WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.080 Imagine dropping your highly anticipated album, 00:00:03.120 --> 00:00:05.759 right? But instead of putting it on streaming 00:00:05.759 --> 00:00:08.339 platforms at midnight, like literally every other 00:00:08.339 --> 00:00:10.820 artist on the planet, you force your fans into 00:00:10.820 --> 00:00:12.839 movie theaters. Yeah, you make them sit in the 00:00:12.839 --> 00:00:14.660 dark for two hours to watch a film before they 00:00:14.660 --> 00:00:16.780 can hear a single track on their phones. I mean, 00:00:16.879 --> 00:00:19.420 on paper, it sounds like total commercial suicide. 00:00:19.640 --> 00:00:21.379 You know, you're intentionally putting up barriers 00:00:21.379 --> 00:00:23.219 between your audience and your music. Right. 00:00:23.260 --> 00:00:26.670 It's a massive risk. But it serves as this profound 00:00:26.670 --> 00:00:29.370 rejection of how we typically consume media today. 00:00:30.030 --> 00:00:33.109 Exactly. And for French rapper, Nick Few, that 00:00:33.109 --> 00:00:35.689 audacious gamble resulted in a double diamond 00:00:35.689 --> 00:00:38.649 record. Which is just wild. I mean, we are so 00:00:38.649 --> 00:00:41.609 accustomed to seeing artists fighting algorithms, 00:00:41.609 --> 00:00:43.530 you know, desperately trying to create these 00:00:43.530 --> 00:00:47.530 15 second viral clips to capture just a fleeting 00:00:47.530 --> 00:00:50.130 moment of attention. But he did the exact opposite. 00:00:50.310 --> 00:00:53.390 He demanded total uninterrupted immersion. He 00:00:53.390 --> 00:00:56.810 really did. Well, welcome to today's Deep Dive. 00:00:57.090 --> 00:00:59.810 We are exploring the extraordinary life and career 00:00:59.810 --> 00:01:02.689 of Ken Samaras, who you almost certainly know 00:01:02.689 --> 00:01:05.209 better as the French rapper, actor and producer, 00:01:05.629 --> 00:01:08.349 Nick Few. It's quite a journey. It really is. 00:01:08.670 --> 00:01:11.189 We have an encyclopedic stack of sources here 00:01:11.189 --> 00:01:14.189 today. We're talking detailed biographical origins, 00:01:14.909 --> 00:01:17.390 an extensive breakdown of his discography and 00:01:17.390 --> 00:01:20.379 his foray into film. There's a lot of ground 00:01:20.379 --> 00:01:23.200 to cover. For sure. The mission today is to figure 00:01:23.200 --> 00:01:26.799 out how a kid who started out in the gritty underground 00:01:26.799 --> 00:01:30.019 rap battles of Paris transformed into this massive 00:01:30.019 --> 00:01:32.939 cultural juggernaut. Right, a guy who moves millions 00:01:32.939 --> 00:01:35.500 of albums. Yeah, and entirely redefines how music 00:01:35.500 --> 00:01:37.900 is released to the public, not to mention nonchalantly 00:01:37.900 --> 00:01:40.480 acting alongside French cinema royalty. It's 00:01:40.480 --> 00:01:43.040 so impressive. So for you listening, this isn't 00:01:43.040 --> 00:01:45.500 merely a story about French hip -hop, it's a 00:01:45.500 --> 00:01:48.359 masterclass in creative evolution and cross -media 00:01:48.359 --> 00:01:50.879 dominance. Yeah, and I think what makes his trajectory 00:01:50.879 --> 00:01:53.920 so compelling to study is his ability to constantly 00:01:53.920 --> 00:01:56.239 synthesize different parts of culture. How so? 00:01:56.359 --> 00:01:59.129 Well, from underground rap... to highbrow cinema, 00:01:59.609 --> 00:02:02.530 to mainstream pop, he blends it all without ever 00:02:02.530 --> 00:02:04.590 losing his core identity. That's a rare skill. 00:02:04.909 --> 00:02:07.390 It really is. He manages to exist in all these 00:02:07.390 --> 00:02:10.210 diverse spaces simultaneously, yet he always 00:02:10.210 --> 00:02:12.669 remains authentically himself. OK, let's unpack 00:02:12.669 --> 00:02:14.629 this because we have to start at the foundation. 