the triumph of Aya Nakamura, the return of rappers La Fouine and Médine, Gazo crowned artist of the year

Aya Nakamura was undoubtedly the queen of the second edition of Les Flammes, marked by the return of great voices of urban music, as well as numerous political interventions.

The second edition of Les Flammes, the equivalent of Victoires for rap and its trends, took place live on the evening of Thursday April 26 on W9, Twitch and YouTube. Many highlights were expected, including the performance of Aya Nakamura, the most nominated artist this year, the double potential of Gazo and some surprise appearances.

The public was not disappointed by this ceremony celebrating urban music little represented at the Victoires de la Musique, despite the considerable enthusiasm in France. The nominations and winners of the Flames are the result of the aggregate of the public vote and the jury vote. Here are the highlights of the 2024 Flames.

Aya Nakamura queen of the evening

On the red carpet, all the personalities were unanimous. The one they were waiting for was Aya Nakamura. And it was she who opened the ceremony with a medley including her flagship titles Oumou Sangaré, Baby, Pookie and his new hit Hyped in white fur. She set the stage and the room on fire with this highly anticipated performance. As a reminder, Aya Nakamura was affected by a wave of racism, after the announcement of her potential participation in the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games.

The most nominated artist of the evening with six nominations, the singer won three awards. The one who is nicknamed “the Queen of France”, first won the Flame for New Pop Album. “This victory is for all the Renois. We have come a long way. Thanks to my team and the musical partners despite the hassles”, she declared on stage at the Théâtre du Châtelet while collecting her reward. “I receive all the love despite the controversies and criticism, thank you very much”she added.

She also won the Flame for international influence of the year and that of female artist, which she had already won last year, for the first edition of the Flames. “Being a female artist, even black and from the suburbs, is very difficult”, said Aya Nakamura. The one who promotes French culture internationally added: “I know where I come from, I know that I have inspired more than one. That gives me even more courage“.

Rachida Dati absent: “She is in the Macron gang”

Unlike the former Minister of Culture Rima Abdul Malak who attended the first edition of Les Flammes last year, Rachida Dati was notable by her absence. The actor and comedian Waly Dia did not spare it in his speech at the opening of the ceremony. “Isn’t Rachida Dati there? She was part of the Sarkozy cartel, now she is in the Macron gang, you should not trust her.”, he asserted. “We know very well that our politicians have nothing to do with our cultures.”, continued Waly Dia. He also commented on the wave of racism affecting Aya Nakamura. “The problem isn’t the music, the problem is that Aya is a woman, black, who doesn’t tell them the time.”

The return of the legends: Alonzo, Fanny J and surprise performance by La Fouine

“He took 20 counts, counts, counts. Sam got firm, firm, firm“. This now iconic phrase belongs to the rapper La Fouine who made a surprise return on stage and gave a medley of his greatest songs. He received a standing ovation from the audience who sang It hurts, Hamdoulah how are youOr Who can stop me. La Fouine was joined by singer Zaho, discreet in the music industry, to perform their song You are my best. La Fouine took the opportunity to announce a concert date at the Accor Arena in Bercy.

Guyanese singer from the 2000s Fanny J also returned to the stage to perform Okay And Anchored at your port. The legendary rapper from Marseille, Alonzo came to rap Finish them, a flagship title in his repertoire. “I’m happy to see that street art is in the spotlight.”he said before his performance.

Alonzo closed the ceremony with the song Little Genius which he shares with Jungeli, Imen Es, Abou Debeing and Lossa and for which he won the Flame for African or African-inspired music piece of the year.

Shay ignites the stage again

Rapper Shay once again set the Flames on fire and performed Santa Fefrom his latest album, As long as it rains. A desert atmosphere and leather outfits accompanied Shay’s performance which ended on a rodeo-style motorcycle.

The rapper won the Flame for video of the year for her title Commando, presented by filmmakers Alice Diop and Lina Soualem. “For the record, when we released this clip, it was the least viewed video in the history of my clips. I was a little sad because I was disappointed, I told myself that we had a vision, but maybe people didn’t understand.”. Shay thanked her fans and reminded that she would meet them on a festival tour this summer and at the Zénith in Paris next winter.

Medina pays tribute to victims of Gaza

Rapper Médine paid a poignant tribute by performing his song Gaza soccer beach from his album Minesweeper (2015). Gaza, where, he raps, we “plays the World Cup under the eye of journalists“Behind him were the names of some Palestinian children who died during the bombings.”Thank you to the Flames for allowing us to display the names of all the missing children. There is not enough space to write on the walls of the theater all the names of the 35,000 victims.”he declared solemnly at the end of his performance.

The rapper is under controversy, notably for a tweet deemed anti-Semitic which created controversy last summer. “Not only am I not anti-Semitic, but I have been fighting against anti-Semitism for 20 years, on the ground.“, Medina defended last summer.

Gazo artist of the year for the second time

The Male Artist Flame was once again won by rapper Gazo. “I had the honor of being there for the inauguration of the Flames, this is my second year in a row”. Nominated five times, he was the big favorite to win this category. A former homeless man who became a French prince of drill, Gazo marked the year with his collaborations and his unique style. He thanked his mother who is currently in the hospital.