Singer Information
Anggun Cipta Sasmi (born 29
April 1974, in Jakarta, Indonesia) is an Indonesian-born French
singer/songwriter. She has released 12 studio albums (5 in Indonesian
and English, 4 in French) and one soundtrack album (Open Hearts), and
her songs have also been included on various compilation albums. Her
musical career began in childhood, and she achieved commercial success
in Indonesia when she was 12 years old. At the age of 20, she moved to
Europe, and she is now living in Paris, France.
Her best-known album is Snow on the Sahara, which has been released in
33 countries across the world, including the US; this album also spawned
her biggest worldwide hit to date, "Snow on the Sahara."
Luminescence and Best-Of Album
Anggun's work with Columbia
ended in 2003. She later moved to Montreal, Canada where she met Olivier
Maury. In 2004, Anggun and Maury were married in a private ceremony in
Bali (this marriage ended in 2006). Maury (a law school graduate
himself) later became Anggun's manager. The two began searching for a
new label. In 2004, upon returning to Paris, Anggun landed a new record
deal with Heben Music, an France-based label under Sony BMG France. She
began working on a new album with several producers, including
Jean-Pierre Taieb and Frederic Jaffre, as well as her "Open Hearts"
producer, Niels Brinck. Anggun, who composes mainly in English, enlisted
help from several well-known French songwriters, such as Jean Fauque,
Lionel Florence, Tété and Evelyn Kral, to adapt her English songs into
French. Renowned French rapper, Diam's, was also featured on the album.
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| Luminescence is the third international studio album. |
In February 2005, Anggun
released her third French album, Luminescence, which debuted at number
30 on the French Albums Chart, making it her highest debuting position.
The second single, "Cesse la pluie", also became a hit, peaking at
number 22 in France and number 65 in Switzerland.
In August 2005, Anggun toured
Europe and Asia, and also released the English version of Luminescence.
Both versions (French and English) shared the same title, unlike her
previous albums. "Undress Me" was chosen as the first single from the
English version. Despite it was not accompanied by a music video, it
managed to reach number 13 in Italy and also provided Anggun with her
first hit in the Middle East, where the song topped the charts in
Lebanon and United Arab Emirates, as well as in Turkey. "In Your Mind"
was released as the second single from the album, and became a huge hit
in Indonesia but was less successful in Europe. The third single,
"Saviour", became a substantial hit in Italy, Greece, and Russia. The
song was also used on the soundtrack for the American Box Office movie,
The Transporter 2.
In 2004, Anggun was awarded
with the prestigious distinction Chevalier des Arts et Lettres by the
French Cultural Minister for her worldwide achievements and for her
support of the French culture. Anggun was also appointed as the
spokesperson for the International Year of Microcredit (a UN program
aimed at eradicating debt in the third world) in 2005, as well as
the ambassadress for a Swiss watch brand, Audemars Piguet.
Previously, she had
participated in 2 charity performances, including le Concert pour la
Paix in 2003 and Genesis in 2004 (featuring a duet with Peter Gabriel).
She also did a duet with Julio Iglesias on his Romantic Classics album,
on an Indonesian-English song called "All of You". The following year,
Anggun participated on a Fight AIDS campaign in France with a
collaborative track entitled "L'or de nos vies" with several other
French music stars.
On 25 May 2006, Anggun held her
biggest concert in Indonesia to date, entitled "Konser Untuk Negeri".
In August 2006, she released the special edition of Luminescence, both
for the French and the English versions. The first single (the third in
French and the fourth in English) from the new version was "Juste avant
toi" and its English version "I'll Be Alright". The video featured some
footage taken from Anggun's commercially and critically acclaimed
concert in Jakarta. It was shot in Jakarta and Bali (her second video to
be shot in Indonesia since "Snow on the Sahara"). "Juste avant toi"
became Anggun's fourth Top 40 hit, peaking at number 28 in France. It
became a summer hit in France and peaked at number 4 on the French
International Airplays Chart (a chart compiling the most-played French
songs outside France). Meanwhile, "I'll Be Alright" became Anggun's
seventh number one hit in Indonesia.
She also made an appearance on
Star Academy (an "American Idol"-esque show in France) to promote the
release of the album. The next day, Anggun made her highest jump ever on
the French Albums Chart, from number 119 to number 16 (a total 103
levels) with Luminescence Special Edition.
Best-Of Album
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| Best-of Album Cover |
In December 2006, Anggun
released her Best-Of album in Indonesia. This album compiled all of her
biggest international hits (including three re-worked versions of her
old Indonesian hits). A new version of "Mimpi" was released as a radio
single and became a huge hit in Indonesia from late 2006 to early 2007.
It again peaked at number one on the Indonesian Airplays Chart, Anggun's
eighth single to top the chart since her international career, and her
longest one (along with "In Your Mind"), remaining there for one full
month. The album was certified Double Platinum in Indonesia after one
month. In the same month, Anggun received a special award, "Best
International Artist", at Anugerah Musik Indonesia (a Grammy Award
equivalent in Indonesia) for her international fame, and for her success
in raising up the Asian and Indonesian music industries worldwide.
Within the same period, the final single from Luminescence,
entitled "Garde-moi"/"A Crime" (the original French version was a duet
with David Hallyday, who also composed the song), was released. It was
Anggun's least successful single of the album, although it reached
number 5 in Indonesia.
Anggun then released a best-of album in Italy (with a different
track-listing than the Indonesian version) with "I'll Be Alright" as its
lead single. She also released a single entitled "Tonight" (a
collaboration with a German band, Reamonn) and a charity single with
several female French stars, titled "Pour que tu sois libre".
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