French Rappers PNL Are Heading to Coachella
The French rapping duo known as PNL — two brothers from the rough suburbs of Paris — have worked their way to the top. This year they're on their way to California where they will perform at Coachella in April.
But it hasn't been easy for Tarik et Nabil Andrieu. Born into a family of criminality (their Corsican father René spent eight years in prison for armed robbery), the teenage brothers were dealing drugs and getting into trouble with the law. Tarik several months in prison for dealing dope.
In that respect, PNL are not unique. Many famous rappers have come from troubled backgrounds and have criminal records: 50cent, Lil Wayne, Eminem, to name a few. And like their American counterparts, PNL were saved by rap music, which has now brought them success and fame. Two years ago they released their first album, Que la Famille, which means Only The Family. #QLF is now their motto, not surprising for brothers.
From PNL video "Tchiki Tchiki". Image credit: PNL.
PNL, inspired by Cloud Rap, have created a new genre of hypnotic rap music. They use vocoder and auto tune so their voices sound dream-like. They work hard on melody of their songs and the visuals in their video clips compensate for crude and vulgar lyrics. The issues they cover in their songs tell their story to their audience and show how much they struggled before their fame. Making their video clips has taken them to Africa, Japan, and Mexico.
Their second album Le Monde Chico was released in October 2015 and shot to the top of iTunes sales. Their third and most worked album, Dans la Légende was released in September 2016. The video clip of their song “Naha” reached nine million of views on YouTube in only a week. And their videoclip “Da” now counts 70 million of views. In June 2016, the duo appeared on the cover The Fader magazine.
The most amazing thing about these two brothers is their marketing strategy, markedly different from other rap artists. Unlike other rappers who promote their albums through interviews, PNL has never talked to any French newspaper, radio station, or magazine. The fact that they are so mysterious is precisely what stirs curiosity about them. As they say in one of their songs: “Fuck vos interview j’aurais pu passer dans vos reportages de chiens” (in English: Fuck your interviews, I could have been filmed in one of your stupid documentaries). In this punch line, the two brothers criticize the hypocrisy of the media, who are always stigmatizing the French ghettos and who at the same time want to interview them now that they are famous.
Image credit: PNL Instagram.
The irony is that the less they look for the buzz, the more they create it. As PNL’s motto says “Que la Famille" — they don't mix, they are family-oriented. They have done very few concerts, some showcases, and they have never been on tour. Through their distant and introverted marketing strategy, everyone is asking: who are they really? Hopefully, the world will be able to answer that question after their performance at Coachella next April.