Christine and the Queens

Nantes to Lyon

Born in Nantes on 1 June 1988, the artist studied drama at the Lyon Regional Conservatory and at ENS Lyon. After a trip to London, where drag performers at the Soho club Madame Jojo's inspired the idea, Christine and the Queens gave a first performance at a small Lyon club in 2010. The Queens of the name are a tribute to those performers, and the artist's word for the genre was freakpop. Pitchfork quoted the artist in 2018: "I invented Christine as a survival technique."

Two EPs followed, Miséricorde in 2011 and Mac Abbey in 2012, along with opening slots for Lykke Li, the Dø and Woodkid, prizes at the Printemps de Bourges and Les Francofolies festivals, and a deal with Because Music. The single and EP Nuit 17 à 52 appeared in June 2013.

Chaleur humaine

Chaleur humaine came out in France on 2 June 2014. It was written and co-produced with Ash Workman and reached number 2 on the French chart, selling 650,000 copies in France by April 2018 and earning a diamond certification there. Its singles included Saint Claude and Christine, the French version of Cripple, a song first recorded in English in 2012.

For the United States, Workman reworked many tracks with English lyrics. The single Tilted arrived on 3 March 2015 and a full American edition followed in October with new songs, among them Jonathan with Perfume Genius. The English version reached Britain in February 2016 and peaked at number 2 in July, after appearances at Coachella and Glastonbury. The Guardian reported that it was the UK's biggest-selling debut album of the year. On 10 December 2015 Madonna invited Christine and the Queens to dance on stage during a concert at the Bercy Arena in Paris. In September 2016 Elton John sang Tilted on stage at the Camden Roundhouse.

Chris

For the second album, early sessions with Mark Ronson and Damon Albarn gave way to work alone, with Cole M.G.N. as co-producer on several tracks. The record was credited to Chris. Girlfriend, made with Dâm-Funk, arrived on 17 May 2018, with a French version, Damn, dis-moi. Chris followed on 21 September 2018 in English and French editions and reached number 2 in France and number 3 in the UK. The Fader found the lyrics sharper and more frank than on its predecessor.

Alexis Petridis of the Guardian wrote that Girlfriend may well be the best pop single of the year, and the paper put the album at the top of its list of 2018's best. Clash and the Independent also ranked it number one for the year, and Time named Girlfriend song of the year. 5 Dollars was the third single.

Redcar and after

The mother of Christine and the Queens died in April 2019, in the week between two scheduled Coachella performances, and the second was cancelled. In July Charli XCX and Christine and the Queens released the duet Gone. The EP La vita nuova, made with Workman, appeared on 27 February 2020, led by People, I've Been Sad, which Time named song of the year.

The name Redcar came next, on Redcar les adorables étoiles (prologue) in November 2022, made with the producer Mike Dean in Los Angeles and recorded in two weeks. Paranoia, Angels, True Love followed on 9 June 2023 under the Christine and the Queens name, with guests including Madonna and 070 Shake. Hopecore was released in September 2024 as Rahim Redcar, after a July leak and a performance at the Paralympics opening ceremony in August. Catching Feelings, an EP with Cerrone, came out in July 2025 as Christine and the Queens. In January 2025, at ESSEC Business School, the changes of name were called "steps towards becoming", not "a legion of characters".

Vanity Fair ranked Christine and the Queens first on a 2016 list of influential French people, and the Victoires de la Musique have awarded four prizes.