Episode 13 - March 19 2016 - Épisode Francophone pour la Journée Internationale de la Francophonie

Songs played (* Canadian Content):

• Ariane Moffatt* - Miami
• MC Solaar - RMI
• Dead Obies* - Pour Vrai
• Radio Radio* - Gong Hotel
• Pierre Kwenders feat. Jacobus* - Mardi Gras
• Arthur Comeau* - Chemin à Car
• TTC - De Pauvres Riches
• Beat Market* - Madonyx
• Bronswick* - Comme La Mer
• Paupière* - Cinq Heures
• Essaie Pas* - Depassée Par le Fantasme
• Yelle - À Cause des Garçons (À Caus' des Garçons cover)
• Yelle - Que Veux-Tu (Madeon remix)
• Monogrenade* - Cercles et Pentagones
• La Femme - Jaded Future-Future Las
• Stromae - Papaoutai

Joyeuse Journée Internationale de la Francophonie à tous le monde!!! To celebrate International Francophone Day I've compiled some electropop and hip-hop tracks from artists that perform their material primarily in French. 

I've studied French from elementary school all the way to high school, but haven't really practiced French from university onwards. That didn't totally kill my interest in the French language however, and I've retained some knowledge of French by listening to Francophone music, playing games in French, and reading French news articles. I used to go to a language exchange meetup to work on my speaking, but unfortunately due to time constraints I've not been able to make it for a while. I might come back though!

I probably won't end up elaborating on my international background in an entire episode, but mention it briefly in future episodes, mostly because I listened mostly to mainstream pop music and old classics during my childhood. Since I lived in Africa for 9 years (3 different countries), I didn't have rapid internet collection or access to a wide array of music. Nor did I listen to a lot of electronic music or local music back then, so it may not fit into the scope of PulsarSounds. Either way, I'll try and incorporate some backstories as I go!

But speaking of the international background, I did encounter MC Solaar and Ariane Moffatt in school while I was studying French at international schools in Uganda and China respectively. Looking back, I found learning French really fun as it created a window into a foreign culture, one that I wasn't really exposed to (besides Canada, none of the other countries I lived in were French-speaking).

All the other artists I have discovered as I was volunteering at CJSF. Monogrenade and Radio Radio were two of the first couple of Francophone artists I've encountered in my first year of hosting shows at CJSF. Nick Lagasse, the host of CJSF's international/global music show Wandering Rhythms, also introduced me to a bunch of artists including TTC and La Femme, both French artists with electronic influences. (Thanks so much Nick btw!) Stromae I came across as I was randomly browsing YouTube; I was surprised to see some really awesome electronic and hip-hop influenced tracks from this Belgian artist, with lyrics dealing with heavy subject matter delivered in a relatively upbeat manner. (Apologies for the song cutting off midway btw!)

Many others I've heard from researching Quebec-based record labels (e.g. Bonsound, P572, Lisbon Lux), especially as I've started out at CJSF mostly looking for good Francophone music to play. Since CJSF's goal is to promote underrepresented voices, I would definitely count the Francophone community as one of them, especially here in BC. No BC artists in this episode, je suis desolée :(