Teri Moïse
Teri Moïse (March 25, 1970 in Los Angeles, California – May 7, 2013 in Madrid, Spain) was a Haitian-American French singer. Her parents emigrated from Haiti to South Central, Los Angeles. After high school she studied economics at the University of California, Berkeley. In 1990 she went to France, where she studied literature at the Sorbonne and worked as an "au pair". After returning to the United States, she began studying at the Musicians Institute in Los Angeles. In 1992, Moïse again moved to Paris and pursued a career in music working as a choir singer, bass player  and songwriter. She eventually met Etienne De Crécy and Stéphane "Alf" Briat, with whom she collaborated on her 1996 self-titled debut album, which sold 500,000 copies. The album and its two singles "Les poèmes de Michelle" and "Je serai là" were among the most influential French Soul releases of the 1990s. Teri Moïse is the final winner of the Victoire de la musique in the category »Artiste interprète ou groupe francophone,« receiving the award in 1997. She committed suicide in her hotel room in Madrid, Spain, on May, 7th, 2013.