In 2001, she started her singing career in the blues band "Fifty Fingers". She sang in musical groups in Angoulême, especially in a jazz quintet. She became one of the four singers of Izar-Adatz (Shooting Star), a variety band which consisted of sixteen people with whom she toured for two years, especially in the Midi-Pyrenees and the Basque Country. She worked in the studio as a chorister in Toulouse and performed with many singers including Maeso, Art Mengo, Vladimir Max, Jean-Pierre Mader and Serge Guerao.
In May 2010, French magazine Telerama announced: "Rumor has swelled in recent weeks: Zaz is a sacred voice, and she will be the revelation of the summer!". On 10 May 2010, Zaz released her first album. It contains songs written by herself ("Trop sensitible") and co-composed ("Les Passants", "Le Long de la route", "Prends garde à ta langue", "J'aime à nouveau", "Ni Oui Ni Non"). Kerredine Soltani produced the album under Play On label, and wrote and composed the hit single "Je veux". The pop singer Raphaël Haroche wrote her songs "Éblouie par la nuit", "Port Coton" and "La Fée". In 2010, she signed a contract for her tours with Caramba and publisher Sony ATV. She was invited to many TV shows (such as Taratata or Chabada) and was featured in several programs on the radio.
Zaz then toured France (Paris, La Rochelle, Montauban, Saint-Ouen, Chateauroux, Landerneau, Fécamp...), performed at the Francofolies of Montreal (Canada), Monthey (Switzerland), Brussels, Berlin, and Milan... In autumn Zaz topped the charts in Belgium, Switzerland, and Austria. Matthieu Baligand, her manager and producer at Caramba Entertainment, explained to Liberation: "We talk a lot of her right now and people are waiting her at the turn... Despite the demand, it seems preferable to do her first tour in fifty small places which will render her credible. Zaz is a popular, intuitive artist, who is familiar with music, who can sing, but doing a quality show is something else (...)." In November 2010, the debut album Zaz became double platinum, and she was awarded "Revelation Song" by the Academy Charles Cros. Zaz also won the European Border Breaker Awards: she was named the French artist most played abroad in 2010. According to a survey published by L'Internaute, Zaz was the most favorite singer of the French in the 2010 ranking.
Discography:
2010: Zaz
2011: Sans Tsu-Tsou
2013: Recto Verso
2014: Paris
2016: Sur La Route
2018: Effet Miroir
2021: Isa
2022: Isa (Nouvelle édition)
Les passants
Zaz Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Je passe mon temps à les regarder penser
Leurs pas pressés, dans leurs corps lésés
Leurs passés se dévoilent dans les pas sans se soucier
Que, suspicieuse, à l'affût, je perçois le jeu de pan
Leur visage comme des masques me fait l'effet répugnant
Que faire semblant
C'est dans l'air du temps
Passe, passe, passera, la dernière restera
Passe, passe, passera, la dernière restera
L'enfant n'est fait que de fêtes
Le fait est que l'effet se reflète
À sa capacité de prendre le fait tel qu'il est
Sans se référer
À un système de pensée dans sa tête
L'automne déjà, c'était l'été hier encore
Le temps me surprend, semble s'accélérer
Les chiffres de mon age
M'amènent vers ce moi rêvé
Passe, passe, passera, la dernière restera
Passe, passe, passera, la dernière restera
Chaque mois se joue dans des cycles différents
C'est marrant ces remous
Qui m'animent à travers le temps d'un état à un autre
J'oscille inexorablement
Par les temps, je cours à l'équilibre
Chaque jugement sur les gens me donne la direction à suivre
Sur ces choses en moi, à changer
Qui m'empêchent d'être libre
Les voix se libèrent et s'exposent
Dans les vitrines du monde en mouvement
Les corps qui dansent en osmose
Glissent, tremblent, se confondent
Et s'attirent irrésistiblement
Par les temps je cours à l'expression
Chaque émotion ressentie me donne envie d'exprimer les non-dits
Et que justice soit faite dans nos pauvres vies endormies
Passe, passe, passera, la dernière restera
Passe, passe, passera, la dernière restera
Passe, passe, passera, la dernière restera
Passe, passe, passera, la dernière restera
Passe, passe, passera, la dernière restera
Passe, passe, passera, la dernière restera
In Zaz's song Les passants, she reflects on the passing people she observes on the street. She spends her time watching them think and move around with their burdened bodies and their revealing steps. As she watches them, she perceives their masks and the game of seduction they play. The game of pretending is in fashion, and Zaz likens herself as the suspicious one on the lookout for the deception.
