Artist info
Stromae
Thursday, 13 june 2016
Beach Lounge : 13.00 - 15.30
Paul Van Haver (born 12 March 1985, Brussels), better known by his stage name Stromae, is a Belgian musician, singer, rapper and songwriter. Stromae was born to a Rwandan father, Pierre Rutare, and a Belgian mother, Miranda Marie Van Haver. He is originally from Laeken, in Brussels. He established himself in both the hip hop and electronic music genres. Stromae came to wide public attention in 2009 with his song "Alors on danse", which became a number one in several European countries. In 2013, his second album Racine carrée was a commercial success, selling 2 million copies in France alone and nearly 600,000 units elsewhere.
Early life
Stromae was born in Belgium to a Tutsi father and a Flemish mother. His father, a successful Rwandan architect, was killed during the 1994 Rwandan Genocide. His mother raised him and his four siblings in Brussels, and later in a nearby suburb. She encouraged each of her children to play a sport and an instrument. Stromae studied percussion. His mother placed him in a Roman Catholic Jesuit school after he failed in the public school system at the age of sixteen. He formed a small rap group with friends while still in school. His early influences included Belgian singer-songwriter Jacques Brel, Cuban son, and Congolese rumba. He did not always feel that he was from Belgium, even though he was raised as a Belgian. He always saw himself more connected to his Rwandan side; some believe that is the source of his talent. This "outsider" image became part of his appeal.
Musical career
2000–07: Early career
In 2000, he appeared as a rapper called Opsmaestro, though he later changed his stage name to "Stromae", which is "Maestro" with the syllables reversed in a French vernacular practice called verlan.
At the age of 18, he founded a rap group called "Suspicion", along with rapper "J.E.D.I." in Eichof. They produced the song and music video "Faut que t'arrête le Rap..." before J.E.D.I. decided to leave the rap duo. To finance his private school education, Van Haver worked part-time in the hospitality industry, but his academic performance wasn't up to standard. It was only later, when he registered at the Institut national de radioélectricité et cinématographie, that he released his first album "Juste un cerveau, un flow, un fond et un mic...".
2007–08: Debut EP and record career
In 2007, during his studies at the film school of Brussels, Stromae decided to concentrate fully on his musical career. This resulted in his debut-EP "Juste un cerveau, un flow, un fond et un mic…". In 2008 he signed a 4-year record deal with "Because Music" and "Kilomaître".