French jazz chanteuse Marianne James was born Marianne Gandolfi in Montélimar on February 18, 1962. A childhood friend of the future jazz pianist Michel Petrucciani, she also studied guitar under his father, the noted jazz musician Tony Petrucciani. Borrowing her stage surname from her godfather, James later studied at La Sorbonne and Le Conservatoire National de Paris before releasing her debut LP, Les Mandarines, in 1999. After rising to national renown co-starring in the musical theater spectacle L'Ultima Recital, James also earned notice as a judge on the television amateur showcase La Nouvelle Star, setting the stage for her self-titled sophomore LP, a left-field commercial success upon its mid-2006 release. ~ Jason Ankeny