00:02:15.050 --> 00:02:16.909 Before we can even look at his solo success, 00:02:16.909 --> 00:02:19.810 we really need to explore the incubator phase 00:02:19.810 --> 00:02:22.509 of his life. The early years are so crucial here. 00:02:22.669 --> 00:02:26.409 Right. So Ken Samaras was born in April 1990 00:02:26.409 --> 00:02:30.150 in La Trinité, which is a commune near Nice in 00:02:30.150 --> 00:02:33.110 the south of France. And his background is this 00:02:33.110 --> 00:02:35.090 fascinating mix right from the start. Yeah, he 00:02:35.090 --> 00:02:37.710 has a father of Greek descent and a mother of 00:02:37.710 --> 00:02:39.669 Scottish descent. Which is pretty unique. It 00:02:39.669 --> 00:02:42.539 is. And that heritage gives him diverse multicultural 00:02:42.539 --> 00:02:45.259 lens on the world early on. But the real turning 00:02:45.259 --> 00:02:48.620 point happens at age 11. The big move. Exactly. 00:02:48.919 --> 00:02:51.319 There is a major geographical shift. He and his 00:02:51.319 --> 00:02:54.379 family moved from the relatively tranquil, sun 00:02:54.379 --> 00:02:57.560 -drenched south of France to the 15th arrondissement 00:02:57.560 --> 00:02:59.699 of Paris. And for anyone listening who hasn't 00:02:59.699 --> 00:03:02.139 been there, the 15th arrondissement is dense. 00:03:02.439 --> 00:03:06.099 It's heavily populated, fast paced, a real urban 00:03:06.099 --> 00:03:08.319 district. It's a totally different world. Complete 00:03:08.319 --> 00:03:10.500 culture shock for a kid right on the edge of 00:03:10.500 --> 00:03:12.599 his teenage years. You know, you're trading the 00:03:12.599 --> 00:03:15.240 Mediterranean coast for the concrete intensity 00:03:15.240 --> 00:03:18.000 of the Parisian metropolis. And that environment 00:03:18.000 --> 00:03:21.379 is where his artistic DNA really begins to form. 00:03:21.580 --> 00:03:23.860 Right, but here's the thing, instead of locking 00:03:23.860 --> 00:03:26.379 himself in a bedroom and trying to become this 00:03:26.379 --> 00:03:29.560 solo prodigy, he takes a highly collaborative 00:03:29.560 --> 00:03:32.500 route. He cuts his teeth in rap crews. Yes, we're 00:03:32.500 --> 00:03:34.759 talking about forming bonds with childhood friends 00:03:34.759 --> 00:03:37.719 to navigate this new urban landscape. He joins 00:03:37.719 --> 00:03:40.020 up with a group called DoraCrew. That's with 00:03:40.020 --> 00:03:42.939 guys like Framel, Mekra, Twinsers Washington, 00:03:43.419 --> 00:03:45.979 and DJ Elite, right? Exactly. And then around 00:03:45.979 --> 00:03:49.120 2007, he also becomes a key part of another collective 00:03:49.120 --> 00:03:52.340 called 1995. He's out there participating in 00:03:52.340 --> 00:03:55.099 open mic duels all around Paris. And we should 00:03:55.099 --> 00:03:57.340 note, the open mic circuit in Paris during that 00:03:57.340 --> 00:04:00.599 era was incredibly vibrant, but fiercely competitive. 00:04:00.659 --> 00:04:03.659 Oh, I can imagine. It operated as a proving ground 00:04:03.659 --> 00:04:06.460 where reputations were made or destroyed in literally 00:04:07.069 --> 00:04:09.090 You really had to earn the right to hold the 00:04:09.090 --> 00:04:11.310 microphone. And the crowd wasn't exactly polite, 00:04:11.409 --> 00:04:13.830 right? Not at all. The audience was notoriously 00:04:13.830 --> 00:04:16.670 unforgiving. If your delivery was weak or, you 00:04:16.670 --> 00:04:18.769 know, your lyrics were unoriginal, the crowd 00:04:18.769 --> 00:04:20.759 would let you know immediately. Looking at the 00:04:20.759 --> 00:04:23.920 source material, this era feels analogous to, 00:04:23.920 --> 00:04:27.079 like, a Silicon Valley startup incubator. Oh, 00:04:27.079 --> 00:04:29.019 that's an interesting way to look at it. Right. 00:04:29.379 --> 00:04:31.459 Because instead of going it alone and risking 00:04:31.459 --> 00:04:34.300 failure in a vacuum, he used the collective energy 00:04:34.300 --> 00:04:38.500 of Doll Crew and 1995 to basically workshop his 00:04:38.500 --> 00:04:40.800 sound. Like A .B. testing his rhyme? Exactly. 00:04:41.199 --> 00:04:43.420 Just like a tech startup launches a beta test 00:04:43.420 --> 00:04:45.819 to see if users click a button, Neck View is 00:04:45.819 --> 00:04:48.100 testing rhyme schemes and open mics to see if 00:04:48.100 --> 00:04:50.819 the crowd reacted. on these rapid feedback loops. 