Sébastien Tellier

Sébastien Tellier (French: [tɛlje]; born 22 February 1975)[1] is a French musician, singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He represented France in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 with his song Divine. He has also produced songs for Dita Von Teese and he has composed music for the French films Narco and Steak among others. He is currently signed to Record Makers, a French independent record label. He sings in many languages as English, French and Italian.

Sébastien Tellier
Sébastien Tellier at 2012 Dour Festival
Background information
Born	(1975-02-22) 22 February 1975 Le Plessis-Bouchard, France
Genres	French pop, new wave, synthpop, electronica
Instruments	Vocals, guitar, piano, bass guitar, synthesizer, keyboards, percussion
Years active	2001–present
Labels	Record Makers
Associated acts	Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo Dita Von Teese Mr. Oizo Mr Flash Jean-Michel Jarre Salvatore Ganacci Christophe Caroline Polachek
Website	www.sebastientellier.com

Biography

Tellier's first album, L'incroyable Vérité (The Incredible Truth), was released in 2001. Tellier went on tour with Air in support of the album and was joined on stage by theremin player Pamelia Kurstin. L'incroyable Vérité is a pop album featuring styles from lo-fi electronica to bizarre cabaret tunes. Its sleeve featured Tellier in full evening dress on the front, while the back of jacket had a shot of him cavorting in a playboy's pool. He instructed listeners only to listen to the album by candlelight.

Tellier followed L'incroyable Vérité with his second studio album Politics (2005). A particularly popular song from Politics was "La Ritournelle", a string-led tune, which featured Nigerian drummer, Tony Allen who worked with Fela Kuti. "La Ritournelle" was remixed by various artists, notably in Britain by Metronomy.

Since the release of Politics, Tellier has also recorded an acoustic album of his more popular songs, Sessions (2006). The album was repackaged for the British market as Universe (2006), to include both highlights from the French CD, as well as compositions from Tellier's score for the film Narco. This compilation included a cover of La Dolce Vita, a song originally by French singer Christophe.

Sébastien Tellier performing "Divine" at the final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 in Belgrade, Serbia, 24 May 2008

His third studio album Sexuality was produced by Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo of Daft Punk. Like his previous album Politics, Tellier used a single term as title and theme of the album. Tellier's label Record Makers collaborated with retailer American Apparel for an exclusive three-month pre-release of the album, whilst American Apparel sold limited edition versions of the Sexuality CD, LP and "Divine" 7" and 12" single through their North American stores and website.

On 7 March 2008, it was announced by Bruno Berberes, head of EBU delegation in France, that Tellier would represent France in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008. It was held in Belgrade on 24 May 2008. Tellier sang "Divine". This was the first time in the history of the contest that the nominated French entry was to be performed largely in English,[2] which caused controversy,[3] leading to Tellier pledging to increase the amount of French in the song prior to the competition itself. In total, the entry received 47 points.

His fourth album My God Is Blue was released in 23 April 2012. As the name suggests, the concept of this album is religion.[4] Tellier is presented in this album as a guru, founder of a fictional sect called "Alliance Bleue".[4] The album is entirely produced by Mr Flash and Pavle Kovacevic.

His fifth album Confection was released in October 2013. This was partially inspired by the death of Tellier's grandmother. Some of the music on the album was intended to appear on a film soundtrack, but ended up not being used. In an interview with artistxite, Tellier noted: "You can say my grandmother's death as well as this nonexisting soundtrack had an impact on “Confection“. To me this has been a super strange situation. I was full of love for my grandmother and full of dedication to this soundtrack; "Confection" is the result of both of these emotional conditions."[5] In Spring 2014, Tellier performed a medley of tracks from Confection at the Chanel Haute Couture show at the Grand Palais. Tellier recounts that Karl Lagerfeld invited him to perform, having listened to the album himself.[6]

His sixth album L'Aventura, was released on 14 July 2014. The album was inspired by the childhood and Brazil, where the video to its lead single, "L'Adulte", is set.[7]. This album, consisting of 10 tracks, is sung entirely in French.[8]

In 2018, Tellier composed all the songs from the eponymous album by Dita Von Teese.

In 2020, Tellier returns with a new single "A Ballet", released on January 29[9], to promote his seventh album Domesticated, consisting of 8 tracks, which released on 29 May 2020. On April 8, "Domestic Tasks", the second single released and "Stuck in a Summer Love" the third single on May 19.[10] The concept on this album is domestic life. This concept was born following his marriage and the birth of his two children.[11] The album is produced by Corentin "nit" Kerdraon, Mind Gamers (John Kirby and Daniel Stricker), Jam City, Varnish La Piscine and Philippe Zdar (who died in 2019).[11] Apart from this album, on February 14 2020, he appeared as a featured artist on "Boycycle" by Salvatore Ganacci.

