Versatile, ambitious, sincere, open-minded, talented, this is what qualifies Luidji, the 27-year-old rapper straight from the Paris region. As he says, he is an artist of feeling, he does not pose any limit and loudly proclaims what he wants to say. Surfing in a parallel world, Luidji is unclassifiable.
At the origin of the concept of the evolutionary playlist “Foufoune Palace Playlist” created in 2017 on the various streaming platforms that allowed him to expose the full extent of his palette to a fan base now well established, he returns soon with his first album.
For the occasion Angela Anz spoke with him to learn more about this fascinating artist. Luidji’s interview is to be found below.
KM: Who is really Luidji ?
L: A 27-year-old artist who lives in the Paris region, after I think we have more opportunity to discover me through my songs that if I present myself really. Because in the end there are many facts of my real life in my songs so I think that by listening to them we can really know who Luidji is. In any case, the human is 27 years old and lives in Paris and the artist is on a planet. If I had to define myself I would say that I am an artist of feeling, that is to say I do not pose any limits, it is quite eclectic, I sing, I rap, I put no barrier in my music that’s why people or the media are always struggling to find my box.
KM: Can you tell us about your debut since your first mixtape “Freshness” and what you keep as memories ?
L: It was a very good memory, it was very positive because it was the first time that I was tackling an EP format and it was at a time when I had not projected myself to where I I am now. I was saying “here I am balance 4/6 titles on the internet” it was really pure pleasure and in the end it was really the basis of everything because I soon met producers, directors with whom I could collaborate afterwards. After we released a “2012” Ep that was a little out of the hat, we wanted to release it on January 1st and we started working on it only on December 28th, then I knew my record label period where I I released two EP “Station 999” and “Mécanique des fluides” at Wagram at the time. And I arrived where I started as an independent at the end of this contract and I just needed to take pleasure in making sound, it was a notion that I had lost, but I do not spit about my experience at Wagram that helped me become what I am now.
KM: Your title “Vent d’hiver” was recently used in the American series “Ballers”, aired on HBO, you think you’re going international ?
L: In fact, I see music in the medium term, it means that if tomorrow the opportunity allows me I would not forbid me, why not. Today there are still guys like Stromae who make international dates, or like MHD… There is also a universality in my music, after I do not know if it’s going to be really the bottom of this that I am. If it crosses the borders I will be the happiest.
KM: You are at the origin of a rather exceptional concept, evolutionary playlist, where did you get the idea ?
L: So the evolutionary playlist came to me in the summer of 2017 when I left Wagram, we went back to doing some independent sound and saw that I did not have the idea to make an album or whatever that is, I was just making sound to make the sound, that is to say regain pleasure, publish, see the reaction of people but no rules. There was no record label deadlines, as soon as I made the sound I could post it at any time, we had more all its barriers there. The songs made very good scores in stream so we decided why not make a playlist. I used it as a scrapbook to see what people liked or not. It served me pure start on the album in early 2018 that will be released soon.
KM: In 2017 you decided to create your own label “Foufoune Palace Records” how is it going ?
L: It’s going pretty well, as I said, we’re really working in the medium term. The fact of having been signed, having released independent sounds, having made playlists, then having had streams that allowed us to raise money to finance projects, is therefore step by step that the project was built. It works like a label and for the name I have based on one of my most popular sounds that represents a state of mind in which I say “The family before sorrel” and that’s what drives me and my accomplices, which means that we always advance in a common direction and that energy does not disperse.
KM: According to you, a spontaneous writing makes the difference ?
L: In any case it did it for me yes because I realized that thanks to the spontaneous creative process of my song “Solitaire 1” which spoke about a girl that I had just met, it creates a whole red thread. My album will be a story-telling from A to Z.
KM: What are your musical influences ?
L: I get the impression that I’m taking a little bit of everywhere and a little bit of nowhere, for example the people I’m going to listen to will not necessarily influence my music when there are people I’ve listened to or twice that will really have an influence. I really listen to everything and that since very small actually, I do not listen a lot of music but I listen to sounds really different from each other. For a week I can listen to Céline Dion and the week after 13 Block. As long as I find a strong identity in music that’s what attracts me the most.
KM: What is the next step in your career ?
L: The release of the album and then after God willing we will go to concerts everywhere, perhaps a little further than in Paris. Especially at this moment there are many people in the province who listen to me and I promised many cities that I was going to come, I can not wait for concerts. And then we will create other projects, there we have just created “Foufoune Palace Radio” which is another playlist but based on sounds that me and my friends we listen regularly, we have a line of clothes that we try to develop at this moment, life goes on.
KM: Any last word ?
L: For people who would like to make music if I have a tip to give because that’s what worked for me, it’s to stay honest with themselves.
Interviewed by Angela Anz, writed by Lola Poisson
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