00:04:51.139 --> 00:04:53.779 Yeah. If a punchline failed with the 1995 crew, 00:04:53.899 --> 00:04:56.079 he scrapped it long before he ever hit a formal 00:04:56.079 --> 00:04:58.500 recording studio. And they were prolific, too. 00:04:58.579 --> 00:05:02.480 Very much so. With 1995, they drop group EPs 00:05:02.480 --> 00:05:05.860 and albums. You've got La Source in 2011, La 00:05:05.860 --> 00:05:08.959 Suite in 2012, and the studio album Paris Sub 00:05:08.959 --> 00:05:11.680 Minute in 2013. Plus the projects with two crew, 00:05:11.939 --> 00:05:14.639 like Sainzou in 2013. Right. So I have to ask, 00:05:14.759 --> 00:05:16.759 does having that collaborative safety net give 00:05:16.759 --> 00:05:19.399 an artist the confidence to take wild risks later 00:05:19.399 --> 00:05:21.600 on. What's fascinating here is that the crew 00:05:21.600 --> 00:05:24.980 mentality serves a dual purpose. It functions 00:05:24.980 --> 00:05:28.139 as a safety net, yes, but it is primarily accrucible. 00:05:28.420 --> 00:05:30.899 Accrucible, I like that. Because building a foundation 00:05:30.899 --> 00:05:34.500 in rap battles forces an artist to rapidly sharpen 00:05:34.500 --> 00:05:37.170 their lyrical agility. When you were constantly 00:05:37.170 --> 00:05:40.089 sparring with your friends and your rivals, your 00:05:40.089 --> 00:05:42.629 adaptability just goes through the roof. Because 00:05:42.629 --> 00:05:45.129 you have to survive on stage. Exactly. You learn 00:05:45.129 --> 00:05:47.730 in real time what makes a crowd react, what builds 00:05:47.730 --> 00:05:50.509 tension and... You know, what falls totally flat. 00:05:50.629 --> 00:05:53.389 You can't learn that in a vacuum. No. That deep, 00:05:53.490 --> 00:05:55.649 visceral understanding of audience psychology 00:05:55.649 --> 00:05:58.290 is something you simply cannot learn alone in 00:05:58.290 --> 00:06:01.430 an isolated vocal booth. It becomes the foundational 00:06:01.430 --> 00:06:04.170 mechanism for his later solo work. So he spends 00:06:04.170 --> 00:06:07.629 nearly a decade in that gym, so to speak, before 00:06:07.629 --> 00:06:10.170 ever stepping onto the solo court. Which is a 00:06:10.170 --> 00:06:12.709 massive developmental period. Yeah. And that 00:06:12.709 --> 00:06:15.029 prolonged period means that when he finally steps 00:06:15.029 --> 00:06:17.550 out under his own name, the solo star is fully 00:06:17.550 --> 00:06:19.769 formed. Here's where it gets really interesting. 00:06:19.810 --> 00:06:23.350 Let's break out. In June 2015, Neckvue releases 00:06:23.350 --> 00:06:27.829 his debut solo studio album, Fou, and the impact 00:06:27.829 --> 00:06:30.110 is staggering. A big part of that is how the 00:06:30.110 --> 00:06:32.269 album actually sounds. Because he isn't just 00:06:32.269 --> 00:06:35.329 imitating American trap trends. Right. He blends 00:06:35.329 --> 00:06:38.250 this highly technical, almost literary French 00:06:38.250 --> 00:06:42.160 wordplay using these complex polysyllabic rhyme 00:06:42.160 --> 00:06:45.459 schemes with modern, hard -hitting production. 00:06:45.639 --> 00:06:48.100 And that synthesis is really key to his breakout. 00:06:48.399 --> 00:06:50.399 You know, French rap has this long tradition 00:06:50.399 --> 00:06:53.259 of poetic lyricism, and he leans heavily into 00:06:53.259 --> 00:06:56.120 that. Referencing classic literature and philosophy. 00:06:56.339 --> 00:06:59.560 Yeah, but while writing these contemporary beats, 00:07:00.160 --> 00:07:02.680 he brings a lyrical density reminiscent of classic 00:07:02.680 --> 00:07:05.899 1990s French hip -hop, but he packages it in 00:07:05.899 --> 00:07:08.220 a sonic landscape that feels entirely fresh. 00:07:08.439 --> 00:07:12.060 So it appeals to everyone. Basically. Critics 00:07:12.060 --> 00:07:14.519 recognize a technical mastery that appeals to 00:07:14.519 --> 00:07:18.839 rap purists, while the melodies and hooks are... 00:07:18.589 --> 00:07:20.810 you know, accessible enough to capture the mainstream 00:07:20.810 --> 00:07:22.910 radio audience. And the numbers completely back 00:07:22.910 --> 00:07:25.629 that up. I mean, he wins best urban music album 00:07:25.629 --> 00:07:28.790 at the Victoire de la Musique in February 2016. 