Yannick Noah does not have his tongue in his pocket! While the new edition of Roland-Garros – launched last May – is in full swing, the ex-tennis player proudly celebrated the 40ᵉ anniversary of his victory at the French Open. As a reminder, the interpreter of “Destination elsewhere” remains the last French player to have won this prestigious competition. In a podcast series called “Yannick Noah, between you and me” for Europe 1, the star returned to the key moments of his incredible journey.
The opportunity for him to lift the veil on his relationship to notoriety: “There were times when notoriety weighed on me […]embarrassed me, so much so that I wanted to go into exile, I moved to the United States because I couldn’t manage this constant thing”. Without filter, the ex-companion of Isabelle Camus also adds: I agreed to go and do some shows that seemed to me to be so empty, where people pretended to laugh, where they asked me stupid questions. I had the impression, sometimes, of being at the limit of prostitution”.
In one sequence, he pulls out the sulphate, evoking Star Academy, TF1’s flagship program in which he participated in the past: “It was very painful because I really felt like a whore, to be there to sell a product […]. It was a compulsory passage because it was a wonderful promotion for my project. But I was not well.”
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TPMP columnists divided
However, Yannick Noah was pleasantly surprised by some feedback. In particular from sick children at Necker Hospital: “Suddenly the Star Academy, which I redid after, I had a reason to do it. It gave meaning to all that”. This Monday, June 5, 2023 on the set of “Touche pas à mon poste”, Cyril Hanouna and his columnists and his columnists put this burning subject back on the table. Obviously, they were quite divided on the question…
If Gilles Verdez regretted his tirade, Cyril Hanouna wanted to defend the artist. “He was nevertheless a sponsor of an edition of Star Ac (2006 editor’s note)”explained the husband of Fatou. “So what?! I was the godfather of stuff and it pissed me off too […]”, decided the famous presenter. “Fortunately we still have Yannick Noahs, I’m telling you the truth to speak and to say things! I can’t stand seeing guys who are only waffling”.
“But he says everything and its opposite”, added Valérie Benaïm. “At the same time he says, ‘I didn’t want to be there, it sucked to be there and I felt like a prostitute’, and at the same time he says ‘the kids were great happy and that it has served my association”. “Well, he’s right!”, insisted the producer. “He does not spit in the soup […] ! Fortunately, we still have big mouths like Yannick Noah”.
An opinion that did not really convince Hugo Manos who also accused him of being a hypocrite for doing his “promotions”: “It does not make sense”. Same story for Raymond Aabou: “Each time when they are no longer in office, they throw things […]”. It remains to be seen whether the main interested party will respond to their tackles… To be continued.
NB