Amid the prosperous, broadly speaking malcontent French rap setting, Alliance Ethnik stood out during the mid to late '90s with a feel-good, fun-loving stylus that proved passing popular. The multicultural collective only released deuce albums -- Wide-eyed & Funky (1995) and Fat Comeback (1999) -- yet each featured numerous tally singles, all of which were later compiled on Best of Alliance Ethnik (2002). The popularity of Alliance Ethnik wasn't sole to France, either, for the group's music featured classical funk samples (e.g., Parliament-Funkadelic) and English-language invitee features (De La Soul) that were universally appealing. In the end, the collective didn't so much break-dance up as it did circulate, as some of the members went on to enjoy meddling and fruitful solo careers.The core members of Alliance Ethnik include K-Mel, Médard, Gutsy, Crazy B, and Faster J, all of whom were French-born children of immigrant parents. The motley of ethnicities characterizing the members, which include relations to Italy, Algeria, and the Congo, contributed to the idea to call the group Alliance Ethnik (i.e., Ethnic Alliance). Rapper K-Mel is the frontman and accordingly the virtually long-familiar member. Born Kamel Houairi on September 22, 1972, to Algerian immigrants, he grew up in Creil, a northern suburb of Paris, and musically was influenced by the Arabic cultural interests of his parents as well as the funk records of his brother. Once he came of age, he began exploring musical tastes of his possess, which included rai and belt, both popular in his neighborhood. In time, he fell in with the local strike scene and promptly highly-developed a reputation as a skilled MC with a talent for freestyling. He began performing at local rap showcases in 1990 and, bucked up by the positive reception to his performances, he formed a group with singer Médard and beat-maker Gutsy, both close up friends. Turntablists Crazy B and Faster J linked the group adjacent, and with the core membership of Alliance Ethnik instantly in place, the group began playacting as a unit and went about recording a demonstration tape.Confederation Ethnik's big soften came in 1992, when they opened a high profile concert by democratic Marseilles tap group IAM at L'Elysées Montmartre in Paris. In the wake of that performance, which garnered prescribed media write-ups, Alliance Ethnik were offered a transcription get with Delabel. It took a patch, just transcription sessions were eventually held in Paris and New York with producer Bob Power, whose résumé included knead with A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, Me'Shell NdegéOcello, Deee-Lite, and Main Source. The resulting album, Simple & Funky (1995), was an immediate success, jactitation trey smash attain singles ("Deference," "Elementary et Funky," "Lunaria annua et Jalousie"). Alliance Ethnik supported the acquittance with performances at the Printemps de Bourges and Francofolies festivals that summer, in improver to a record-release show up at the august Paris venue Le Bataclan on June 13. Alliance Ethnik's music -- characterized by fun-spirited lyrics, a cheerful tone, endless stretches of vivacious funk, and sponsor references to English-language hip-hop -- was rhapsodically received by the French public; for example, the group sold o'er 350,000 albums and 700,000 singles by the year's remainder, and north Korean won a Victoires de la Musique accolade in February 1996 for Best New Group of the Year.It was a few age ahead Alliance Ethnik returned with some other album, Fat Comeback (1999). In the lag, rapper K-Mel began performing on a solo fundament and found the time to grow some industrious talents. Most notably, he collaborated with rai champion Cheb Mami on the hit song "Parisien du Nord." Crazy B too used the layoff period to follow his possess solo interests, competing in the DMC World DJ Championship contest annually. When the time came for Alliance Ethnik to reassemble and begin work on their follow-up album, they chose to collaborate with artisan producer "Prince Charles" Alexander, whose life history stretched back to the early '80s, when he fronted Prince Charles & the City Beat Band. Alliance Ethnik too collaborated with Jamey Staub on a few tracks and produced several on their own. Clocking in at 20 tracks, Juicy Comeback is an challenging, free-ranging album that features an all-star cast of guests, respective of them English-language speakers (Biz Markie, Vinia Mojica, Common, Rahzel, De La Soul). The album is also at times a lot more socially witting than Simple & Funky had been, such as on the album-closing collaboration with African whiz Youssou N'Dour, "Un Enfant Doit Vivre." Juicy Comeback didn't match the phenomenal popularity of its forerunner; however, it was a major success all the same, spawning a long-lived string of hit singles ("No Limites," "Juicy Come Back," "Jam," "5 Heures du Mat"). After the album and its string of singles ran their path, Delabel issued Topper of Alliance Ethnik (2002), which rounded up all the group's singles along with a few mixes, most notably the Prince Paul remix of "Simple-minded et Funky."
Albums of Alliance Ethnik
Top albums of Fat Come Back
Year 2001, tracks 20
Top albums of Simple and Funky
Year 1995, tracks 16