00:07:29.009 --> 00:07:30.629 Which, for those not familiar with the French 00:07:30.629 --> 00:07:32.709 music industry, that is basically the equivalent 00:07:32.709 --> 00:07:35.009 of the Grammy Awards. It's the pinnacle. Winning 00:07:35.009 --> 00:07:37.470 it signifies total acceptance by the mainstream 00:07:37.470 --> 00:07:39.290 cultural establishment. And the sales reflect 00:07:39.290 --> 00:07:42.350 that, too. Oh, absolutely. The album moves 500 00:07:42.350 --> 00:07:45.490 ,000 units in France, achieving SNEP diamond 00:07:45.490 --> 00:07:48.889 certification. Right. SNEP is the French recording 00:07:48.889 --> 00:07:51.889 industry syndicate. And hitting half a million 00:07:51.889 --> 00:07:54.230 sales in a country the size of France is the 00:07:54.230 --> 00:07:58.129 absolute peak of commercial success. But he barely 00:07:58.129 --> 00:08:00.670 pauses to take a breath. He really doesn't. By 00:08:00.670 --> 00:08:03.810 December 2016, the very next year, he drops his 00:08:03.810 --> 00:08:06.709 sophomore solo album, Cyborg. And that one goes 00:08:06.709 --> 00:08:09.470 Diamond too. Delivering two Diamond certified 00:08:09.470 --> 00:08:12.529 albums in consecutive years requires just remarkable 00:08:12.529 --> 00:08:15.449 creative stamina. It's insane. Most artists spend 00:08:15.449 --> 00:08:18.439 three to four years touring. promoting and honestly 00:08:18.439 --> 00:08:21.339 simply recovering from a debut of that magnitude. 00:08:21.660 --> 00:08:23.439 I have to push back on the logistics of this 00:08:23.439 --> 00:08:26.100 though, because how does an artist drop two diamond 00:08:26.100 --> 00:08:28.439 certified solo albums back to back, establishing 00:08:28.439 --> 00:08:31.160 himself as this standalone star while still releasing 00:08:31.160 --> 00:08:33.840 a full group album? Right, the timeline is wild. 00:08:34.059 --> 00:08:36.360 It is. Right in the middle of this solo explosion, 00:08:36.620 --> 00:08:39.580 in June 2016, he drops the album Destin's Lays 00:08:39.580 --> 00:08:41.940 with his childhood group Dole Crew. He kept his 00:08:41.940 --> 00:08:44.700 ties. But balancing the gravitational pull of 00:08:44.700 --> 00:08:48.139 a solo superstar career with deep rooted childhood 00:08:48.139 --> 00:08:51.639 crew loyalty seems nearly impossible. Usually 00:08:51.639 --> 00:08:53.779 when someone reaches that stratosphere of fame, 00:08:54.220 --> 00:08:56.559 the old friends get left behind in the neighborhood. 00:08:57.059 --> 00:08:59.200 If we connect this to the bigger picture, it 00:08:59.200 --> 00:09:01.620 highlights a really rare philosophy in the music 00:09:01.620 --> 00:09:06.259 industry. Which is? Well, neck few achieves apex 00:09:06.259 --> 00:09:09.909 solo fame. but he actively chooses to use his 00:09:09.909 --> 00:09:12.850 newly acquired gravity to pull his foundational 00:09:12.850 --> 00:09:15.490 community up with him. He doesn't leave them 00:09:15.490 --> 00:09:18.429 behind. No, he operates as the rising tide that 00:09:18.429 --> 00:09:21.110 lifts his childhood friendships. It represents 00:09:21.110 --> 00:09:24.009 a conscious rejection of the typical lone wolf 00:09:24.009 --> 00:09:26.570 superstar narrative. That's a great lesson. For 00:09:26.570 --> 00:09:28.850 you listening, this serves as a potent reminder 00:09:28.850 --> 00:09:30.830 of the value of bringing your community with 00:09:30.830 --> 00:09:33.690 you as you rise. Your success is often deeply 00:09:33.690 --> 00:09:35.909 intertwined with the people who challenged you 00:09:35.909 --> 00:09:37.490 and supported you when you were just starting 00:09:37.490 --> 00:09:40.110 out. Neku never forgot the incubator that made 00:09:40.110 --> 00:09:42.909 him. Exactly. He builds the entire city block, 00:09:42.990 --> 00:09:45.409 and when his specific skyscraper takes off, he 00:09:45.409 --> 00:09:47.090 makes sure the whole neighborhood gets an upgrade. 