Stéphanie Marie Elisabeth life and biography

Princess Stéphanie of Monaco (Stéphanie Marie Elisabeth Grimaldi; born Monaco, 1 February 1965) is a member of the princely family of Monaco. She is the youngest child of Grace, Princess of Monaco and Rainier III of Monaco, and the sister of Albert II of Monaco and Princess Caroline. Stephanie has been a singer, swimwear designer, and fashion model; her mother lovingly called the princess her "wild child."

In 1983, after her physical recovery from the accident which killed her mother, Stephanie started an apprentice program at Christian Dior under the direction of head designer Marc Bohan, who had been a friend to Princess Grace. At the end of 1984 she debuted as a model on the biannual haute couture special published by Spanish magazine ¡Hola! (she repeated the assignment in 1990). Soon after, she graced the cover of German Vogue and the American edition of Vanity Fair in July 1985. She also became the face of the Swiss beauty line La Prairie, for which she was photographed by Horst, and she appeared on the cover of French Vogue, photographed by the late Helmut Newton, in September 1986.

However, in September of the same year she launched a swimwear line, called 'Pool Position' with Alix de la Comble, whom she had met while an intern at Dior. The fashion show to present the line, held at the Sporting Club in Monaco, was a major event covered by the world's media. The front row included Prince Rainier and her siblings, Prince Albert and Princess Caroline. A year later, a second collection was presented again in Monte Carlo. In 1989, the princess launched her own perfume, called "Stephanie", but that did not last for long either. Later in the mid-1990s, she had a Replay cafe and store in Monaco, after she became a kind of spokesperson for the brand. She also helped open the Replay Store and Cafe in Barcelona in 1997.

In late 2008, she agreed to guest edit the December 2008/January 2009 issue of French Vogue.

Music career

In February 1986, Stephanie self produced and released her first single with the French label 'Carrere', under the production of Yves Roze. The song "Ouragan" ("Hurricane") and its English version "Irresistible" quickly reached the international Top 10, reportedly selling more than 2 million copies. In September, she released a full album called Besoin reportedly selling more than 1.5 million copies (also released as Stéphanie in some countries) with eight new songs, including "Flash" (in French; it's English version "One Love To Give"), which was released as a single and reached the hit parade all over Europe. In January 1987, she released the single "Young Ones Everywhere" to benefit UNICEF.

In 1987, Stephanie moved to Los Angeles. However, it took 5 years for her next recordings to be released, and sales were disappointing, only 3,000 copies in the USA. The album had 10 songs, including the single 'Winds of Chance' for which the video clip was recorded in the Canary Islands. The producers tried to leave her Europop style behind and create a more grown-up album with English-only lyrics. Her first and only live tour took place in the summer of 1991 in Europe and South America to promote the album called Stéphanie released in the U.S. by Sony Music. U.S. critics gave the album negative reviews. She also recorded "In the Closet" with Michael Jackson under the alias of Mystery Girl for his album, Dangerous. She then ended her pop music career.

Since 1 February 1965: Her Serene Highness Princess Stéphanie Marie Elisabeth of Monaco.

Interests
Since the death of her father, Prince Rainier, Stephanie has become deeply involved in the fight against AIDS, becoming a UNAIDS ambassador. She has also created Fight Aids Monaco, her own foundation to support people living with HIV and at the same time combat the social stigma attached to the disease. In 2006, with a group of French singers, the princess took part in the recording of the song "L'or de nos Vies" in order to raise funds for the foundation.

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