Bijou Phillips' Mom, Genevieve Waite, Dead at 71

Bijou Phillips' mom -- a South African model, actress and singer -- died over the weekend in L.A. ... TMZ has learned.

Sources close to Bijou tell us Geneviève Waite passed away in her sleep Saturday. We reached to Bijou who tells us, "Our beautiful mother Geneviève Waite Phillips, passed away in her sleep. She was a beautiful soul, and born from another planet. Her ideas, her songs, her voice, and her heart beat to a beautiful African rhythm no one else had and I am so thankful she was able to share it."

Geneviève married John Phillips from The Mamas & The Papas in 1972 ... and they had two children together, Bijou and Tamerlane.

Bijou continues, "She was a light, a fairy, and a gift of a creature. The lyrics she wrote on her album were timeless and smart. Her mind was poetry and wit, her sense of humor was quick and dry. My father and my mother had a magical, wonderful, heartbreaking life together but they created a masterpiece of music (Romance is on the Rise) and I'm so honored to be their child."

Geneviève's most notable film performance was in "Joanna" in 1968 ... a drama about an interracial couple in London.

Bijou says, "My mother's role in 'Joanna' was groundbreaking for racial divides. My mother was a gift and I will miss her everyday. In everything I cook, and in everything I sing and in everything I do without her wise guidance."

"It's nice thinking she is with our Dad, dancing around in heaven."

Geneviève was 71 years old.