00:09:47.429 --> 00:09:50.330 That's a great way to phrase it. Thanks. So, 00:09:50.470 --> 00:09:52.250 having conquered the traditional album format, 00:09:52.549 --> 00:09:55.580 the charts, and the award shows, The standard 00:09:55.580 --> 00:09:57.559 move would be to coast, right? Yeah, you just 00:09:57.559 --> 00:09:59.460 keep feeding the machine with standard album 00:09:59.460 --> 00:10:01.980 rollouts. But instead, he pivots. He decides 00:10:01.980 --> 00:10:04.440 to innovate how we actually consume music. He 00:10:04.440 --> 00:10:06.440 transitions from a highly successful musician 00:10:06.440 --> 00:10:10.340 to a multimedia innovator. The method of delivery 00:10:10.340 --> 00:10:13.100 becomes just as important as the music itself. 00:10:13.340 --> 00:10:15.899 And we are talking about his third studio album, 00:10:16.200 --> 00:10:20.080 Les Soirs Vagabonds, released in June 2019. The 00:10:20.080 --> 00:10:22.620 release strategy for this project was unprecedented. 00:10:22.840 --> 00:10:25.090 It really was a shock to the industry. As we 00:10:25.090 --> 00:10:26.649 mentioned at the top of the show, instead of 00:10:26.649 --> 00:10:28.809 just dropping the album on streaming platforms, 00:10:28.889 --> 00:10:31.889 he premiered a companion movie in physical cinemas. 00:10:32.009 --> 00:10:34.809 Just a massive logistical undertaking. Over 100 00:10:34.809 --> 00:10:37.830 ,000 fans bought tickets for a single night screening 00:10:37.830 --> 00:10:41.090 across 200 theaters in France, Belgium, and Switzerland. 00:10:41.629 --> 00:10:43.730 And this movie premiered just two hours before 00:10:43.730 --> 00:10:45.830 the album was made available on your phone. Asking 00:10:45.830 --> 00:10:48.389 your audience to commit time, money, and physical 00:10:48.389 --> 00:10:51.049 presence to experience a new album visually before 00:10:51.049 --> 00:10:53.029 they can passively consume it is a really bold 00:10:53.029 --> 00:10:56.179 demand. especially today. Yeah. The companion 00:10:56.179 --> 00:10:59.659 film acts as an intimate documentary and like 00:10:59.659 --> 00:11:03.179 a visual poem. It chronicles his personal struggles 00:11:03.179 --> 00:11:05.639 with creative block, his search for inspiration 00:11:05.639 --> 00:11:08.659 and his travels to locations like Japan, Greece 00:11:08.659 --> 00:11:11.220 and the United States. It's a deep dive into 00:11:11.220 --> 00:11:13.960 his mind. It visually maps the meticulous process 00:11:13.960 --> 00:11:16.679 of crafting the music. He's giving the audience 00:11:16.679 --> 00:11:19.779 the raw emotional context of the art before they 00:11:19.779 --> 00:11:22.120 hear the final polished tracks. It transforms 00:11:22.120 --> 00:11:25.379 the release into a cinematic event. He hacks 00:11:25.379 --> 00:11:28.399 the culture to make the drop a multi -sensory 00:11:28.399 --> 00:11:31.840 collective experience. And it paid off. Oh, massively. 00:11:32.059 --> 00:11:35.120 The commercial impact was enormous. Over one 00:11:35.120 --> 00:11:37.379 million units sold in France, earning a double 00:11:37.379 --> 00:11:40.720 diamond SNEP certification. Double diamond. It's 00:11:40.720 --> 00:11:42.940 just incredible. And the features on this album 00:11:42.940 --> 00:11:45.379 perfectly showcase his cross -cultural appeal. 00:11:45.980 --> 00:11:48.220 He scores a number one hit with the Belgian rapper 00:11:48.220 --> 00:11:51.179 Damso on the track Trichure. Which features a 00:11:51.179 --> 00:11:53.139 really gritty rhythmic delivery that appeals 00:11:53.139 --> 00:11:56.080 directly to hardcore hip hop fans. But then on 00:11:56.080 --> 00:11:58.259 the exact same project, he has a number two hit 00:11:58.259 --> 00:12:00.759 track called Dawn Universe. featuring Vanessa 00:12:00.759 --> 00:12:04.000 Paradis. The juxtaposition of those two collaborations 00:12:04.000 --> 00:12:07.720 is just brilliant. Right. Because Vanessa Paradis 00:12:07.720 --> 00:12:11.700 is French pop royalty. Her airy melodic vocals 00:12:11.700 --> 00:12:14.879 contrast beautifully with his rhythmic flow. 00:12:15.080 --> 00:12:17.559 It's such a different vibe from the Damso track. 00:12:17.720 --> 00:12:21.019 By bringing her into his sonic world, he seamlessly 00:12:21.019 --> 00:12:23.600 bridges the gap between the underground rap scene 00:12:23.600 --> 00:12:27.179 he came from and the highest echelons of classic 00:12:27.179 --> 00:12:30.559 French pop culture. He proves he can spar with 00:12:30.559 --> 00:12:33.139 heavyweights in both arenas. Let's focus on the 00:12:33.139 --> 00:12:35.019 mechanics of that theatrical release strategy 00:12:35.019 --> 00:12:36.940 for a second, though, because the brilliance 00:12:36.940 --> 00:12:39.960 of that two -hour cinematic window cannot be 00:12:39.960 --> 00:12:42.139 overstated. It's a fascinating choice. In the 00:12:42.139 --> 00:12:44.539 modern streaming era, music has become somewhat 00:12:44.539 --> 00:12:46.600 disposable. You know, we listen to half a song 00:12:46.600 --> 00:12:48.679 on a playlist, get distracted by a notification, 00:12:48.860 --> 00:12:50.779 and skip to the next track. Right. Our attention 00:12:50.779 --> 00:12:53.379 spans are so fractured. By forcing the audience 00:12:53.379 --> 00:12:55.659 into a theater, he makes them experience the 00:12:55.659 --> 00:12:58.120 art collectively in a shared physical space, 00:12:58.600 --> 00:13:00.500 fully immersed in the narrative. Without their 00:13:00.500 --> 00:13:03.539 phones. Exactly. They have to digest the visual 00:13:03.539 --> 00:13:06.559 and auditory journey together before they atomize 00:13:06.559 --> 00:13:09.139 into individual headphone listening. It functions 00:13:09.139 --> 00:13:12.399 as a powerful statement against the disposable 00:13:12.399 --> 00:13:15.519 nature of modern media. Absolutely. You are sitting 00:13:15.519 --> 00:13:18.659 in the dark with hundreds of strangers experiencing 00:13:18.659 --> 00:13:21.860 this deeply personal art knowing that nobody 00:13:21.860 --> 00:13:24.279 outside of this room has heard it yet. It makes 00:13:24.279 --> 00:13:26.879 it an event. Yeah, that creates a bond between 00:13:26.879 --> 00:13:29.860 the artist and the audience that a simple push 00:13:29.860 --> 00:13:32.559 notification on your phone cannot replicate. 00:13:32.799 --> 00:13:35.679 And that cinematic album release serves as the 00:13:35.679 --> 00:13:38.360 perfect bridge to another phase of his career, 00:13:38.779 --> 00:13:41.399 because the visual ambition he showed with Les 00:13:41.399 --> 00:13:44.139 Etois Vagabond wasn't out of nowhere. No, he 00:13:44.139 --> 00:13:46.120 had been building toward this. He had already 00:13:46.120 --> 00:13:48.279 started crossing the boundary into acting and 00:13:48.279 --> 00:13:51.220 broader pop culture. His ambitions clearly extended 00:13:51.220 --> 00:13:54.059 far beyond the recording studio, and he was willing 00:13:54.059 --> 00:13:57.039 to test himself in arenas where he had zero established 00:13:57.039 --> 00:14:00.720 credibility. Which takes guts. In 2017, he made 00:14:00.720 --> 00:14:03.049 his formal acting debut in a film called To New 00:14:03.049 --> 00:14:06.110 Seybar. And this wasn't just a small role. No. 00:14:06.470 --> 00:14:08.590 He didn't just get a quick cameo. He starred 00:14:08.590 --> 00:14:11.470 opposite the legendary French actress Catherine 00:14:11.470 --> 00:14:14.529 Deneuve. Which is mind blowing. The audacity 00:14:14.529 --> 00:14:17.129 to step onto a film set for the first time and 00:14:17.129 --> 00:14:19.789 your scene partner is one of the greatest cinematic 00:14:19.789 --> 00:14:22.309 icons in European history. It's intimidating 00:14:22.309 --> 00:14:24.409 just thinking about it. But if you think about 00:14:24.409 --> 00:14:27.129 it, controlling a stage with thousands of screaming 00:14:27.129 --> 00:14:31.789 fans probably prepares you to hold your own against 00:14:31.789 --> 00:14:34.789 a screen legend. It requires a remarkable level 00:14:34.789 --> 00:14:37.769 of self -assurance. He refuses to be intimidated 00:14:37.769 --> 00:14:40.929 by the medium or the company he is keeping. He 00:14:40.929 --> 00:14:43.470 just treats it like another stage. Exactly. He 00:14:43.470 --> 00:14:45.590 approaches the craft of acting with the same 00:14:45.590 --> 00:14:48.029 intensity he brought to open mic battles. And 00:14:48.029 --> 00:14:50.610 his ties to pop and nerd culture run deep as 00:14:50.610 --> 00:14:54.110 well. Back in 2015, he wrote and performed a 00:14:54.110 --> 00:14:56.070 song for the French version of the Hollywood 00:14:56.070 --> 00:14:58.769 film Creed. Right, the Rocky spinoff. Yeah. And 00:14:58.769 --> 00:15:01.169 then fast forward to 2019, the same year he drops 00:15:01.169 --> 00:15:03.549 Double Diamond's cinematic albums, he jumps into 00:15:03.549 --> 00:15:05.289 the world of anime. This is one of my favorite 00:15:05.289 --> 00:15:08.279 - He provides the French dubbing for the villainous 00:15:08.279 --> 00:15:10.860 character All For One in the smash hit anime 00:15:10.860 --> 00:15:14.000 series My Hero Academia. Which is huge in France. 00:15:14.379 --> 00:15:16.940 Oh, France is the second largest consumer of 00:15:16.940 --> 00:15:19.799 manga and anime in the world after Japan, so 00:15:19.799 --> 00:15:22.379 tapping into this is a major cultural touchstone 00:15:22.379 --> 00:15:25.179 for his generation. But the contrast is wild. 00:15:25.279 --> 00:15:28.179 I have to point out the sheer... tonal whiplash 00:15:28.179 --> 00:15:31.519 here. You go from writing gritty poetic rap verses 00:15:31.519 --> 00:15:35.059 about Parisian street life to standing in a recording 00:15:35.059 --> 00:15:37.919 booth, screaming about stealing anime superpowers. 00:15:38.259 --> 00:15:41.279 The tonal shift is hilarious, but it shows he 00:15:41.279 --> 00:15:44.080 is not bound by the typical constraints of trying 00:15:44.080 --> 00:15:47.340 to maintain a tough, ultra serious hip hop persona. 00:15:47.419 --> 00:15:49.539 He's just having fun with it. Yeah, he actively 00:15:49.539 --> 00:15:52.159 embraces his genuine interests, whether that 00:15:52.159 --> 00:15:54.820 involves high art French cinema or mainstream 00:15:54.820 --> 00:15:57.529 Japanese anime. So what does this all mean? I 00:15:57.529 --> 00:15:59.389 have to challenge this strategy a bit. Go for 00:15:59.389 --> 00:16:02.169 it. When you start stacking up the labels, rapper, 00:16:02.529 --> 00:16:04.970 record producer, songwriter, serious dramatic 00:16:04.970 --> 00:16:07.129 actor, Hollywood soundtrack contributor, anime 00:16:07.129 --> 00:16:09.590 voice actor, is there a risk of a Jack of all 00:16:09.590 --> 00:16:12.190 trades, master of none scenario? That's a valid 00:16:12.190 --> 00:16:14.389 concern. How does an artist keep all these different 00:16:14.389 --> 00:16:16.870 plates spinning without entirely alienating their 00:16:16.870 --> 00:16:19.649 core hip hop fan base? Usually fans just want 00:16:19.649 --> 00:16:21.769 their favorite rapper to rap. This raises an 00:16:21.769 --> 00:16:24.049 important question about how we view creativity 00:16:24.049 --> 00:16:26.559 and authenticity. Right. Because for an artist 00:16:26.559 --> 00:16:29.519 like Neckfew, these are not side quests or distractions. 00:16:30.039 --> 00:16:32.120 They're simply different mediums utilized to 00:16:32.120 --> 00:16:34.779 express the exact same creative vision. It's 00:16:34.779 --> 00:16:37.600 all coming from the same place. Exactly. Whether 00:16:37.600 --> 00:16:40.639 he is acting opposite Catherine Deneuve, voicing 00:16:40.639 --> 00:16:44.799 a megalomaniacal anime villain, or spitting bars 00:16:44.799 --> 00:16:47.679 in an open mic battle in Paris, the underlying 00:16:47.679 --> 00:16:50.559 mechanism is the same performative intensity. 