[9][10] Born in Pierrefonds, Quebec, Canada (a former city now part of the Montreal borough of Pierrefonds-Roxboro),[11] to French parents, the family soon relocated to Chaville, near Paris, where Farmer pursued a career in modelling and acting.

[19] In the second part of the 2000s, Farmer continued exploring a range of genres on her albums, namely acoustic pop music on Avant que l'ombre...[20] and electronica on Point de suture.

[44] "Libertine" was released as the lead single of the album, accompanied by a music video in the style of a short film, inspired by 19th century literature.

The album sold 1.5 million copies in France[14] and spawned Farmer's first number one on the French singles chart, "Pourvu qu'elles soient douces".

[53] The song was preceded by a number of demonstrations in Paris, led by high-school students, who were "protest[ing] against overcrowded classrooms, inadequate security and too few teachers".

[60] It was accompanied by a video directed by Luc Besson, in which Farmer plays an angel sent down to earth by God to report on the changing ways people experience love.

The album marked an artistic turn for Farmer, moving away from her early synth-pop music in favour of pop rock, R&B and new jack swing influences.

[68] The album was launched by "XXL", the music video of which was directed by Marcus Nispel and features Farmer strapped to the front of a moving train.

[70] The album differs lyrically from Farmer's previous work: "Rêver" deals with the Holocaust and features a call for tolerance,[71] "XXL" talks about universal love from a feminist perspective,[72] and "L'Instant X" offers a humorous look at the end of the world.

[79] The music video for the second single, "Je te rends ton amour", sparked controversy because of its religious and transgressive imagery, and was censored by French TV channel M6.

[91] After a hiatus of four years, Farmer held a press conference in 2005, announcing her new album, Avant que l'ombre..., the single "Fuck Them All", as well as a special 13-night concert engagement at the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy in January 2006.

[106] In November 2010, Farmer recorded her vocals for a cover of "Never Tear Us Apart" with Ben Harper for Australian band INXS's album Original Sin.

Produced by RedOne,[108] Moby[109] and British alternative band Archive,[109] it entered the French album chart at number one and remained at the top for three consecutive weeks.

[115] The lead single, "À l'ombre" had its radio premiere in October 2012, and the album, Monkey Me entered the French charts at number one in December 2012.

[118][non-primary source needed] The live album of the tour was released in December, with an eponymous film shot in widescreen during the shows in Lyon.

[120] Featuring 90 photos of Farmer taken by Lancrenon, the imagery consists of intimate photographs of the singer covered in talc and clay, focusing on the juxtaposition of fragility and powerfulness.

[125] To promote the album and Stolen Car in the U.S., the singer was interviewed on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon accompanied by Sting, and the two also performed a live rendition of the song.

[129] The song was co-written by LP, and the video, set in Iceland, marked the artistic return of Farmer's long-time collaborator, Laurent Boutonnat.

In December 2022, the English rock band Muse released a surprise, bilingual version of "Ghosts (How Can I Move On)" featuring Mylène Farmer singing in duet with Matthew Bellamy.

The title track for "L'Emprise" was used as the soundtrack for the closing credits for the French language release of the film "Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves".

[148] Farmer contributed to Moby's "Resound NYC" album by reciting the introduction of Arthur Rimbaud's poem "Une saison en enfer" for the instrumental piece "Hyenas".

The concerts scheduled for the Stade de France on 30 June and 1 July were cancelled hours before the first one was to start due to the Nahel Merzouk riots.

[152] Other cinematic figures Farmer says she is inspired by include Greta Garbo,[153] Michelle Pfeiffer,[154] Steven Spielberg,[155] and Andrei Tarkovsky.

[160] Farmer is known for her poetic songwriting, which often features philosophical ideas, symbolism, transgression, religious imagery, alliterations, double entendres and neologisms.

[162] Farmer's literary influences include Charles Baudelaire, Edgar Allan Poe, Emily Dickinson, Pierre Reverdy, Stefan Zweig and Søren Kierkegaard.

[168] In 2010, Farmer released her first album without Laurent Boutonnat, Bleu noir, featuring songs produced by RedOne, Moby and British alternative band Archive.

Interstellaires, the singer's tenth studio album shows influences of pop rock and adult contemporary styles, produced by French DJ The Avener and Martin Kierszenbaum.

[171] For L'Emprise, Farmer collaborated with Woodkid to produce a "confidant, and very intimate" album which offers a mix of symphonic music, industrial rhythms, and electropop.

[173] In 1988, she was presented the Victoire de la musique award for female performer of the year, but refused to sing at the ceremony due to the behind the scenes infighting that she witnessed while rehearsing for the show.

In November 1991, Laurent Berger, a disturbed man who had been stalking Farmer, entered the Polydor Records headquarters in Paris and held employees at gunpoint demanding to talk to her.