Iolanda Gigliotti, known as Dalida, is a French singer and actress born on January 17, 1933 in Cairo, Egypt.
An Italian family living in Egypt, after the Miss Ondine Prize in Cairo, she was elected Miss Egypt in 1954. In 1955, she could not represent Egypt at the 1955 Miss World competition. The country is not present for this edition because of the Suez Canal crisis and the hostilities between the United Kingdom, France and Egypt. Dalida made several films in Cairo (The Mask of Tutankhamun).
Living in France from 1954, she had her first success as a singer with the title Bambino. Creating a repertoire of more than 700 songs performed in several languages, she became a major figure in French song and enjoyed popularity beyond the Francophone scene. She obtained French citizenship in 1961.
Among his most famous songs are Come prima, The Gypsies, Gondolier, The Children of Piraeus, Itsi bitsi small bikini, Zorba’s Dance, Bonsoir mon amour, Le Temps des fleurs, Darla dirladada, Paroles... Lyrics..., Gigi the amoroso, He had just turned 18, Salma Ya Salama, Let me dance and Die on stage.
Embracing several musical styles, such as twist, pop and raï, she is also one of the first French artists to perform disco songs with the titles J'attendre et Besame mucho.
After becoming depressed due to a succession of personal dramas, Dalida committed suicide on 3 May 1987 in Paris.