with her single ‘Christine’. Her debut album ‘Chaleur Humaine’ (titled ‘Christine and the Queens’ for its international release) was acclaimed by critics and fans alike. Her live shows have also attracted rave reviews for their dynamic mix of music, theatre, dance and video.
Born near Nantes in 1988, Letissier father was a professor of English literature and her played the piano from an early age and started classical dance training at the age of five, although a foot injury meant she switched to modern jazz for a while. “”For me, real life is art on the stage; I want to disappear into it,” Letissier has said.
Christine and The Queens have just completed successful tours across Europe and North America.
Earlier this month Carnival Youth (Latvia), AURORA (Norway), Oscar and The Wolf (Belgium), KOVACS (Netherlands), Álvaro Soler (Spain), SOAK (Ireland), Seinabo Sey (Sweden) and Years & Years (UK) were unveiled as 2016 EBBA winners. One final winner will be announced and filmed in the coming week. Footage of all the winners will form part of a unique ‘road-trip’ mini-movie, which will be shared via the EBBA social media account and website.
The EBBA are about breaking down borders and recognising emerging European rock, pop and dance artists who achieved success in countries other than their own. These unique European music awards are funded under the European Union (EU) Creative Europe programme. With the EBBA, the European Union wishes to highlight the success of 10 debuting European artists in selling albums and touring outside their home territory.
From Adele (2009) to Milky Chance (2015), the winners of the EBBA represent the full breadth of European talent and diversity. Other previous winners include Stromae, Emeli Sandé, Gabriel Rios, Hozier, Melanie De Biasio, Of Monsters and Men, Woodkid, Mumford & Sons, Caro Emerald, Lykke Li, Disclosure, Katie Melua, John Newman, The Ting Tings, C2C, Tokio Hotel, The Script, Zaz, Nico & Vinz, Saybia, Damien Rice, KT Tunstall, Alphabeat, Milow and Afrojack.
Europe’s cultural and linguistic diversity is a strong part of its cultural appeal, but linguistic barriers sometimes make it harder for artists to work internationally and achieve cross-border sales success. The EBBA seek to help them overcome these obstacles.
To be eligible for the 2016 awards, the artists must have achieved border-breaking success with their first international release in Europe between 1 August 2014 and 31 July 2015.
Background
The winners are selected on the basis of data from Nielsen Music Control research, the European Broadcasting Union, EBU radio stations, and from festivals participating in the European Talent Exchange Programme.
The winners will receive their awards in a ceremony hosted by TV personality and musician Jools Holland at the Eurosonic Noorderslag festival in Groningen, Netherlands, on January 13, 2016. The ceremony will feature performances of the winning acts.
One of the winners will receive a Public Choice Award based on votes cast on the EBBA website from December 1, 2015 until January 1, 2016. Up to 15 voters, chosen at random from different countries, will be invited to the award ceremony: each will be able to bring a friend and the prize includes their flight and hotel costs.
The EBBA, now in their 13th year, is organised by Eurosonic Noorderslag in partnership with the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), with support from Buma Cultuur, the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, Province of Groningen, the City of Groningen and Music Week.
Contact:
Nikki McNeill | Global Publicity
nikki@46.32.240.39