A pop ritornello turns in a loop in the immense room of the Grand Rex, classified as a historical monument. “Brussels, I love you, Brussels, I love you.” The arch above the cinema screen lights up in all colors. The room is packed and cell phones turn on and off regularly. “Send your selfies, but also your questions on Instagram and Twitter to # AngèleNetflix”, chants on stage the host responsible for making the public react. She announces on several occasions the imminent arrival of the singer, causing a certain stir among the spectators. Finally, the star is there, under the cries and applause. No song, she comes to preview a documentary relating her story, directed by Sébastien Rensonnet and Brice VDH.
Usually responsible for the clips of the young woman, the directors this time worked on a completely different format, on the proposal of Netflix: “It was very different. There was a lot more editing to do. We were locked up for a long time to unravel Angela’s story”, explain the two men, who say they have opened all the singer’s phones and Ipads to find “traces of his life”. “We had to tame Angèle, she’s a very modest person.” Difficult to imagine if one relies on her social networks where she shares her days with her followers. Faith of Angela: “On Instagram, it’s very spontaneous, I don’t ask myself questions. I don’t show my moods, my feelings, or my moments of weakness.” In his documentary, yes.
It begins with the first confinement, a moment of pause after an explosive start to his career. Since 2017, Angèle has been on tour without ever stopping. Through its various diaries, the film traces the emergence of the star since he was 15 years old, and the difficulties in managing this rising celebrity. The writing changes, at first childish with a blue fountain pen, it gradually transforms into a more assertive line written with a black pen. One constant remains: the impression of always having something to prove. Born into a family of artists – actress mother and musician father – she fears being designated only as “Laurence Bibot and Marka’s daughter”. It is about asserting oneself: “who am I ?”, she repeats regularly.
“With this documentary, we discover our doubts”, says Claudia, a fan, at the end of the screening. With the release of the clip Murphy’s Law on YouTube in 2017 and a number of views which panic, Angèle is seized with anguish. She is happy, what is happening to her is incredible, of course, but why then can she not sleep at night? Begins the life of an artist and the perpetual fear of failure. “It’s interesting to see the behind the scenes of his rise, but especially to observe the consequences on his mental health”, adds Coline, also an amateur.
Even though these two groupies knew a lot about their idol’s life, they were sometimes surprised. “I was not at all aware of the Playboy affair”, says Claudia. The magazine publishes without his consent in its columns a photo where we see her shirtless, peppers in her hands to cover her chest. Huge disappointment. His body is sexualized there. The first personal affair can only strengthen her feminist determination. Another step, with his song Balance your what, written after having been harassed in public transport, she becomes in spite of herself a symbol of the struggle. The idea excites and terrifies her.
After the Playboy affair, his relationship with the press is complicated. This is probably also one of the reasons for the documentary. Tell the story as she lived it. “By doing this job, I accepted that part of my life would be shared. There are things out of control, but I wanted to take back control over it, she says during the presentation of the film. I decided to tell some things, not everything either, you mustn’t dream. “
Anyway, his documentary announces an album – Ninety-five, understand 95, as his year of birth – much more personal than the first. Less universal, and musically nourished by his encounters, such as the one with the artist Dua Lipa. “It was made with all the ingredients of my real life”, breathes Angèle. Five heady years to tell. See you on December 10.