Cathy Claret

Cathy Claret (born 1963 in Nîmes, France) is a French singer-songwriter, composer, producer and multi-instrumentalist based in Spain since the 1980s. Despite a modest commercial profile in Spain, she has developed a long-standing audience in Japan, a contrast that Late Motiv s host Andreu Buenafuente compared to the documentary Searching for Sugar Man. According to an interview with El Salto, she worked in the grape harvest in the south of France for several years starting at the age of sixteen, where she came into contact with Gitano families and developed an interest in flamenco through artists such as Camarón de la Isla, Lole y Manuel, Manzanita and Pata Negra.

Career

Virgin France and early singles (1987–1991)

Cathy Claret was signed by Emmanuel de Buretel for Virgin Records in France — the same A&R who later signed Manu Chao and Les Rita Mitsouko. In 1987 she toured France with Pata Negra. That August, the French music magazine Top 50 devoted a two-page interview to Claret titled "Allo... Cathy Claret" in its issue No. 76 (17–23 August 1987), alongside artists such as Johnny Hallyday and Whitney Houston. The single also received coverage in the European music trade press Music & Media in 1988.

Her debut studio album, Cathy Claret, was released by the Belgian label Les Disques du Crépuscule in 1990, followed by Soleil y locura (Crépuscule, 1991). According to LTM Recordings' historical documentation of the Crépuscule catalogue, both albums were reviewed in the international music press of the period, including Paris Match, Les Inrockuptibles, NME (by Paul Lester) and Melody Maker. Soleil y locura was licensed for Japanese release by Victor JVC and completed in connection with Claret's first Japanese tour that same year. In April 1990, Billboard listed her song "Toi" at No. 32 in the "Hot Hits in Tokyo" chart, compiled from the Pioneer Tokyo Hot 100 broadcast by J-Wave 81.3 FM.

2000s

El País covered Claret's return to recording in 2000, describing La chica del viento (Zanfonia, 2000) — co-produced by Cathy Claret and Kiko Veneno — as a new stage after her early-1990s work. In 2005, El País Semanal had also profiled Claret in an extended article by Diego A. Manrique, discussing her musical career, her connection with the Spanish Roma community and her international reception. Her performances during this period included concerts at venues such as Casa de América in Madrid.

2010s

In 2011, El País published a positive review of her work, and she toured with Raimundo Amador. In May 2016, RTVE's Los conciertos de Radio 3 broadcast a live concert by Claret.

In 2015 she released Solita por el mundo under licence to Warner Music, featuring collaborations with Pascal Comelade, Nouvelle Vague, Rossy de Palma and Bebe. In a 2016 interview with 20 minutos, she discussed the album and the Spanish media's portrayal of Romani people.

In 2018 she signed with the Tokyo-based label Respect Record and released Primavera, which received positive reviews in Spanish music press including an 8/10 rating from Mondo Sonoro. In Japan, the Tokyo radio station J-Wave included Primavera among its highlighted releases on the programme SAUDE! SAUDADE... hosted by Yasunobu Chujo. That year she also appeared on Late Motiv, the Movistar+ late-night show hosted by Andreu Buenafuente, where her career was framed as a Spanish parallel to Searching for Sugar Man, the documentary about Sixto Rodriguez. RTVE's Gitanos programme dedicated an episode to Claret's Japanese success in December 2018.

2020s

She released the album Así soy yo through Respect Record in October 2022, recorded between 2019 and 2022 in the La Mina district of Barcelona with producer Che and flamenco guitarist Eugenio Santiago, and featuring guest vocals from Soleá Morente, Lin Cortés and Raimundo Amador. RTVE's Gitanos programme covered the release in October 2022, discussing the album's Japanese connection and the collaborations with Soleá Morente and Lin Cortés. A digital single from the project, "Agua Cola Cola, Fregasuelo Verde", was released in December 2022; its lyrics reference Romani neighbourhoods including La Mina, Sant Roc, Can Tunis and Las Tres Mil Viviendas. The album was also covered by Mikiki, which discussed the increased presence of Romani influences in her work. In August 2024 she was profiled by Xavier Valiño in an extended feature titled "Cathy Claret, una ciudadana del mundo" on RNE's Las tardes de RNE. In March 2026 she was interviewed by Víctor Fernández in the Personas Curvas segment of Hoy Empieza Todo on RTVE Radio 3.

Museo Flamenco Pop

In addition to her musical career, Claret has developed the Museo Flamenco Pop, a documentary and cultural project dedicated to the memory of Roma flamenco-pop and contemporary Romani musical culture. RTVE's Gitanos programme dedicated an episode to the project in April 2023, discussing its archive of records, photographs and documents related to the history of flamenco-pop and its international connections.

Film music

Claret's compositions and performances have also appeared in several films. She contributed the songs "Tango" and "Los picaros tarraneros" to the soundtrack of the French film Sam suffit (1992), directed by Virginie Thévenet. Her composition "Bolleré", in the version by Raimundo Amador and B. B. King, was later included in the soundtrack of the Argentine film Cenizas del paraíso (1997) and in the Spanish documentary Dame veneno (2007). She is also credited with the song "Somos libres" on the soundtrack of the Spanish film Otros días vendrán (2005).

Style and influence

Spanish music press has described her as a "queen of the whispering voice" and the inventor of "pop canastero", and has highlighted her integration of flamenco, rumba, chanson, bossa nova and electronic textures.

Reception in Japan

Cathy Claret has had a sustained audience in Japan, where, according to El Salto, she has had imitators since the 1990s. Mikiki, the editorial site of Tower Records Japan, has discussed the influence of "¿Por qué? ¿Por qué?" on Japanese music later associated with the Shibuya-kei scene. Her recent recording career has been carried out through the Tokyo label Respect Record.

Discography

Singles

"¿Por qué? ¿Por qué?" (Virgin, 1987) "Chocolat" (Chesapik, 2013) "Agua Cola Cola, Fregasuelo Verde" (Respect Record, 2022)

Studio albums

Cathy Claret (Les Disques du Crépuscule, 1990) Soleil y locura (Les Disques du Crépuscule, 1991) La chica del viento (Zanfonia, 2000) Sussurrando (Subterfuge Records, 2003) Sambisarane (Subterfuge Records, 2005) Gypsy Flower (Subterfuge Records, 2007) Solita por el mundo (Warner Music, 2015) Primavera (Respect Record, 2018) Así soy yo (Respect Record, 2022)

Compilations

1987–1991