Vanessa Chantal Paradis (.mw-parser-output .IPA-label-small{font-size:85%}.mw-parser-output .references .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .infobox .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .navbox .IPA-label-small{font-size:100%}French pronunciation: [vanɛsa ʃɑ̃tal paʁadi]; born 22 December 1972) is a French singer, model and actress. Paradis became a star at the age of 14 with the international success of her single "Joe le taxi" (1987). At age 18, she was awarded France's highest honours as both a singer and an actress with the Prix Romy Schneider and the César Award for Most Promising Actress for Jean-Claude Brisseau's Noce Blanche, as well as the Victoires de la Musique[11][12] for Best Female Singer for her album Variations sur le même t'aime.[13] Her most notable films also include Élisa (1995) alongside Gérard Depardieu,[14] Witch Way Love (1997) opposite Jean Reno,[15] Une chance sur deux (1998) co-starring with Jean-Paul Belmondo and Alain Delon,[16] Girl on the Bridge (1999),[17] Heartbreaker (2010)[18] and Café de Flore (2011).[19] Her tribute to Jeanne Moreau at the 1995 Cannes Film Festival during which they sang in duet "Le Tourbillon" became notable in French popular culture.[20][21][22][23] In 2022, she was nominated for the Molière Award for Best Actress for her performance in the play Maman.[24]
She has been a muse to numerous musicians and lyricists who each took one of her albums under their aegis, including Étienne Roda-Gil (1988), Serge Gainsbourg (1990), Lenny Kravitz (1992), Matthieu Chedid (2007), Benjamin Biolay (2013), Samuel Benchetrit and The Bees (2018).[25][26] As a model, Paradis has appeared on more than 300 magazine covers worldwide including Vogue, Elle, Harper's Bazaar, Madame Figaro, Paris Match, Vanity Fair, Glamour, Premiere, and Marie Claire.[27] Since 1991, she has been a spokesmodel for Chanel chosen by Karl Lagerfeld starting with the birdcage commercial "L'Esprit de Chanel" directed by Jean-Paul Goude.[28][29] Paradis was made Officier (Officer) in the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 2011[30] and was named Chevalier (Knight) in the Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur in 2015.[31]