French singer and Les Rita Mitsouko co-founder Catherine Ringer has died at 68 after a fast-acting cancer, her children confirmed to AFP on Sept. 14, 2026. Her family also confirmed her death in a statement to Le Monde.
Ringer became one of the defining voices of French pop-rock through Les Rita Mitsouko, the duo she formed with guitarist Fred Chichin after the pair met in 1979. Their partnership combined music and personal life, producing a distinctive sound that crossed rock, pop, funk, electro and chanson.
The group reached a wider audience during the 1980s, with “Marcia Baïla” becoming one of its signature songs. Other notable tracks included “Andy,” “C’est comme ça” and “Les Histoires d’A,” while the band’s music videos and unconventional visual style helped establish an identity beyond traditional rock.
Ringer’s artistic background also reflected her family history. Her father, Sam Ringer, was an Ashkenazi Jew from Poland who was deported to several concentration camps. She later addressed his experience through “C’était un homme,” a song featured on the album “Cool Frénésie.”
Fred Chichin died from cancer in November 2007 at the age of 53. Rather than ending her musical work, Ringer continued performing and kept the Les Rita Mitsouko repertoire alive while developing her career as a solo artist.
Her post Rita Mitsouko work included collaborations with international artists such as Sparks and Iggy Pop. She also continued returning to the stage with songs associated with the duo, maintaining a connection between her solo career and the catalogue she created with Chichin.
Emmanuel de Buretel, founder of Because Music, described Ringer as “an extraordinary artist” and highlighted her work as a lyricist, composer, performer and producer.
He said her approach combined improvisation with hard work, independence with risk-taking, and that her artistic legacy extended well beyond the popular songs known by several generations.
Ringer’s death closes the life of an artist whose career moved between collaboration, songwriting, performance and production. Her work with Les Rita Mitsouko gave French music a distinctive body of songs and imagery, while her later career preserved that legacy and expanded it through new collaborations.
