Helena (singer)

Helena
Helena in October 2024
Background information
Birth nameHéléna Bailly
Born (2002-02-19) 19 February 2002
Uccle, Brussels, Belgium
GenresChanson
Occupations
  • Singer
  • songwriter
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • piano
Years active2023–present
LabelsRCA

Héléna Bailly (born 19 February 2002), known mononymously as Helena, is a Belgian singer and songwriter. She became known to the general public thanks to her participation in the eleventh season of the French television show Star Academy. On 1 March 2024, Helena released her first single, "Aimée pour de vrai". That same year, she released an EP and a fourth single, "Mauvais garçon". On 14 March 2025, she released her debut studio album, Hélé, which reached number one in France the week of its release.[1]

Early life and education

Héléna Bailly is originally from Braine-l'Alleud.[2] Her mother is a retired Dutch teacher and her father is a physiotherapist.[3] Helena was a speech therapy student at the Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB) when she signed up for the 2023 edition of the TV show Star Academy.[3][4]

Musical career

Star Academy (2023–2024)

Helena participated in the 2023 edition of the show Star Academy. She reached the semi-finals, but was eliminated on 27 January 2024, against the eventual winner, Pierre Garnier.[5]

Hélé (2024–present)

On 1 March 2024, Helena released her first single, "Aimée pour de vrai".[6] She received her first gold record in Belgium for this track on 27 September 2024.[7][8] She officially launched her solo career on 21 June with an EP titled Pas de seum pour le summer, which included the tracks "Nouveau cœur" and "Summer Body".[9] The music video for the song "Summer Body", featuring Camille Cerf, Miss France 2015, was released on 12 August 2024.[10] On 21 October 2024, she announced her first tour.[11] Following public enthusiasm, she announced a "Zénith" tour, including several dates at Forest National.[12][13]

On 20 November 2024, ahead of the release of her first album, Helena released her fourth single, "Mauvais garçon", in which she denounces toxic romantic relationships.[14][15] She claims to have had to fight to release this track, which she describes as a "UFO" in her discography. The song quickly achieved streaming success, being certified gold in less than three months.[16] The music video, based on the concept of "Red Flag Office", was released on 22 January 2025.[17] Between late February 2025 and March 2025, it was the most-played French-language track on radio in France for three consecutive weeks.[18]

On 19 February 2025, Helena released her fifth single, "Gentil garçon", which denounces societal stereotypes towards men and their role within a couple.[19] On 14 March 2025, she released her first studio album, Hélé, which tells the story of different episodes of her life in thirteen tracks.[20] For this album, she co-wrote all her lyrics with Vincha and decided to include both ballads and more pop and electro songs with a view to having fun on her upcoming tour.[21] The album was also produced and composed with Jonathan Cagne and Romain Botti. It is described by the press as a successful mix of pop and intimate pieces.[22][23] The album had a strong start, rising to seventh place worldwide for album releases on Spotify during the first weekend and to first place for album sales in France the week of its release with 18,991 equivalent sales.[24][1] It also entered No. 1 in French-speaking Belgium[25] and, rather rarely for a French-speaking album, to 8th place in Flanders.[26]

Charity work

On 6 October 2024, Helena participated in the 12th edition of CAP 48, a Belgian organization that raises funds for people with disabilities in Belgium.[27]

On 8 January 2025, the Génération Pièces Jaunes collective, of which Helena is a member, released the song "Les p'tits soleils", to help hospitalized children and adolescents.[28] On 22 March 2025, she participated in the Sidaction evening on France 2, where she shared a duet with Amir.[29]

Discography

Studio albums

List of studio albums, with selected chart positions
Title Details Peak chart positions
BEL
(WA)
[30] 		BEL
(FL)
[31] 		FRA
[32] 		SWI
[33]
Hélé
  • Released: 14 March 2025
  • Label: RCA
  • Format: CD, LP, digital download, streaming
 1 8 1 6

Singles

List of singles, with selected chart positions, showing year released, certifications and album name
Title Year Peak chart positions Certifications Album
BEL
(WA)
[30] 		FRA
[32]
"Aimée pour de vrai" 2024 5 37 Non-album single
"Summer Body" 25 80 Hélé
"Nouveau cœur" 37 161 Non-album single
"Mauvais garçon" 3 17 Hélé
"Gentil garçon" 2025 50 116
"Mélatonine" 15 157 Non-album single
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that country.

