MC Solaar
MC Solaar (born Claude M'Barali on March 5, 1969) is a French rapper.
He is one of the first artists who popularized rap in France, in the beginning of the 1990s.
Born in Dakar (Senegal), he grew up in the Parisian suburbs. In parallel with his studies in university, he starts recording songs with his friend Jimmy Jay. In 1990, he releases his first single, Bouge de là. The song being a success, he releases an album in 1991 and starts a tour in both France and Africa. He released 8 albums up to date, for which he got different rewards through the years. MC Solaar is one of France's most famous and influential hip hop artists. He is known for his complex lyrics and distinctive flows, which rely on word play, lyricism, and inquiry. Among his biggest hits are Les temps changent, Hasta la vista, Caroline and Sonotone.
He has been married with Ophélie Winter between 1995 and 2000.
On May 26th, 2023, he writes and releases the single Tout se transforme, specially for the French soundtrack of Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. The song tackles themes about the evolution of society since the 1990s, while making metaphors with the Transformers.
Notes
The tweet announcing his inclusion into the soundtrack specifies that he is to this day "the rapper who sold most disks in France",[1] it's unclear how to verify these claims but if we include streaming sales, other estimations puts him at the 3rd place.[2]
References
External links
- Tout se transforme on YouTube
- Wikipedia entry (English)
- Wikipedia entry (French)
- MC Solaar on Instagram
