Amir

Amir, whose full name is Amir Haddad (Hebrew: עמיר חדד), is a French-Israeli singer-songwriter and musician, born on 20 June 1984 in Paris’s 12th arrondissement.

Born as Laurent Amir Khalifa Khedider Haddad, he grew up in a Sephardic Jewish family with roots in Tunisia and Morocco. After living in Sarcelles (Val-d’Oise), his family made Aliyah and moved to Israel when he was 8; from then on, he used “Amir” as his usual first name. He was born with hearing loss and hears only through his left ear; a few years later, he was diagnosed with ADHD. His mother, Carmi Haddad, died on 22 April 2023 at the age of 65.

In Israel, he became known in 2006 by reaching the final of Kokhav Nolad, the Israeli version of Nouvelle Star. That same year he began studying dentistry at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem while continuing his music career. Thanks to his bilingualism, he completed mandatory military service as a sergeant major in intelligence within the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

In 2011, he released his first album, Vayehi, recorded in 2008 and written with musician Omri Dagan while they were still students. The album includes a Hebrew version of “J’te l’dis quand même” by Patrick Bruel, as well as a collaboration with DJ Offer Nissim on a reworking of “Désenchantée” by Mylène Farmer.

In August 2013, after posting online videos at a friend’s suggestion, he was contacted by The Voice, la plus belle voix (TF1) for season 3 auditions. The show ran from January to May 2014, and he reached the final. At the blind auditions, he performed “Candle in the Wind” by Elton John, prompting Florent Pagny, Jenifer, Mika and Garou to turn; he chose Jenifer as coach and finished third behind Kendji Girac and Maximilien Philippe. After the show, he appeared on the compilation Forever gentleman 2, singing “Le Soleil de ma vie” as a duet with Camille Lou.

On 29 February 2016, France 2 announced he would represent France at the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 in Stockholm with J’ai cherché. On 14 May 2016, he placed 6th overall (and 3rd in the national juries’ vote), scoring 257 points—then a record for France, held until 2021. Two weeks before the contest, on 29 April 2016, his album Au cœur de moi, featuring J’ai cherché, was released and later certified triple platinum.

On 6 November 2016, at the MTV Europe Music Awards in Rotterdam, he received the award for Best French Act. On 12 November 2016, at the NRJ Music Awards 2016, he won two awards: Francophone Breakthrough of the Year and Francophone Song of the Year for J’ai cherché.

He joined Les Enfoirés from 2017 to 2019, then again in 2021. On 13 May 2017, he co-commentated the Eurovision 2017 final in Kyiv for France 2 alongside Marianne James and Stéphane Bern. A few days later, No Vacancy, a duet with Onerepublic, was released.

On 25 August 2017, “États d’amour” was released as the lead single from his album Addictions, issued on 27 October 2017. The album was certified triple platinum, supported by “Les rues de ma peine”, “Longtemps” and “5 minutes avec toi”. After taking part in the French dubbing of the animated film Lego Ninjago, le film with the song “Higher”, he became one of the three judges on Destination Eurovision (France 2), tasked with selecting France’s artist and song for Eurovision 2018.

On 19 December 2018, he appeared among the celebrities mobilised by Urgence Homophobie and featured in the music video for “De l’amour”. On 10 November 2019, he announced a pause in his career. In 2020, he served as a judge on Good Singers (TF1), hosted by Jarry, acted in the film Adorables, and released his studio album Ressources on 16 October 2020.

On 13 July 2021, “1+1”, a collaboration with Sia, was released. That same year, on The Voice All Stars, he supported Jenifer in her role as coach.

From 26 April 2022, at Paris’s Théâtre Édouard-VII, he performed the one-man play Sélectionné, portraying Alfred Nakache, known as the swimmer of Auschwitz; initially announced for 18 performances, the run was extended by a month.

In 2024, his track “Sommet” was chosen as France Télévisions’ anthem for the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics. His fourth album, C Amir, was released on 13 September 2024; its title is an anagram of “Carmi”, his mother’s first name, and he described it as the most personal in his discography. It addresses, among other themes, the 7 October 2023 attacks in “Supernova”, grief in “Parle-moi”, and religion in “Mal agir”.

On 5 July 2025, during the NRJ Music Tour at the Festival de Trélazé near Angers, he was replaced following a boycott call from the Urgence Palestine collective. In the same month, a boycott campaign by around ten artists targeted his participation in the Francofolies de Spa, denouncing his support for the Israeli army; on 18 July, during a maintained performance, he responded: “Une seule réponse à la haine : l’art”. His label Parlophone (Warner Music) referred to a “déferlement de haine antisémite”.

In his private life, he married Lital in Israel on 7 July 2014. They have three children: Mikhaël (born February 2019), Or (born July 2022) and Nuri (born February 2025).