Grand Corps Malade

Things that I have in common with the hottest Slameur in France:

1. We are both quite tall (he's roughly an inch taller than I am)
   
2. We both ooze charisma.
3. We both have spinal injuries that make us walk with a limp (I have sciatica right now, which sucks. Hopefully, it'll go away soon -- see note below)
   

Grand Corps Malade is huge in France (and Switzerland). After a freak injury diving into a municipal pool in 1997, doctors told him he would never walk again. After two years of rehab, he was able to walk, but with a noticeable limp. To pass the time during his recovery, he worked on his slam -- spoken word poetry heavily influenced by hip hop -- and eventually began performing under the name Grand Corps Malade, "Big Sick Body." Currently, he has two albums out, both of which were major hits in France upon their release.

We listened to some of his poetry in my French class last semester, and for the most part, it is very entertaining. Although he mixes in a fair amount of verlan -- French ghetto slang -- his pronunciation is clear and his word choice is straightforward, thus it's a good way to practice your French listening skills.

So, if you want to know what the cool French kids are into these days, I recommend the following videos:

Grand Corps Malade -Les voyages en train

Grand Corps Malade - Saint Denis

Grand Corps Malade - L'appartement célibataire
(this one is quite funny)

He tours a lot in France, so I hope to catch one of his shows someday. But, in the meantime, I am not sitting idly on my keyster. I, too, have decided to turn my injury into art: I am going to become a slameur. Technically speaking, I did this "slamming" a few months ago for another project for French class. But, it wasn't until today that I set it to a photo-collage and put it on youtube, so my career as a French poet begins now.

Our assignment was to read this poem dramatically, with an emphasis on pronunciation, then email a recording of it to the professor. Since I ended up recording the poem late at night in my room, I had to whisper into the mic so as not to disturb my neighbors -- basically, it makes me sound even sissier than ever. And as far as slam goes, it's downright sissy. Still, I have to start somewhere.

The beginning and end of my career as a Slameur

Text of the poem, in French and English

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If I haven't already complained to you individually about my back, let me summarize as such: I had the flu something awful right after New Year's, and all of the violent coughing I did must have inflamed something in my back. After I recovered from the flu, I was left with a dull ache in my back and severe pain in my right leg. The doctor says that it is sciatica and that it'll get better on its own. Already, I feel improved and I hope to be over it in the next couple days.

One of the cool things about going to the doctor here is that they let me keep my x-rays. So, for all of you home diagnostic enthusiasts, here you go! Tell me if you see anything that looks sciaticky.

Fig. 1: View from the front. Scandalous.

Fig. 2: View from the side. Even more scandalous.