Lopez Blogs

Haven’t had one of these for a while and surprisingly there have been a few new entries since the last time in the otherwise normally stagnant French singles chart.

Popstars winner Sheryfa Luna’s second single "Il Avait Les Mots" is no.1 this week. Nice, mid-paced r’n’b type tune which Amel Bent used to be quite good at. I think her voice also sounds a little like Jenifer in places on this one.

"Le Manege" by Stanislas has an almost Christmassy, fairytale feel to it, and it’s an almost classical chanson which could only be a hit in France. It doesn’t quite float my boat though.

"Je Realise" by Sinik begins as a fairly good piano-driven rap song but then turns into a nightmare. The reason? Do the words "Featuring James Blunt" strike fear into your heart?

Marc Antoine is yet another in a long line of home-grown French r’n’b singers and his "Tant Besoin de Toi" is solid rather than spectacular.

Not only is there a growing number of male r’n’b stars but in a country which has always arguably preferred female singers, there has been an explosion of young female r’n’b singers over the last two to three years. The latest is Melissa M, who is doing very well with "Cette Fois" which again has that Amel Bent-style vibe to it. Catchy, commercial and sounds good on the radio.

Finally, another rap number from Soprano - "Ferme Les Yeux et Imagine Toi". French-language rap has also been a very successful genre in recent years and this trend is set to continue.