Born Francesco Barracatto in Italy, Frédéric François relocated with his family to Belgium while still a toddler. He began his career, which spanned four decades, very early in life, singing songs at local establishments at the age of 12. His first single saw the light of day in 1971, the first of many released over the next two decades. While collections of his work were available during that time, his first "official" album release came in 1993. A string of full-lengths followed, with 2007 seeing his album Merci la Vie achieve European chart success, which, over the years, François would become quite accustomed to.