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Anggun Cipta Sasmi (born 29 April 1974) is an Indonesian and French-naturalised singer-songwriter. Born in Jakarta, she began performing at the age of seven and recorded a children's album two years later. With the help of famed Indonesian producer Ian Antono, in 1986 Anggun released her first rock-influenced studio album, Dunia Aku Punya (The World is Mine). She became further well known with the single "Mimpi" (1989), which was listed as one of the 150 Greatest Indonesian Songs of All Time by Rolling Stone. She followed it with a series of singles and three more studio albums, which established her as one of the most prominent Indonesian rock stars of the early 1990s.
Anggun left Indonesia in 1994 to pursue an international career. After two years struggling in London and Paris, Anggun met French producer Erick Benzi and signed to Sony Music Entertainment. She released her first international album, Snow on the Sahara (1997), in 33 countries worldwide; this album spawned her international signature hit "Snow on the Sahara", which reached number one in several countries. Since her international breakthrough, Anggun has released five studio albums in English and French, as well as a soundtrack album to the Danish film Open Hearts (2002). She has collaborated with a host of international artists, including Julio Iglesias, Peter Gabriel and Pras Michel of the Fugees.
Anggun is the first Indonesian artist to break into the European and American record charts. Her albums have been certified gold and platinum in several European countries. She has received a number of accolades for her achievements, including the prestigious Chevalier des Arts et Lettres from the French Minister of Culture. Aside from her musical career, Anggun has been involved in numerous environmental and humanitarian works. She has been appointed as the global ambassador of the United Nations twice, first for the International Year of Microcredit in 2005 and then for the Food and Agriculture Organization in 2009. Anggun represented France in the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 in Baku, Azerbaijan.
Anggun, the second child and first daughter of Darto Singo, a Javanese writer, and Dien Herdina, a housewife from the Yogyakartan royal family, was born and raised in Jakarta, Indonesia. Her full name means "grace born of a dream" in Balinese. Despite being a Muslim, Anggun was sent to a Catholic school to receive a better elementary education. At the age of seven, Anggun began receiving highly disciplined instruction in singing from her father. She trained on a daily basis, learning various vocal techniques. To help further develop her career, her mother began serving as her manager, accepting singing offers and handling business concerns. At the age of nine, Anggun began to write her own songs and recorded her first children's album.
As a preteen, Anggun was influenced by Western rock music artists. At the age of twelve, she released her first official studio album, Dunia Aku Punya (The World is Mine; 1986). The album was produced by Ian Antono, a famous Indonesian rock musician. However, the album failed to establish her popularity. Three years later, Anggun rocketed to fame after the release of the slow rock single "Mimpi" ("Dream"); the song was later ranked by the Rolling Stone Indonesia magazine as one of the 150 Greatest Indonesian Songs of All Time. Anggun's fame continued to increase with the release of subsequent singles, most notably "Tua Tua Keladi" (1990), which became her most popular hit in Indonesia. After a string of successful singles, Anggun released the studio albums Anak Putih Abu Abu (High School Kids; 1991) and Nocturno (1992). The former earned her the Most Popular Indonesian Artist 1990–1991 award.
In 1992, Anggun began a relationship with Michel Georgea, a French engineer, whom she had met the year before in Kalimantan while touring. The couple married, despite a rumored objection by Anggun's family, reportedly because they felt Anggun was too young to get married. Georgea later became Anggun's manager. The following year, Anggun became the youngest Indonesian singer to found her own record company, Bali Cipta Records, and took total creative control over her works. She produced her final Indonesian studio album, Anggun C. Sasmi... Lah!!! (1993), which yielded number-one single "Kembalilah Kasih (Kita Harus Bicara)" ("Return Dear (We Need to Talk)"). By the age of nineteen, Anggun had sold over four million albums in Indonesia. She began to feel dissatisfied with her success in her country and began considering an international music career. Anggun later recalled: " I was 20, I'd made five albums. I'd built my own record company. I'd produced my last album and produced some Indonesian acts as well. And I said to myself: 'I'm tired! I cannot achieve more than I already have. There's no challenge anymore'."
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