“Getting out of 100% rap allowed me to stay free.” This is a first for a rapper: at age 42, Soprano becomes godfather of the Telethon, which takes place on December 3 and 4, and succeeds singers like Pascal Obispo, Garou or Michel Sardou.
A key figure in the French music scene, which he has crossed with hits for 20 years, rapper Soprano, loved by parents and teenagers alike, has become a bridge between generations. “They’ve been calling me for several years to be the godfather but every time the timing was bad. When I told them it was good I was so proud and happy”, he told AFP.
A pride for the artist from the northern districts of Marseille, but not a surprise for the public. Present every year in the ranking of the favorite personalities of the French, he is also the favorite singer of 7-14 year olds. A double hat that he assumes: “I am the father of a family. For me, it is important to pay attention to what I say in my texts so I understand that I like parents and young people.”
Born Saïd M’Roumbaba in Marseille, in a family from the Comoros, Soprano comes to singing thanks to what he calls “muslim gospel”, which he practices from childhood on birthdays and weddings. He launched his career in 2002 with the group Psy4 de la Rime, which he formed with his cousins. The style is rocky, harsh, despite the rather shrill voice of its leader, Soprano.
Five years later he released his first solo album Since you have to live, on the idea of the series The Sopranos, where the hero, a mafioso in crisis, confides in his psychoanalyst. From this album, are taken several hits including Has a well (he gives the answer to Eric Cantona in the clip) or Halla halla. “I had a period when I was in depression and when this album arrived I said to myself that we had to let go of all my demons because we had to grow up”, he explains.
Success is there and will never leave him. Six more albums followed, all of which were huge commercial successes, including Star hunter, released in September. In addition to the millions of records sold, there are grandiose tours. As when it filled the Stade Vélodrome (OM’s hideout, 55,000 seats) in 2017, becoming the first French-speaking artist to achieve this after Johnny Hallyday.
With each album, the same consistency: do not get locked into hard rap and offer airy and dancing songs. “I grew up with the French variety, and at the same time, I listened to IAM and Eminem. Why oppose them? As if we could not listen to rap and dance to Gilbert Montagné at a wedding”, he quips.
But above all the artist, who claims the appellation “singer-rapper”, refuses the assignment to urban music alone. As in 2016, when he appeared in a telecrochet show with a cover of Daniel Balavoine. Or when he accepts to join the cast of The Voice on TF1, becoming the first rapper to do so.
At the beginning of September, he announced that he was leaving the junior version of the telecrochet where he was a judge to devote himself to his future tour. “We like to put people in boxes but with me it didn’t work. Getting out of 100% rap and showing all the facets of my art allowed me to remain free”, he assures.
However, he has never really turned his back on rap and remains a figure appreciated by the biggest headliners of this scene. It is thus present in two titles of the project Classico organized, released on November 5, which brings together under the leadership of Marseillais Jul 157 artists from Paris and Marseille for a three-hour musical match.
“Whatever I do, I am always in the fun”, he assures. And to conclude that his biggest dream would be to end up like Charles Aznavour: “At 94, he was still on stage. That’s the kif.”