INTERVIEW
He is a precursor in the political world. Jack Lang, then Minister of Culture, was one of the first to support the emergence of rap in French music in the mid-1980s.
On the occasion of the last concerts of the group NTM, at the AccorHotels Arena in Paris, Friday and Saturday, the president of the Arab World Institute remembers at the microphone of Europe 1 of this time where this style of expression n was not necessarily well seen. He also recognizes having taken a lot of shots from his opponents. "It was surprising that a Minister of Culture could support this movement which was much harder" than it is today, says even Jack Lang.
"Incredible energy"
Attached to "freedom of expression," "defense of new talent," Jack Lang has even been labeled by "the extreme right" as "the friend of NTM". "You imagine at the time, Nique Your Mother ( which NTM is the acronym, ed ), it was something that scandalized," remembers the former elected.
But he stood firm against the tides. "The beginnings usually come up against resistance and rejections," lamented Jack Lang, who was eager to comment on the band's performance. "NTM had incredible vigor, vitality, energy," he recalls.
"I like going to rap concerts"
Even today, Jack Lang continues to support a musical style that the French love, since he is number one in record sales. "We welcome rappers to the Arab World Institute," he says. "I like going regularly to rap concerts," he adds. But, as for techno, "this rebellious music has changed" and "sometimes, there is a form of commercialization of these music that were at the time in rupture". "It's life, rap has become a bit standardized," he concludes.