Meet Melissa Mars: actress, singer, songwriter, storyteller, dreamer, “Martian.” In the first of her interviews with Yabla, Melissa tells us how her career got launched.

Did you know there are 55,000 different kinds of beer? And more than 5,400 of those are German? You can find quite a few of these at Le Village de la Bière, a shop in popular French city Strasbourg. How long would it take to sample them all…?

The French singer Serge Gainsbourg is still remembered long after his death by fans, English rockers, and songwriter (and first lady of France) Carla Bruni.

Mozart fans, take note: Go in through the back door of the Vichy Opera House to see Jérôme Deschamps and his talented crew’s reimaginings of the famous composer’s works. Don’t worry—all the tunes are still pure Wolfgang.

Hélène and Célia tell us about their musical influences, origins, and inspiration. When they encountered prejudice about Africa and Africans upon coming back to France, Les Nubians used music to paint a truer picture of African culture.

What was life like for the poilus, the French soldiers of World War I? In sum, much, much harder than our lives. Subjected to bullets, bombs, death, and all the atrocities of war, these soldiers fought bitterly to protect their homeland, and one another.

Meet Les Nubians, two singer-songwriter sisters who grew up in both Paris and Chad and whose music has been nominated for several awards, including a Grammy (and not just in the World Music category, thank you very much). We know we’re big fans!

Neighbors, friends, and the people of France remember Lazare Ponticelli, the last Poilu, who saw one hundred and ten springtimes and two world wars before passing away in March of 2008.

French-Canadian singer-songwriter Pascale—who prefers to introduce herself in verse rather than give the usual “hello my name is”—tells us of the importance of maintaining optimism and lightness in the face of hardship.

Bertrand Pierre was inspired by Victor Hugo, and Victor Hugo was inspired by his very active love life. As it turns out, Hugo’s little love poems make for great song lyrics.

Lazare Ponticelli was the last of the “Poilus” — French infantry soldiers who served in World War I. Ponticelli, who was actually an Italian immigrant to France, first served in the French Foreign Legion and then eventually, the Italian army. He died in 2008 at the age of 110.

Bertrand Pierre is back to tell us more about his album: Autre Chose, a tribute to the lesser-known love poems of Victor Hugo.

In our last interview with Fanny and Corrine, we hear a bit more about Brittany and learn about multiculturalism in France and how cultures can influence languages.

Remember Bertrand Pierre, the smooth crooner of “Si vous n’avez rien à me dire”? He’s back to tell us about his background as a musician, and how he stumbled across the Victor Hugo idea…

Men, women, love: Charles-Baptiste tells us what’s special (and what’s universal) about his love life in New York, and lets us in on the secret to his success. You have to get your hands dirty!