France was represented by Joëlle Ursull, with the song '"White and Black Blues", at the 1990 Eurovision Song Contest, which took place on 5 May in Zagreb. The song was chosen internally by broadcaster Antenne 2.

"White and Black Blues" is noted as a pioneering song in Eurovision terms for being the first to introduce Afro-Caribbean styles and rhythms into the contest. The song, along with the following two French entries, would presage by over a decade the general trend away from generic European pop towards more ethnic sounds.

On the night of the final Ursull performed 14th in the running order, following Germany and preceding Yugoslavia. "White and Black Blues" was among the pre-contest favourites, and stood out both musically and visually. Although the song never led in the voting, it finished the evening in joint second place (with Ireland) of the 22 entries, France's best placement since Marie Myriam's win in 1977. The French and Irish entries had been expected to challenge for victory, but both were beaten by Italy's "Insieme: 1992" which was considered a very unexpected winner. "White and Black Blues" picked up six maximum 12s – from Finland, Iceland, the Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland and Yugoslavia – two more than Ireland and three more than Italy, but had also received several low or zero scores. The French jury awarded its 12 points to Luxembourg.

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