Soundtrack work

Tellier has composed and performed original scores for three French films: Narco (2004), Saint-Amour and Marie et les naufragés (2016). The soundtracks were released by Record Makers in 2007 and 2016, respectively. He also composed a few songs with Mr. Oizo, for the soundtrack of the film Steak, released in 2007. The soundtrack were released by Ed Banger and Because Music the same year.

Use of Tellier's songs

• The track "Fantino" from L'incroyable Vérité was chosen by Sofia Coppola for the soundtrack to her 2003 film Lost in Translation. Coppola also used the song "Look" from his Sexuality album in her 2010 film Somewhere
• The songs "Look" and "La Ritournelle" were featured in Ugly Betty's episodes "Crush'd" and "Dressed for success", respectively.
• "La Ritournelle" also featured in Joachim Trier's Oslo, August 31st movie soundtrack.
• The song "Universe" from the album L'incroyable Vérité is featured in the film Daft Punk's Electroma.
• "Divine" (as remixed by Danger) was used in the 2009 racing game Gran Turismo for the PSP.
• "La Ritournelle" is sampled in The Weeknd's single, "Kiss Land"
• "La Ritournelle" is the first of many final soundtracks used in the movie "One Way" - 2006.
• "Slow Lynch" was used by Top Gear in Seasons 13 Episode 3 (Ken Block’s Airfield Rally Run).

Personal life

Tellier is married to Amandine de la Richardière with whom he has two children.[12]

Discography

Studio albums

Title	Details	Chart positions			Certifications
		FRA [13]	BEL [14]	SWE [15]
L'incroyable Vérité	Released: 12 June 2001 Label: Record Makers Formats: CD, LP, digital download	–	–	–
Politics	Released: 31 January 2004 Label: Record Makers Formats: CD, LP, digital download	123	–	–
Sexuality	Released: 25 February 2008 Label: Record Makers Formats: CD, LP, digital download	33	68	43
My God Is Blue	Released: 23 April 2012 Label: Record Makers Formats: CD, LP, digital download	17	31	–
Confection[16]	Released: 14 October 2013 Label: Record Makers Formats: CD, LP, digital download	52	69	–
L'Aventura[17]	Released: 17 July 2014 Label: Record Makers Formats: CD, LP, digital download	53	54	–
Domesticated	Released: 29 May 2020 Label: Record Makers Formats: CD, LP, digital download	117 [18]	93	85

Soundtracks

Title	Details
Narco (Original Motion Picture Score)	Released: 2004 Label: Record Makers Formats: CD, LP, digital download
Steak (Music from the Motion Picture) (with Mr. Oizo and SebastiAn)	Released: 18 June 2007 Label: Ed Banger Records, Because Music Formats: CD, digital download
Marie et les naufragés (Original Motion Picture Score)	Released: 8 April 2016 Label: Record Makers Formats: CD, LP, digital download
A Girl is a Gun (Music from the Original Series)	Released: 13 October 2017 Label: Record Makers Formats: Digital download

Compilations

Title	Details
Sessions	Released: 20 January 2006 Label: Record Makers Peaked in FRANCE: #192
Universe	Released: 2006 Label: Record Makers
Sexuality Remix	Released: 9 April 2010 Label: Record Makers
Love Songs	Released: 29 April 2011 Label: Record Makers

Other contributions

Title	Details	Notes
Dita Von Teese (by Dita Von Teese)	Released: 16 February 2018 Label: Record Makers Formats: CD, LP, digital download	Written and composed by Tellier

Singles

Title	Year	Peak chart positions						Album
		FRA [13]	BEL [14]	DEN [19]	GER [20]	SWE [15]	UK [21]
"La Ritournelle"	2005	167	–	–	–	–	66	Politics
"Broadway"	2006	–	–	–	–	–	–
"Divine"	2008	–	15	39	–	4	106	Sexuality
"Roche"[22]	2009	–	–	–	–	–	–
"Kilometer"[23]		–	64	–	–	–	–
"Fingers of Steel"[24]		89	–	–	–	–	–
"L'amour et la violence"[25]		–	–	–	97	–	–
"Cochon ville"[26]	2012	69	78	–	–	–	–	My God Is Blue
"In The Crew of Tea Time"[27] (with Caroline Polachek)	2013	–	–	–	–	–	–	Non-album single
"L'amour naissant"[28]		154	–	–	–	–	–	Confection
"Aller vers le soleil"[29]	2014	–	–	–	–	–	–	L'Aventura
"Ricky l'adolescent"[30]		–	–	–	–	–	–
"A Ballet"[31]	2020	–	–	–	–	–	–	Domesticated
"Domestic Tasks"[32]		–	–	–	–	–	–
"Stuck in a Summer Love"[33]		–	–	–	–	–	–

Guest appearances

Title	Year	Other Artist(s)	Album
"A Mountain for President" (featuring Sébastien Tellier)	2007	Principles of Geometry	Lazare
"Gisele"	2016	Jean-Michel Jarre	Electronica 2: The Heart of Noise
"When You Die"	2018	MGMT	Little Dark Age
"Señorita"[34]	2019	Christophe	Christophe Etc.
"Boycycle"[35] (featuring Sébastien Tellier)	2020	Salvatore Ganacci	Boycycle EP
"Feels Like Summer - Souvenirs d'été"[36] (Deezer Original)		None	Non-album single

References

1. "Sébastien Tellier". France inter (in French). Retrieved 15 June 2014.
2. Viniker, Barry (2008-03-07). "France: Sébastien Tellier to Eurovision". ESCToday.com. Retrieved 2008-04-16.
3. "Eurovision song sparks French row". BBC News Online. 2008-04-16. Retrieved 2008-04-16.
4. "Chronique : Sébastien Tellier — My God Is Blue - TSUGI". Tsugi. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
5. "Interview with Sébastien Tellier: I cannot make music while feeling empty" (Interview). artistxite. 2013-11-10. Retrieved 2013-11-10.
6. DelliCarpini, Gregory Jr. "Sebastien Tellier Talks Karl Lagerfeld Chanel Performance: Exclusive Interview". Billboard. Retrieved 6 May 2014.
7. "Sebastien Tellier – L'Adulte: new music". The Guardian. Retrieved 6 May 2014.
8. ""L'Aventura" : nos balades au Brésil avec Sébastien Tellier". Les Inrocks. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
9. "Sébastien Tellier signe son grand retour avec le clip perché de "A Ballet"". Konbini France. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
10. "Sébastien Tellier sort le sensuel "Stuck in a Summer Love"". Les Inrocks. Retrieved 19 May 2020.
11. "Sébastien Tellier revient avec "un album électro, parce que ça marche bien avec le ménage"". France Inter. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
12. "Sébastien Tellier : Papa pour la deuxième fois, d'un bébé au prénom surprenant ! - Purepeople". Purepeople. Retrieved 20 April 2020.
13. "Sébastien Tellier discography". lescharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 26 October 2013.
14. "Sébastien Tellier discography". ultratop.be/nl/. Hung Medien. Retrieved 26 October 2013.
15. "Sébastien Tellier discography". swedishcharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 26 October 2013.
16. "Confection by Sébastien Tellier on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
17. "L'Aventura by Sébastien Tellier on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
18. "Top Albums (Week 23, 2020)" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved 8 June 2020.
19. "Sébastien Tellier discography". danishcharts.dk. Hung Medien. Retrieved 26 October 2013.
20. "Sébastien Tellier | Single-Chartverfolgung". PHONONET GmbH. Retrieved 6 May 2014.
21. "UK Charts > Sebastien Tellier". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 May 2014.
22. "Roche - Single by Sébastien Tellier on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
23. "Kilometer (Remixes) by Sébastien Tellier on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
24. "Fingers of Steel - Single by Sébastien Tellier on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
25. "L'amour et la violence - Single by Sébastien Tellier on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
26. "Cochon Ville (Remixes) Pt. 1 - Single by Sébastien Tellier on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
27. "In The Crew of Tea Time - Single by Sébastien Tellier & Caroline Polachek on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
28. "L'amour naissant - Single by Sébastien Tellier on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
29. "Aller vers le soleil - Single by Sébastien Tellier on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
30. "Ricky l'adolescent - Single by Sébastien Tellier on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
31. "A Ballet - Single by Sébastien Tellier on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
32. "Domestic Tasks - Single by Sébastien Tellier on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
33. "Stuck in a Summer Love - Single by Sébastien Tellier on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved 19 May 2020.
34. "Christophe Etc. by Christophe on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved 2020-03-09.
35. "Boycycle EP by Salvatore Ganacci on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved 2020-02-15.
36. "Sébastien Tellier : Feels Like Summer - Souvenirs d'été - Musique en streaming - À écouter sur Deezer". Deezer. Retrieved July 3, 2020.

External links

• Official website
• Anthem interview with Sebastian Tellier, on Anthemmagazine.com
• Sébastien Tellier on IMDb
• Photos of Tellier Performing in Philadelphia, April 2009, on Phrequency.com
• Sebastian Tellier, on Soundcloud

Preceded by Les Fatals Picards with L'amour à la française	France in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008	Succeeded by Patricia Kaas with Et s'il fallait le faire