Gaël Faye (; born 6 August 1982) is a

Rwanda Rwanda, officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of East Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator, Rwanda is bordered by ...

n–French singer, songwriter, rapper, and writer.

Personal life

Faye was born in

Bujumbura Bujumbura (; ), formerly Usumbura, is the economic capital, largest city and main port of Burundi. It ships most of the country's chief export, coffee, as well as cotton and tin ore. Bujumbura was formerly the country's political capital. In la ...

Burundi Burundi, officially the Republic of Burundi, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is located in the Great Rift Valley at the junction between the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa, with a population of over 14 million peop ...

, of a French father and Rwandan mother. He moved to France at the age of 13, escaping from the

Burundian civil war The Burundian Civil War was a civil war in Burundi lasting from 1993 to 2005. The civil war was the result of longstanding ethnic divisions between the Hutu and the Tutsi ethnic groups. The conflict began following the first multi-party electi ...

. He studied commerce and later received a master's degree in finance. He is married and has two daughters.

Books

Faye wrote a novel inspired by his teenage-years' experience of the war in Burundi. ''

Small Country ''Small Country'' (French: ''Petit pays'') is a novel set in Burundi by the Franco-Rwandan rapper, songwriter and novelist, Gaël Faye. It was first published in France in August 2016 by Éditions Grasset, Grasset, and has since been translated ...

'' (''Petit Pays'') was first published in France in August 2016 by Grasset. It won five literary prizes. It has been translated into 36 languages and made into a movie, released in 2020. In August 2024, Faye's second novel, ''Jacaranda'', was published, also by Grasset.

Music

In 2010, Faye and Edgar Sekloka released a rap and

hip-hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hi ...

album entitled ''Milk Coffee and Sugar'' (also the name of their group). Faye then released three solo albums and one EP: ''Pili Pili sur un Croissant au Beurre'' (2013), Des fleurs EP (2014). ''Lundi Méchant'' (2020) and ''Mauve Jacaranda'' (2022). ''Lundi Méchant'' went gold in 2022.

Film

Awards

*2016: Prix du roman Fnac for '' Petit Pays'' *2016: Prix du Premier Roman for ''Petit Pays'' *2016:

Prix Goncourt des Lycéens The Prix Goncourt des Lycéens is a French literary award voted for by school students. It was created in 1988 under the patronage of the Prix Goncourt, with the aim of giving young readers the chance to read and discuss the books selected as the ...

for ''Petit Pays'' *2016: Prix France Culture/Télérama for ''Petit Pays'' *2023: The Grand Public Prize at

Justice Documentary Festival Paris The ''Justice Documentary Festival Paris'', among the longest-standing French judicial festivals, unites a collection of documentaries focused on the theme of Justice and presents both a Jury Grand Prize and a Public Grand Prize. History The Docum ...

*2024:

Prix Renaudot The Prix Théophraste-Renaudot or () is a French literary award. History The prize was created in 1926 by ten art critics awaiting the results of deliberation of the jury of the Prix Goncourt. While not officially related to the Prix Goncour ...

for ''Jacaranda''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Faye, Gael 1982 births Living people Black French rappers Rwandan male singers Rwandan novelists French male rappers 21st-century male rappers Prix Renaudot winners People from Bujumbura Burundian writers in French