00:16:50.600 --> 00:16:53.360 That makes sense. He approaches the anime dubbing 00:16:53.360 --> 00:16:56.320 with the identical meticulous dedication he applied 00:16:56.320 --> 00:16:59.279 to the syllables on his few album. So the fans 00:16:59.279 --> 00:17:02.460 respect the effort. Yes. His core fan base does 00:17:02.460 --> 00:17:05.000 not feel alienated because the authenticity remains 00:17:05.000 --> 00:17:07.839 intact. They recognize his fingerprint regardless 00:17:07.839 --> 00:17:10.220 of the medium. He has effectively trained his 00:17:10.220 --> 00:17:12.890 audience to follow his curiosity. training your 00:17:12.890 --> 00:17:15.789 audience to follow your curiosity, that perfectly 00:17:15.789 --> 00:17:18.170 brings this entire journey full circle. It really 00:17:18.170 --> 00:17:20.440 does. We started by looking at a kid born in 00:17:20.440 --> 00:17:22.799 the south of France carrying a diverse Scottish 00:17:22.799 --> 00:17:25.539 and Greek heritage. He moves to the bustling 00:17:25.539 --> 00:17:28.339 15th arrondissement of Paris. And instead of 00:17:28.339 --> 00:17:31.759 getting lost in the dense urban sprawl, he finds 00:17:31.759 --> 00:17:34.920 his tribe. He finds his crew. He hones his skills 00:17:34.920 --> 00:17:37.779 in the highly collaborative pressure cooker of 00:17:37.779 --> 00:17:41.420 Parisian rap crews like Do Crew and 1995. And 00:17:41.420 --> 00:17:44.440 from that deeply rooted foundation, he evolves 00:17:44.440 --> 00:17:48.200 into a multi -diamond selling solo artist. who 00:17:48.200 --> 00:17:51.000 consistently refuses to be boxed into a single 00:17:51.000 --> 00:17:54.099 genre, a single format, or a single artistic 00:17:54.099 --> 00:17:57.220 medium. Exactly. So for you listening, regardless 00:17:57.220 --> 00:17:59.220 of whether you're in the music industry, the 00:17:59.220 --> 00:18:01.940 tech world, or literally anywhere else, the core 00:18:01.940 --> 00:18:04.759 takeaway from NECFU's life is universally applicable. 00:18:04.839 --> 00:18:08.119 Absolutely. First, recognize the profound importance 00:18:08.119 --> 00:18:10.920 of building your crew. Find a collaborative foundation 00:18:10.920 --> 00:18:13.160 of people who will challenge you, workshop your 00:18:13.160 --> 00:18:15.480 ideas, and keep you grounded as you grow. You 00:18:15.480 --> 00:18:18.079 can't do it entirely alone. No. can't. Second, 00:18:18.279 --> 00:18:20.019 have the courage to take the skills you mastered 00:18:20.019 --> 00:18:22.480 in one domain and apply them to entirely different 00:18:22.480 --> 00:18:24.940 fields. That's the key to longevity. If you want 00:18:24.940 --> 00:18:27.940 to avoid stagnation, you have to be willing to 00:18:27.940 --> 00:18:30.259 be the rookie again, whether that means acting 00:18:30.259 --> 00:18:33.180 opposite a cinema legend or trying a radically 00:18:33.180 --> 00:18:36.079 new way to present your work. It requires viewing 00:18:36.079 --> 00:18:39.200 your own capabilities without artificially imposed 00:18:39.200 --> 00:18:41.839 limits. You know, you build the foundation and 00:18:41.839 --> 00:18:44.339 then you allow the structure to take whatever 00:18:44.339 --> 00:18:47.410 shape the art demands. Perfectly said. As we 00:18:47.410 --> 00:18:49.529 wrap up this deep dive, I want to leave you with 00:18:49.529 --> 00:18:52.069 a lingering thought to mull over. Something to 00:18:52.069 --> 00:18:54.210 chew on. We've seen how an artist like Nekfu 00:18:54.210 --> 00:18:57.849 can completely redefine the album format by turning 00:18:57.849 --> 00:19:01.289 it into a collective theatrical movie premiere, 00:19:01.910 --> 00:19:04.410 directly pushing back against the passive nature 00:19:04.410 --> 00:19:06.789 of streaming. Right. So what does the future 00:19:06.789 --> 00:19:09.700 of the album look like? As our collective attention 00:19:09.700 --> 00:19:12.200 spans become increasingly fragmented by endless 00:19:12.200 --> 00:19:14.839 scrolling, will the musicians of tomorrow be 00:19:14.839 --> 00:19:17.559 forced to become full -fledged multimedia filmmakers 00:19:17.559 --> 00:19:20.059 just to capture our attention? It's a huge question. 00:19:20.319 --> 00:19:22.619 Will the music alone ever be enough again, or 00:19:22.619 --> 00:19:24.859 are we entering an era where you have to build 00:19:24.859 --> 00:19:27.599 an entire cinematic universe just to be heard? 00:19:28.240 --> 00:19:30.480 Something to think about. Thanks for diving deep 00:19:30.480 --> 00:19:31.019 with us today.