The Bordeaux-born designer is a graduate of the Paris fashion and art school ESMOD, and he worked at Roberto Cavalli in Milan for almost six years before joining Balmain.
After a decade at the helm of the French brand, his confidence has grown, he feels truly like an adult and the fashion house has multiplied in size sevenfold as he added pre-collections, men’s wear and accessories — along with heat and cultural currency.
Despite his youth, or perhaps because of it, he thrust himself and the house to social media stardom; put diversity and inclusivity at the top of his agenda, and took a community-building approach to everything he did, welcoming all to join his “Balmain army” as early as 2014, when he coaxed Rihanna to pose for one of his blockbuster campaigns.
Imaan Hammam, Naomi Campbell, Carla Bruni, Natalia Vodianova, Adut Akech, Lara Stone and Edie Campbell were just some of the A-List faces who modelled Rousteing’s signature designs, donning cut-out dresses, heavily embellished jackets and bead-encrusted shorts.
The Balmain Festival raised funds for his long-time charity partner (RED) in the fight against AIDS and Covid-19, and to aid women in third-world countries.
A jaw-dropping collection, a history-making night and a charity effort? It’s fair to say that for his 10th anniversary, Olivier Rousteing has scored a 10/10!
Aïcha,Cheb Khaled (Algerian singer) 1996 With delightful verses filled with biblical and koranic allusions, this ballad is a classic love story. The singer belts out his love for Aïcha, who is not too interested in him and prefers to be independent. This song, written by a Jew and interpreted by a Muslim, is a cry for peace, and truly a masterpiece. Khaled went on to become one of the Arab world’s most famous singers, and has been named the King of Raï. His most recent hit, C’est la vie, has over 50 million views on YouTube.
Papaoutai,Stromae (Belgian singer) 2013 How could I not mention it. With over 270 million views, this song is the most successful French song on YouTube. The contrast between its cheery beat and depressing lyrics about a boy searching desperately for his father (Papa, où t’es?) makes Papaoutai exceptional. The lyrics and video are just gorgeous, and definitely worth a listen. Amongst Stromae’s other hits, we count Formidable,Alors on dance,CarmenandTe Quiero.
Quelqu’un m’a dit,Carla Bruni-Sarkozy (Franco-Italian singer) 2002 France’s very own ex First Lady ! Yes, Carla Bruni, on top of being Nicolas Sarkozy’s wife, is also a renowned and beloved singer. In this sweet ballad, she faintly remembers someone telling her that he ex-lover stills loves her (perhaps in a dream?).
À toi,Mister You (Franco-Moroccan rapper) 2014 To you my little heart, to you my butterfly. In this sweet song, hardened rapper Mister You shows us his delicate side while nostalgically missing his ex-girlfriend. In the « thug French rapper from Morocco who also has a soft side » category, we also find La Fouine, whose notable piano ballad Tous les Mêmes delivers a message of equality between classes.
Aux armes et cetera,Serge Gainsbourg (French singer) 1979 Out of Gainsbourg’s very large musical repertoire, I chose to include his Reggae rendition of France’s national anthem because of its innovator aspect. Indeed, France’s favourite bad boy recorded this song in Jamaica (Bob Marley’s wife is one of the backup singers) and thus brought the Reggae genre to France. The song sparked a controversy at the time of its release (but then again, Gainsbourg’s career is scandal after scandal). Amongst his best hits are Je t’aime… moi non plus,La Javanaise,Bonnie & ClydeandLa chanson de Prévert, to name a few. If you are interested in Gainsbarre’s life, I recommend Joann Sfar’s 2010 fictional film Gainsbourg, vie héroïque, in which Laetitia Casta plays Brigitte Bardot.
Mishapan Nitassinan,Chloé Sainte-Marie (French Canadian singer) 2009 Granted, it is not French technically. But I wanted to include this lullaby in the mix because Native people in Canada don’t have much of a voice and aren’t represented well in the media. This song doesn’t have any actual lyrics (except something along the lines of « Remember how big our land was »), the singer just sings a list of places and cities in present-day Canada, USA and Mexico that used to belong to the Native people. Other Amerindians singers include Philippe Mckenzie, Floyd Western and rapper Samian.
Other memorable French musical artists : Charlotte Gainsbourg, Françoise Hardy, Johnny Hallyday, George Brassens, Francis Cabrel, Coeur de Pirate, France Gall, Charles Aznavour, Edith Piaf, Celine Dion, Jacques Brel, Joe Dassin, Michel Delpech, Michel Polnareff, Lorie, Alizée.
