As a massive tax evasion case concerns five French banks, let’s explore the image of this profession in our popular culture. Spoiler: it’s not always brilliant.
If you work in the communication of a large bank, you like to protest to the shareholders of the violence with which our popular culture treats this sector. Because you know this song by Bernard Lavilliers: it gives us news of war, banking and death.
And we can understand that bankers don’t like to be put on the same shelf as war and death. However, the suspicions of massive tax evasion by five French banks may not reinforce in the public the idea that bankers are honest. And some songs already tell us a lot about banks and bankers.
In the episode of These songs that make the news broadcast this Sunday, you hear excerpts from:
Bernard Lavilliers, Miscellaneous facts1991
Perignon, The Banker and the Entrepreneur2010
Michael Fugain, It’s just like2004
Sexion d’Assault, Open heart2012
Henry Salvador, Think Henry1989
Eddie Mitchell, Don’t have the blues1980
Michel Sardo, The Cities of Solitude1973
Alpha Wan, Cascade Remix2018
Michel Buhler, Tribulations of a singer in Switzerland1997
Guizmo, I know you’re in pain! 2017
Michel Buhler, Tribulations of a singer in Switzerland1997
Gina & the Orchestra, Mr banker1993
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And you can also find on this link the podcast Behind our voices, with the writing and composition secrets of eight major artists of the French scene, Laurent Voulzy, Julien Clerc, Bénabar, Dominique A, Carla Bruni, Emily Loizeau, Juliette and Gaëtan Roussel.