Paul van Haver goes by the name Stromae as an electro producer/rapper. From a young age, this half-Rwandan Belgian has had a huge interest in music. After a short career as a rapper, member of a rap group and a music education, he scored his first hit in 2009 with 'Alors On Danse'. About a year later, this single reached the Netherlands. Stromae is known for his socially critical lyrics.
Paul van Haver was born in March 1985 in the capital of Belgium. There in Brussels, the half Rwandan/half Belgian boy grew up and already at the age of eleven he wanted to make music. What do you do then as a little boy? You go to music school. At l'Académie Musicale de Jette he learned about music history and how to play drums.
Stromae
Paul started rapping around the year 2000 and chose the stage name Opmaestro, but not long after he decided to change it again. He reversed the two syllables of the word 'maestro' and thus his stage name was born.
Education
Meanwhile, Paul as an ordinary boy also just went to school. He worked in the fast food industry to be able to pay for his education at his private school. His grades were poor there and he switched this education for one at l'Institut National de Radioélectricité et Cinématographie. That's where his musical career took off.
Musical success
Stromae's first EP is called Juste un cerveau, un flow, un fond et un mic, released in 2007 and marks the beginning of the Belgian's musical success. In no time, he had a record deal and a network within the Belgian radio world. His debut album Cheese from 2010 includes the track 'Alors On Dance'. These danceable summer sounds reached number one in the charts of Belgium, Germany, France and China. The Netherlands enthusiastically received the single in the summer of 2010.
Top 2000
In the 23rd edition of the Top 2000, Stromae is listed with the following entries:
Sunday Morning Classic
On 18 December 2022, Stromae managed to take the stage at De Platenbar with his Sunday Morning Classic album Racine Carrée (square root) from 2013.
With the single 'Papaoutai', Stromae is back, as the song quickly became one of the summer hits of 2013. In the track, Stromae sings about his father whom he has only seen three times in his entire life. The word Papaoutai is a reference to the French phrase 'Papa, où t'es?' (Dad, where are you?).
Other songs like 'Formidable', 'Tous Les Mêmes' and 'Ta Fête' from the album Racine Carrée are also hits. Stromae visited the DJs of the Glazen Huis in Leeuwarden in December 2013. 2014 was also a good year for Stromae: he performed at Heineken Music Hall, took the stage at Pinkpop 2014 and visited the Ziggo Dome Amsterdam in the autumn.
The album discusses themes such as alienation through social networks, relationship problems, discrimination, cigarettes and lung cancer, AIDS and absent father figures. It was recorded in a basement and was, according to Stromae, an attempt to combine Caribbean and African music with his characteristic dance beats. Jacques Brel was also an influence on Stromae's work. The song Ave Cesaria is a tribute to the Cape Verdean folk singer Cesária Évora.
Although there are autobiographical elements in the album, there are also many things that are not based on Stromae's life. "Of course, there are small things that seep through from my own life, but I keep a certain distance," the artist explained in an interview.
On 8 February 2014, Stromae also won eight Music Industry Awards.
Source: NPO Photo: free use and public domain