Zaz reflects on the fleeting nature of life and the passage of time from one season to another. She remarks on how quickly time seems to move and how she is surprised by it. She speaks of the cycles of life and how she oscillates from one state to another, and with every judgment she makes on others, she finds direction to change things in herself that prevent her from being free. She emphasizes the importance of expressing oneself fully and exploring all the emotions that come along, even if they are left unspoken, and letting justice be done in our monotonous lives that get under the spell of routine.
Zaz's voice is soothing, and the lyrics are simple yet powerful. It brings to mind a sense of introspection and reminds us of the importance of really observing the people and the world around us. It urges us to express ourselves fully and embrace life with all of its ups and downs.
Line by Line Meaning
Les passants passant
I spend my time watching passers-by
Je passe mon temps à les regarder penser
I observe their thoughts and actions
Leurs pas pressés, dans leurs corps lésés
Their hurried steps despite physical injuries
Leurs passés se dévoilent dans les pas sans se soucier
Their past revealed in their careless steps
Que, suspicieuse, à l'affût, je perçois le jeu de pan
I suspiciously watch for any hidden motives
Leur visage comme des masques me fait l'effet répugnant
Their masked faces disgust me
Que faire semblant
Pretending to be someone they're not
C'est dans l'air du temps
It's the trend of the time
L'enfant n'est fait que de fêtes
Children are only made up of celebrations and happiness
Le fait est que l'effet se reflète
The happy effect reflects in their behavior
À sa capacité de prendre le fait tel qu'il est
A child's ability to accept things as they are
Sans se référer
Without referring to any set beliefs or ideology
À un système de pensée dans sa tête
To any thought system in their mind
L'automne déjà, c'était l'été hier encore
Time seems to pass quickly
Le temps me surprend, semble s'accélérer
Time surprises me by seeming to speed up
Les chiffres de mon age
My age in numbers
M'amènent vers ce moi rêvé
Lead me towards my dream self
Chaque mois se joue dans des cycles différents
Each month plays out differently
C'est marrant ces remous
It's funny how things change
Qui m'animent à travers le temps d'un état à un autre
Which move me from one state to another over time
J'oscille inexorablement
I oscillate uncontrollably
Par les temps, je cours à l'équilibre
I strive for balance during these times
Chaque jugement sur les gens me donne la direction à suivre
Every judgment about others leads me down a certain path
Sur ces choses en moi, à changer
On the things within me that need to be changed
Qui m'empêchent d'être libre
Which prevent me from being free
Les voix se libèrent et s'exposent
Voices are liberated and exposed
Dans les vitrines du monde en mouvement
In the display windows of a moving world
Les corps qui dansent en osmose
Bodies dancing in harmony
Glissent, tremblent, se confondent
Slipping, trembling, and confusing themselves
Et s'attirent irrésistiblement
And irresistibly attract each other
Par les temps je cours à l'expression
During these times, I strive for self-expression
Chaque émotion ressentie me donne envie d'exprimer les non-dits
Every emotion I feel inspires me to speak the unsaid
Et que justice soit faite dans nos pauvres vies endormies
And justice is done in our poor, sleeping lives
Passe, passe, passera, la dernière restera
Pass, pass, pass, the last one will remain
Passe, passe, passera, la dernière restera
Pass, pass, pass, the last one will remain
Passe, passe, passera, la dernière restera
Pass, pass, pass, the last one will remain
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, SONY ATV MUSIC PUBLISHING FRANCE
Written by: Isabelle Geffroy, Tristan Solanilla
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind