#ChanteEnFrançais: meet the winners!  

From 22 May to 9 June, Instagrammers between 18 and 27 years old were able to give free rein to their singing talent in the contest launched by the Francophonie Festival, Making a Better World, in partnership with the Francofolies in Spa, the Cité Internationale de la Langue Française, the Alliance Française, Campus France, the Instituts Français and TV5 Monde.

The rules of the contest were simple: to perform a song of their choice for 45 seconds then post the video on Instagram with the hashtag #ChanteEnFrançais. The participants had the option to sing a French song, a French translation of a song in a foreign language or an original song in French, either in karaoke style, with an instrument or a cappella.

Five winners from across the world

A jury reflecting the diversity of Francophonie had the tough job of choosing the lucky winners among the many participants. At the end of deliberations, Valérie Senghor, Commissioner of the Francophonie Summit, the Belgian singer, Mentissa, the Swiss singer, Nuit Incolore, Bruno Berberes, Casting Director of The Voice and Paul Rondin, Director of the Cité Internationale de la Langue Française chose:

• Sorela Pambu, from the Republic of the Congo, who chose to sing the song “Nous sommes un” from Le Roi Lion;
• Juliet, a French entrant who was applauded for her rendition of “Quand on a que l’amour”, a classic French song by Jacques Brel;
• From Japan, Mio Koseki, who won over the jury’s hearts with a song she composed herself called “Danse”;
• The Italian singer, Camilla Roveroni, who sang the song “Belle”, from the popular musical Notre Dame de Paris, initially performed by Garou;
• Lastly, the Nigerian entrant, Asham, who blew the jury away with her interpretation of “Voilà” by Barbara Pravi.

See the messages of our five winners on Instagram

The top awards

Having won the international #ChanteEnFrançais contest, the five contest winners will be welcomed in France and Belgium to participate in an artist residency –  an incredible opportunity for these young international talents.

For more details about their residencies, visit

• The Cité Internationale de la Langue Française in Villers-Cotterêts from 16 July to 18 July 

After sightseeing, visiting the “C’est une chanson qui nous ressemble” exhibition and having a voice coaching session with Mentissa and Bruno Berberes, the lucky winners were able to celebrate the relay of the Olympic torch and best of all, spend an entire morning recording a song in a studio at the Cité Internationale de la Langue Française.

• Francofolies in Spa in Belgium, on 20 July

Affiliated with the Francofolies in La Rochelle, this festival is held in Spa, in the Belgian Ardennes mountains. The five winners were given the opportunity to perform on stage at the Villa des Fleurs from 14:00 to 14:30.

For more details on their residencies, follow us on Instagram!