GEORGIO // Interview

We went to meet this highly acclaimed rapper in France when he came to London, in the district of Hackney, for the first date of his tour on January 31st. He is often described as the leader of 'Poetic Rap', expressing his open heart before going on stage. The French expatriates living in London, are greatly excited to see Georgio on stage for the launch of XX5 Tour. It was in the warm and cosy lodges of Olso Venue that the 25-year-old rapper from Paris took the time to answer our questions with a great nature and a lot of kindness. The rapper who was nominated at the 2019 Victory Awards did not hesitate to express himself openly about his beginnings or difficult life and the evolution of his journey whilst speaking very sweetly with his words about his past.

Can you describe your Rap to an English audience discovering you? It's complicated... (laughs). I would say that it is a rap bent towards writing because I pay attention to all my lyrics by aiming above all to be pure and sincere. It is also melodious as melancholic. It forms a completely different mixture of energies.

The image that often emerges of you in France is that you are considered "a Poet Rapper of the 21st century"... Is this an image that you want to put forward? Not especially. I'm not trying to claim it or deny it. It's hard to see yourself as a poet but it's super rewarding to be named as such. If people think that my rap looks like poetry, it's great, and I really take it as a compliment.

You started to rap at 14 years old. In your new album, you take a lot of hindsight I find, as if you are taking stock of what has happened since your debut. At the time you thought you had made it? It's huge what happened to you! In 10 years you became a muse for Givenchy, you filled a Zenith... No, I didn't have that vision there, it seemed at the time to be the end of the world and be unreachable... But paradoxically, I always knew that I would make it in the sense that success was my only option. It was rap or nothing.

I heard that you often spoke of this special bond that binds you to London? You even made a sound in the deluxe edition of your last album Hera which is called 'Paris-London'. Can you tell me more? London is a city that has always attracted me for its energy. I often went back and forth between Paris and London, and last year I spent two and a half months here and I have lots of memories that are related to this city. I was also able to meet a London artist named Murkage Dave who had made the piece 'O.D' with Nekfeu – e.d: One of the leaders of French Rap since the release of his album Feu en 2015 – It also allowed me to meet an artist named Petite Noir. He lives between London and South Africa. We made a song together for XX5. In hindsight, I wonder why I did not keep it for the final selection. (laughs).

Are you thinking of adding it to the reissue of the album if there is one? In all honesty, I do not know at all what the future holds for me and if I will release a reissue of XX5. For the moment, I continue to write and make new songs but I do not know what will happen to these pieces precisely. Should I keep them for a new project? A reissue? Do I throw them away? It’s a big question.

If people think that my rap looks like poetry I take it as a compliment.

Your inspiration seems to be constant you actually refer to it in some of your texts... You are someone who writes constantly? There are times when I lack inspiration, but I try to always write. It's important not to lose the rhythm: it's a kind of cerebral gymnastics. The more you write, the less you lose the form. If I stop writing for a while, it's hard to get back to it afterwards.

In what state of mind did you write XX5 your new album? For a long time after Hera – e.d: his second studio album – I wondered what I wanted to write about and I thought I should just do what I wanted to do. That’s why we find lots of different energies on this album, such as with 'Mirroir' or 'Dans Mon Elements' which are more melancholic pieces than 'Barbara' or 'J'en Sais Rien' that are much more energetic. I also speak of Love as in the song '31 Janvier'.

How do you find the perfect balance between all these different energies? You want the truth? I did not ask myself that question precisely. (laughs). I mostly followed my desires and made the pieces as I wanted to, without asking too many questions.

You also make huge reference to your mates – loyalty is something that seems to be important to you. It is the opposite of the image that we sometimes have about rap that it seems to be an environment where there is a lot of competition... It is true that what matters me most is to be surrounded by people who want to propagate messages of love. I'm not really interested in hanging out with hateful and bitter people.

'' I always knew that I would make it in the sense that success was my only option. It was rap or nothing.''

In a recent interview you said that the younger you went through a great period of melancholy that was a vicious circle and that you were even afraid to come out for fear of no longer knowing what to write. But I think this new album is filled with hope, with songs like 'Coup Pour Coup' for example. Do you find that your way of writing had to change? Yes, I felt it in my music. At the beginning with the album Hera and now with XX5, which is completely different. Instinctively my way of writing has changed for sure, but on the other hand, I get the impression that the lexical feel and the melancholic theme remains unchanged. The stories are different, the pieces are different, but there is still a vocabulary that remains particular to my person.

Last September, you gave seven free concerts that you named the 'Shadow Tour'. How did you come up with the idea of coming back to the source in this way? I have always existed on the Internet and liked its sharing system. I always had this recognition for my audience who has supported me from the beginning and I always try to thank them in one way or another. For Hera, I had created a special group on Facebook and I sent stickers to those who wanted it. I always try to maintain the link with them and say thank you. It's also a way for me to say, "Okay, my career continues, but I don't forget where I come from and who I am here for". It's important to me.

You are also super close to your audience, you share a lot with them and yet on one side you remain mysterious. Is it important for you to give yourself to your audience while staying in the shadows? Yes, that's it. I remain aware of what I show and especially what I want to show but there is another, more intimate part that I keep for myself. I sincerely believe that if I didn't have rap, I wouldn't have social networks. Or I would just be a stalker of what interest me and the artists I like to follow up with them. (laughs).

There is a phrase that leaves a lot of thought in the piece 'Hier' where you say "Nothing is ever too healthy when you are afraid to choke. If you knew where I came from, you would understand where I'm going"... Can you tell me more? I grew up in an affluent middle-class family, and overnight with my parents’ divorce, I found myself leaving the house where I had grown up to live in a home where three of us lived in a tiny room. That's what I'm saying in this piece: I was very quickly confronted with the problems of adulthood. It made me want to shout to the world and say "I don't want to this anymore". It's a motivation to always go further.

In your piece 'Aujourd'hui' you say "I have not finished writing my Dreams"... What do you still have to do? In music I have a desire to climb even bigger and stronger. I want to hit even more people. I have lots of other dreams, like to go around the world. Every morning I have new goals, new desires that I put in a corner of my head while waiting to realize them.

Words © Fanny Hill Scott

Photography © Romain Rigal