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Nominee/work Result Reference
2024 NRJ Music Awards Herself Belgian Breakthrough of the Year Won [36]
Francophone Breakthrough of the Year Nominated [37]
Forbes (Belgium) 30 Under 30 Won [38]
Ciné-Télé-Revue Awards Belgian of the Year Won [39]
Belgian TV personality Won
Purecharts Awards Breakthrough of the Year Won [40]
Star Academy Concert of the Year Nominated
Summer Body Clip of the Year Won

References

  1. ^ a b "Helena numéro un des ventes : quel score pour son premier album "Hélé" ? Les chiffres !". www.chartsinfrance.net (in French). 2025-03-21. Retrieved 2025-03-21.
  2. ^ Rédaction, La (2024-10-18). "Helena devant son public à Braine-l'Alleud : les images impressionnantes de la foule réunie sur la Grand-place". La Libre.be (in French). Retrieved 2024-10-19.
  3. ^ a b Wils, RTL info avec Céline Gransard et Guillaume (2024-03-23). ""J'apprends à devenir une femme et une artiste": le nouveau quotidien d'Helena depuis sa sortie de la Star Academy". RTL Info (in French). Retrieved 2024-07-14.
  4. ^ Média, Prisma (2024-01-28). "« J'ai même pas les mots… » : Héléna (Star Academy) sort du silence après son élimination - Voici". Voici.fr (in French). Retrieved 2024-07-14.
  5. ^ "Interview - Héléna, éliminée de la Star Academy aux portes de la finale : «C'est toujours très étrange de me voir à la télé»". Europe 1 (in French). 2024-01-30. Retrieved 2024-07-14.
  6. ^ "N°1 sur ITunes, 225 000 écoutes sur Spotify : Héléna (« Star Academy ») cartonne déjà avec son premier single, « Aimée pour de vrai »". sudinfo.be avec Ciné-Télé-Revue (in French). 2024-03-02. Archived from the original on 2024-08-27. Retrieved 2024-08-27.
  7. ^ "Helena remporte son premier disque d'or". Soirmag (in French). 2024-09-29. Retrieved 2024-11-01.
  8. ^ Média, Prisma (2024-09-28). "Héléna Bailly (Star Academy) reçoit son premier disque d'or, ses fans explosent de joie - Voici". Voici.fr (in French). Retrieved 2024-10-04.
  9. ^ Heraly, Pauline (2024-07-04). "Pas de seum pour le summer avec Air et Sony Music France". air brussels - partner of McCann (in French). Retrieved 2024-10-29.
  10. ^ ""Star Academy": Héléna sort son premier clip, "Summer Body", avec Camille Cerf". BFMTV (in French). Retrieved 2024-10-29.
  11. ^ "Héléna Bailly annonce sa première tournée". Soirmag (in French). 2024-10-22. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
  12. ^ N.G (2024-11-13). "« Sans votre amour, rien de tout cela ne serait possible » : Héléna annonce une tournée des zéniths". La Voix du Nord (in French). Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  13. ^ "Face au succès qu'elle rencontre, Héléna Bailly annonce une très bonne nouvelle à ses fans". Soirmag (in French). 2024-11-21. Archived from the original on 2024-11-21. Retrieved 2024-11-24.
  14. ^ Pirard, Augustin (2024-11-23). "Héléna Bailly sort son nouveau single "Mauvais garçon": "Un ovni dans ma discographie" (vidéo)". lavenir.net (in French). Retrieved 2024-11-24.
  15. ^ "Découvrez « Mauvais garçon », le nouveau single de Héléna Bailly : « Il ne ressemble à rien de ce que j'ai pu faire avant »". sudinfo.be avec Ciné-Télé-Revue (in French). 2024-11-20. Retrieved 2024-12-09.
  16. ^ "Les certifications". SNEP (in French). Archived from the original on 2015-02-18. Retrieved 2025-03-03.
  17. ^ Eloïse (2025-01-23). "Mauvais Garçon de Helena se révèle dans un clip vintage | One FM" (in French). Archived from the original on 2025-03-27. Retrieved 2025-03-15.
