Akram Sedkaoui

His voice is that of a delightful unreason. Like him, it is first generous and impossible to contain. No musical genre will ever be able to cage him. Of Tunisian origin, Akram was born in Toulon (France) and, as far back as he can remember, music has always been part of his life. He grew up listening to the Arabic themes his mother hummed from morning till night, and to French variety music on television, but his first musical shocks date back to his teenage years. He then discovers Stevie Wonder (“I don’t know how the album ‘Talking Book’ ended up at home, it’s a mystery…”), Bob Marley (“I listened to him on my first walkman, I discovered stereo, instrumentation…”) and most of the classic pop artists of all generations: the Beatles, Dylan, Cat Stevens, Supertramp, Paul Young or Michael Jackson. Because he quickly understands that good music knows no borders, Akram also allows himself to be enchanted by “Carmen” at the Toulon Opera, while strumming his first guitar with only two strings. And then he starts to sing. The year he graduated from high school, Akram decides to make the thousand suns that flicker in his throat heard, and, encouraged by his brother Atef, he starts working with other musicians. It’s a revelation: he is made for the stage and takes his first steps there while refining his tastes. He then discovers artists as diverse as Dead Can Dance, Peter Gabriel, Mozart, Prince, Donny Hathaway, and Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan.