IT WAS DURING a sizzling gig in Hanoi in 1993 that Patricia Kaas earned the title of 'the French Madonna'. She'd been invited as something of an ambassador, to give the first concert by a French performer since the Vietnam war. 'I remember there were 10,000 people - but they were all men,' the 37-year-old says. 'At the time they told me that the dresses shouldn't be too sexy, that Vietnam wasn't as used to that as the west. I had a long dress, but I didn't know it would be that warm. After two songs the dress was completely transparent.'
Electrifying her audiences comes naturally to Kaas, who's a household name in France. She's one of the country's highest-grossing singers and has a voice that has been compared to those of Marlene Dietrich and Edith Piaf.
Hong Kong will have an opportunity to hear her perform this month. Kaas has again been named an ambassador and is being launched into the east with a gig at the Queen Elizabeth Stadium as part of Le French May celebrations.
She'll then head off to the mainland for more concerts as part of the Year of France in China festivities. But Kass says it's not such a serious mission. 'I'm coming because I'm curious and I want to share myself with the people,' she says by phone from Paris. 'Of course, it helps that it's the Year of France in China. But in my head, I'm just coming to present myself to this audience, because we don't really know each other.'
Enjoying intimate relationships with her audiences is what makes Kaas so popular at home. With her husky and rich voice, she was performing in cabaret clubs by the age of 12 ('it was my best school, being on stage'). She became a fixture of the Parisian music scene as a teenager, and French actor Gerard Depardieu produced her first single, Jalouse.
When lyricist Didier Barbelivien wrote Mademoiselle Chante Le Blues for her in 1987, she was propelled to the top of the charts in France.
Kaas has since enjoyed success in most places in the world where French is spoken. She has 100 gold and 20 platinum albums to her name, and has been lavished with every French music award imaginable. With her elfish good looks she's also appeared in films, notably in 2003 alongside Jeremy Irons in And Now... Ladies and Gentlemen.
