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13 Mar 13
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The 90s and 00s
Through the nineties, the music grew to become one of the most popular genres in France; in 1997, IAM's release "L'école du Micro d'Argent" sold more than 1 million discs, with NTM moving more than 700,000 copies of their final album "Suprême NTM". The group went their separate ways in 2000.
In the 2000s, similar to developments in the USA, a gap has begun to emerge in French hip hop between artists seen as having sold out, belonging to the mainstream, and more innovative independent artists. La Rumeur, Rohff, 113, Dosseh, LIM, Lunatic, Dicidens, Lino, Kamelancien, L'Skadrille, Le 3ème Œil, Black Marché, Carré Rouge, Expression Direkt, are some hardcore rappers known for their rejection of mainstream French rap, while Casey, Rocé, Médine, Youssoupha, Fonky Family, Psy4 De La Rime, Keny Arkana, Mokless, Haroun, Booba, Oxmo Puccino, Sefyu, TLF, Sniper, Arsenik, Dj Azer, Nessbeal, Puissance Nord, Mino, Soprano, L'Algérino, La Swija, Carpe Diem, represent a mix of hardcore or purist rap and mainstream designs.
Music was one way that rappers were able to bring their African heritage into their country. French tracks are often enhanced by recordings of African musical instruments, such as the kora, the balafon, and the ngoni. French rappers incorporate many different drums from African cultures into their hip hop, again installing their African heritage.[9]
French Hip-Hop has also been political in its history as well. "Hip-hop in France owes its success to a strong social demand for it. Historically, France adopted a series of hostile policy against immigrant families. For example, a contentious debate is currently being fought out in the political realm as to whether or not Muslim women should be permitted to wear head scarves. Domestic policy in the period since decolonization has resulted in the development of stifling set of inequalities." <http://www.hiphoparchive.org/node/8271> Most of these political outcries and demands are coming from the younger generation. In order to help them, French President Nicolas Sarkozy announced a new political approach to the economically challenged "banlieues" of France in 2008 saying that, "500 million euros will be spent on the improvement of French public transportation (an effort to make the ghetto less isolated), an increase in police forces in the "banlieues," a prioritization of creating new jobs for these underprivileged youth, a systematic crackdown on drug trafficking in the "banlieues", and the establishment of new schools in disadvantaged areas for students who show particular promise." Hip-Hop remains to be a place where young people can express their needs and themselves politically and freely. <http://www.hiphoparchive.org/node/8271>
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Themes
Themes in French hip hop include opposition to the social order, humor and puns, as well as racial and cultural identity. Whereas early French hip hop was seen as mimicking American hip hop in terms of aesthetic appeal, later French rappers added their own cultural and racial identities to the mix. With the rise of IAM's pharaoism, or allusions to ancient Egyptian pharaohs, we see them attempting to negotiate and create a space for themselves in a social scene rife with discrimination and racist ideologies.
French hip hop can be defined by two major categories or subgenres: hip-hop from the north, mainly centered around major cities like Paris and its suburbs, and hip-hop from the south which focuses around cities like Marseille. The different social climates in the regions make the two subgenres distinct from one another. Lyrics from the south tend to be more socially conscious, with content mainly focusing on the fight against discrimination. Rappers from the south of France are known to tell the 'cold reality' of life in France. In the north, however, content tends to be more straightforward, with rappers typically talking about the drug trade, gang wars, ghetto life and clashes with the police.
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04 Aug 11
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26 Oct 06
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05 Apr 06
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