  18. ^ "Top Radio". SNEP (in French). Retrieved 2025-03-03.
  19. ^ Lierde, Morgane Van (2025-02-19). "Après "Mauvais Garçon", Helena dévoile "Gentil Garçon" : un avant-goût de son album à venir le 14 mars prochain !". DHnet (in French). Retrieved 2025-02-19.
  20. ^ "Helena sort son premier album, « Hélé », et se confie à Ciné-Télé-Revue : « J'aime que mes chansons apportent de l'espoir, je veux que les gens ne se sentent pas abattus après les avoir écoutées »". sudinfo.be avec Ciné-Télé-Revue (in French). 2025-03-14. Archived from the original on 2025-04-08. Retrieved 2025-03-14.
  21. ^ Kandilaptis, Ariane (2025-03-15). "Helena sort son 1er album ce vendredi 14 mars: "J'avais 22 ans de ma vie à écrire"". lavenir.net (in French). Retrieved 2025-03-15.
  22. ^ Kevin Boucher-Rappet (2025-03-13). "Helena sort son premier album après la « Star Academy » : « Tout a changé dans mon quotidien »" (in French). Le Parisien. Archived from the original on 2025-03-14. Retrieved 2025-03-15.
  23. ^ Marie Frankinet (14 March 2025). "Helena sort son tout premier album, Hélé : pourquoi on l'adore déjà". RTBF (in French). Retrieved 2025-03-15.
  24. ^ "EXCLU - Helena numéro un : énorme démarrage pour son album en France et dans le monde !". www.chartsinfrance.net (in French). 2025-03-18. Retrieved 2025-03-19.
  25. ^ "Ultratop Albums Top 200 - ultratop.be". www.ultratop.be. Archived from the original on 2022-11-30. Retrieved 2025-03-23.
  26. ^ "Ultratop Albums Top 200 - ultratop.be". www.ultratop.be. Archived from the original on 2023-06-01. Retrieved 2025-03-23.
  27. ^ "Voici les artistes qui seront présents lors de la Grande Soirée de CAP48". RTBF (in French). Retrieved 2025-01-09.
  28. ^ à 08h59, Par Éric Bureau Le 8 janvier 2025 (2025-01-08). "Pièces jaunes : Mentissa, Michou, Héléna de la Star Academy… Des artistes s'unissent et créent un hymne pour l'opération". leparisien.fr (in French). Archived from the original on 2025-01-08. Retrieved 2025-01-09.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  29. ^ puremedias (2025-03-22). "Absence de Line Renaud, performance d'Ebony et Helena de la "Star Academy" : Quelles stars seront présentes pour le Sidaction 2025 ce soir sur France 2 ?". www.ozap.com. Retrieved 2025-03-23.
  30. ^ a b "Héléna Bailly". Ultratop.be. Retrieved 6 July 2025.
  31. ^ "Héléna Bailly". Ultratop.be. Retrieved 8 April 2025.
  32. ^ a b "Discographie Helena". Lescharts.com (in French). Retrieved 8 April 2025.
  33. ^ "Helena". hitparade.ch. Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 April 2025.
  34. ^ a b "ultratop.be - ULTRATOP BELGIAN CHARTS". ultratop.be. Archived from the original on 2024-12-20. Retrieved 2025-01-05.
  35. ^ a b c "Les certifications". SNEP (in French). Retrieved 2024-12-09.
  36. ^ Demaret, Marie (2024-10-31). "Héléna Bailly remporte le prix de la Révélation belge de l'année aux NMA et nous en dit plus sur son album : "C'est une consécration ultra rapide"". parismatch.be (in French). Retrieved 2024-11-01.
  37. ^ "Deux anciens de la « Star Ac' » en concurrence aux prochains NRJ Music Awards". Le HuffPost (in French). 2024-09-23. Retrieved 2024-09-24.
  38. ^ "30 under 30". Forbes Belgique (in French). 2024-11-14. Retrieved 2024-11-24.
  39. ^ "Ciné-Télé-Revue Awards 2024 : découvrez le palmarès complet et le top 5 par catégorie !". sudinfo.be avec Ciné-Télé-Revue (in French). 2024-12-05. Retrieved 2024-12-06.
  40. ^ "Pure Charts Awards 2024". Archived from the original on 2024-01-24. Retrieved 2025-04-08.
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