Michel Armengot, better known to French music fans as Art Mengo, was born in Toulouse in 1962. Hs parents, both ardent Spanish Republicans, had fled to the South of France to escape the political turmoil in their homeland. Young Michel did not appear to be destined for a musical career. Throughout his childhood and most of his adolescence, the young boy suffered from a hearing problem which rendered him 70% deaf. Michel was an extremely shy young boy, spending long hours alone in his bedroom. One day in an effort to bring Michel out of himself a little, his mother gave him a small electronic keyboard and, in spite of his severe deafness, he soon mastered the instrument. In his early teens Michel underwent surgery on his ears and thanks to this operation regained perfect hearing. The teenager immediately immersed himself in the world of music with a veritable passion.

After passing his 'baccalauréat' Michel went on to study physics and chemistry at university. The young science student would indulge in his passion for music in the evening, playing the piano in local bars. Michel would eventually drop out of his degree course, however, and he ended up taking a job on the assembly line at the Renault factory. Meanwhile Michel was growing ever more serious about his music and he soon bought himself an 8-track tape recorder and transformed his bedroom into a home studio. In fact, Michel had been writing his own compositions for a while now, teaming up with his brother-in-law Patrice Guirao who would write lyrics around his melodies. This songwriting partnership had proved highly effective and Michel already had a whole stack of songs.

Michel began putting together a demo tape and in 1988 he took it along to the Polygone studio in Toulouse. Impressed by the young man's talent a director at the label immediately signed him up and before he knew it Michel/ Art Mengo was in the studio recording his debut single. "Les parfums de la vie" proved an instant hit with radio DJs and Art Mengo's soft, husky vocals were soon reaching listeners all over France. The young unknown was not destined to stay unknown for very long.

Censored

Yet, after the release of his first single, Art Mengo became involved in a legal wrangle with his label which prevented him from releasing an album for the next twelve months. This called a temporary halt to Art Mengo's rise to fame, but now hat he had launched his career nothing would stop the determined young singer from getting to the top. Art Mengo was finally able to release his new album, "Un 15 août en février", at the start of 1990. This highly-accomplished 10-track album proved an instant hit with the French public. Sales rapidly topped the 60,000 mark but came to near standstill when the single "Caïd Ali" was banned from the French airwaves during the Gulf War. Yet this did not stop Art Mengo from establishing a reputation as one of the hottest new talents to have emerged on the French music scene. It came as no surprise to anyone when the young singer from Toulouse was voted Best New Male Artist of the Year at the 1991 Victoires de la Musique Awards.

Art Mengo went back into the studio in 1992 to begin work on his second album, "Guère d'amour", which was recorded in his hometown, Toulouse. Written in collaboration with his brother-in-law Patrice Guirao (who was responsible for the album's powerful and occasionally crude lyrics), "Guère d'amour" featured a number of heavily acoustic tracks - including "Gino" and "Nous nous désaimerons" - which, according to the singer, were originally intended to be played live on stage.

Johnny Hallyday

In spite of the fact that he liked to keep himself apart from the 'family' of French showbiz stars, Art Mengo was more than willing to write songs for other artists. It was Art Mengo who was responsible for Johnny Hallyday's 1992 hit "Ca ne change pas un homme". The following year he went on to compose an entire album for Ute Lemper and also teamed up with the German singing star to record the memorable duet "Parler d'amour".

In March 1993, Art Mengo overcame a severe attack of stage fright to perform a highly successful series of concerts at the Casino de Paris. Mengo, who remained an extremely timid person, was not a natural-born performer but his sheer professionalism made him a great hit with the public. Later that year Art Mengo would be invited to perform at two major French music festivals, Le Printemps de Bourges and the famous Francofolies held in la Rochelle.

Over the next two years Art Mengo would take a long break from his live performances to lock himself away in a studio in Toulouse and work on his new album, "La mer n'existe pas". (Mengo, who had established a reputation for honing his albums to perfection like a master craftsman, would devote more time and energy than ever to the elaboration of his third album). Despite the fact that his songwriting partner Patrice Guirao had left France to live in Tahiti, the pair were constantly in contact with one another, co-ordinating melodies and lyrics. The result was certainly more melancholy than his previous work - as if the singer were allowing glimpses of his real personality to show through in his songs this time round - but the album was, stylistically speaking, also his most mature to date.

Music Therapy

As Art Mengo's live concerts tend to be few and far between, they are always attended by a crowd of excited and enthusiastic fans, who have been steadily growing in numbers over recent years. One of Art Mengo's most impressive performances to date was his series of three concerts at the Paris club Pigall's in November 96. Having overcome his original nerves, the singer is now much more at ease on stage. Indeed, Art Mengo admitted in a recent interview that he has now become addicted to performing live, saying that he finds his concerts provide him with a form of personal therapy. In 1997 the singer recorded his first live album, "Live au Mandala", performing his greatest hits to date in a small, intimate club best suited to his very personal style. Inspired by this new live experience, Art Mengo set off on an extensive tour of France which took him from the New Morning in Paris (29 - 30 April) to the Francofolies music festival in La Rochelle.

Art Mengo returned to the studio the following year, accompanied by his loyal musical partner Guirao, to record a new album entitled "Croire qu'un jour …". Released in March 98, this album contained a collection of haunting songs with rather sad-sounding titles such as "Faudrait jamais s'aimer" (Never Fall In Love) and "Sentiments usés" (Worn Out Emotions). Judging by the lyrics on this new album, it appears as though Art Mengo has officially adopted the theme of unhappy love as his main source of inspiration.

With his distinctive husky vocals, his carefully-crafted albums, and his soft melancholy ballads this talented young singer from Toulouse has established a central place for himself on the French music scene. Art Mengo's name is now firmly marked on the map.

Art mengo began to have doubts about his talent as a singer and preferred staying home in Toulouse, while continuing composing but for other artists like Florent Pagny, Henri Salvador and Enrico Macias

He waited until September 2003 to release a new album in which he featured as the singer and composer. His friend Marc Estève penned the lyrics. With subtle acoustic melodies, a slightly hoarse yet light voice, and well-crafted lyrics, the album would prove to be a success. The first single was entitled "Je Passerai La Main". The album also featured a nice tribute to hometown artist Claude Nougaro: "Monsieur Claude".

Art Mengo hit the live circuit again in March 2004 and brought the house down when he performed at the legendary Olympia in Paris on 5 April. The tour, a mammoth performance which continued right through until the following May, exhilarated the singer who, over the years, had come to feel increasingly at ease on stage.

As soon as he had wrapped up the final dates in the tour, Art Mengo shut himself away for a short but intensive period of songwriting, preparing material for a new album. "Entre mes guillemets", released in February 2006, featured music and arrangements by Mengo. But, for the first time in his career, the singer also wrote a couple of songs, penning the lyrics for "Ma douleur préférée" and the title track "Entre mes guillemets." French songwriter Marc Estève penned most of the other tracks on the album including the first single release "Je ne voyage pas, je pars." Art Mengo's new album also featured a song co-written by the French author Marie Nimier and singer Clarika ("Un jour comme les autres").

Art Mengo hit the road again shortly after the release of his new album, embarking on a new tour on 21 February 2006.

February 2006