Listening to music is one of the greatest small pleasures in life. Some songs you associate with great times in your life like your first kiss, the best party you ever went to or your wedding day, while other songs you associate with harder times like a breakup, a death or just a bad night. Whether you love, hate, or even know these 15 songs below, we can tell you that they played a lot during the 2000s. These might bring back some good or bad memories. Enjoy these French songs from the 2000s!
Most Popular French Songs From The 2000s
Yannick, Ces soirées-là (2000)
This song was THE song of 2000. It was Yannick’s second single from his debut album and became one of the best-selling singles of all time. This song was based on Claude François’ 1976 hit Cette année là which was actually a French remake of the English song in December 1963 (Oh, What a Night) by the band Four Seasons.
Damien Sargue, Philippe D’Avilla and Grégori Baquet, Les Rois du monde (2000)
This song was on the 2000 French musical Roméo et Juliette, de la Haine à l’Amour (a musical based on William Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet) and was a huge hit in France and in Belgium. It stayed at #1 for 17 weeks. The band received the award for ‘Francophone song of the year’ at the NRJ Music Awards. We are pretty sure this song is still one of the most played French songs from the 2000s in karaoke places.
Alizée Moi, Lolita (2000)
This was Alizée’s first single from her debut album. She released this album when she was only 15 years old. The song is called Moi…Lolita because of her fresh and innocent look that could be compared to Vladimir Nabokov’s character Lolita. It stayed in the top 5 for 24 consecutive weeks and is the 31st best-selling song in France.
Daniel Lévi, L’Envie d’aimer (2000)
L’envie d’aimer was part of the soundtrack from the smash musical Les Dix Commandements. It is still one of the greatest and best-selling songs in France. There have been a number of covers because of the popularity of this smash hit. Even though it never reached number one on the charts, it is still one of France’s biggest hits from the 2000s.
L5, Toutes les femmes de ta vie (2001)
L5 is like the French equivalent of the Spice Girls. This song was their debut single from their first album. This is the song that everyone associates with this girl group. It is said that this song was inspired by a Britney Spears’ song and was originally meant for Ophélie Winter. It is the seventh best selling song of the 21st century in France.
Star Academy 1, La Musique (Angelica) (2001)
Star Academy was a huge music talent show in France. “La Musique” was from the first edition of the hit tv show. Originally, this song was recorded in 1966 by Mann, and there have been other covers of this song but it really became a hit with the Star Academy version in 2001. It went straight to the #1 spot in the charts.
Bratisla Boys, Stach Stach (2002)
This song was the first single from Bratisla Boys’ (a fictional musical group composed of Michaël Youn, Vincent Desagnat and Benjamin Morgaine) album Anthologigi. This song actually started as a joke but it became so popular and it was so well received by the public that it turned into an actual released single.
Johnny Hallyday, Marie (2002)
This was Johnny Hallyday’s second number-one hit and was the first single from À la vie, à la mort !. It stayed at #2 when it first came out because at the same time Las Ketchup’s smash hit Aserejé (The Ketchup Song) was released. It did manage to creep into the number 1 position for three weeks but after that, it was constantly battling against The Ketchup Song.
Tragédie, Hey Oh (2003)
Rap was huge in the early 2000s so it makes total sense to see Tragédie’s hit Hey Oh on this list. This song was the debut single from their title-album Tragédie. It became their most successful single and the band is mostly known for this song. It was number one on the charts for nine consecutive weeks.
Lorie, Sur un air latino (2003)
Even though it was her third single from her second album Tendrement, this song was a huge hit in France. It went from number 63 to number 2 and then was number one for a few weeks. The song only appeared on the CD when she released a second edition of the album including this song.
Star Academy 4, Laissez-moi danser (2004)
As you can see, many French songs from the 2000s came from reality tv shows. Star Academy continued to create hits, and in 2004, the show decided to cover Dalida’s famous song Monday, Tuesday… Laissez-moi danser. The remake was so successful that it stayed at number one on the charts for six weeks. It is the 27th best selling hit ever recorded in France.
Pinocchio, T’es pas cap Pinocchio (2005)
This song is from a French children’s animated television show but surprisingly, it was able to reach number two in the French charts. This electronic song sung by an animated character was the best single off Mon Alboum!
Ilona Mitrecey, Un Monde parfait (2005)
This pop song was the first single from Ilona Mitrecey’s first album Un Monde parfait. It was a huge hit not only in France but also in Switzerland, Austria, Portugal and Germany. It was once the best-selling single in France, selling 1.5 million copies. It debuted on the charts at number two but the week it went to number 1 and stayed there for 15 weeks.
Fatal Bazooka Fous ta cagoule (2006)
This comedy/rap group released this song as their first single from their album T’As Vu? It reached number one in January 2007 and is part of the top 50 best-selling songs in France to this day. There are many references in the song and in the video clip which made it even more popular and fun for the French.
Helmut Fritz Ça m’énerve (2009)
This electro song was the debut single from Helmut Fritz’s album En observation. It was a huge hit in France, Belgium, Switzerland and Canada. It was one of 2009’s greatest hits and is still one of France’s best-selling singles in France. This song stays in your head for ages and is so catchy, we understand why it was so popular.
Don’t forget to check out these French Canadian songs from the 90s. And if you’re looking for something REALLY vintage, here are some great French songs from the 1970s.
