Jean-Jacques Goldman has been very discreet for several years. The singer refuses any interview or public appearance and no longer goes on stage. A voluntary retirement that makes a lot of talk. On August 18, 2023, historian Ivan Jablonka unveiled his book entitled Goldman (ed. du Seuil), in which he retraces the career of the 71-year-old singer. An unauthorized biography which was not unanimous, in particular with the principal concerned. “I have never met this author, Neither have my friends, and I’m sad for all the people who get duped into buying these books about me.” he said during a rare speech in the columns of the chained duckWednesday, August 23, 2023. Guest of France Inter, Monday August 28, 2023, Ivan Jablonka wanted to give his version of the facts. Regarding the writing of this biography, he first explains: “I wrote to him to tell him that I was doing this book. I asked him to have access to some of his archives, he did not answer. He refused, as did some of his relatives. Ivan Jablonka then specifies that this work was long and complicated. “I stripped 50 years of audiovisual archives and written press”he reveals before adding: “I almost had an overflow of sources”.
Ivan Jablonka defends himself against criticism from Jean-Jacques Goldman
Jean-Jacques Goldman’s speech was very unexpected. Although the artist did not praise this biography, Ivan Jablonka remains positive. “What an honor, first of all. What an honor that Jean-Jacques Goldman, who has been buried in silence for 20 years, is coming out to talk about my book.”, he began, then adding: “That said, I’m not very surprised because it corresponds to his logic, which is that of withdrawing from public life”. Subsequently, the historian wished to defend himself: “I would like to end by saying that a historian is not someone who is authorized. A historian embodies freedom of thought, freedom of expression, and the purpose of a social science book is to say true things no matter if it does not please one or the other”. The latter, at the origin of this project, wanted to illustrate his point by taking a very specific example: “The very definition of History is investigations in the absence because I’m going to give you a scoop, I have not met Laetitia [Perrais] when I dedicated a book to him, I have not met my grandparents who died in deportation and my colleagues who work on Tutankhamun and Saint-Louis have not met them either”, concluded Ivan Jablonka.