Patrice Sylvestre (born 10 February 1973), better known by his

stage name A stage name or professional name is a pseudonym used by performers, authors, and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. The equivalent concept among writers is called a ''nom de plume'' (pen name). Some performers ...

Slaï, is a French singer of

Guadeloupe Guadeloupe is an Overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France in the Caribbean. It consists of six inhabited islands—Basse-Terre Island, Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Guadeloupe, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galant ...

origin. Sylvestre, born in metropolitan France, spent his childhood and adolescence in

until 1996, when he returned to metropolitan France. Interested in music early on, he released "Flamme" in 1998, which became a huge success in the

Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...

region and earned him a great following. He released his debut album ''Fresh'' in 1998 and the follow-up album, the self-titled ''Slaï'' in 2002 in local Caribbean markets. The releases were also known in Caribbean immigrant circles in France. In 2000, Slaï was recognized for his success with two awards during the Tropical Music Awards. First was "Best Selling Song" for "Flamme" (accredited by Zouk Fnac) and second "Revelation of the Year (masculine)" for 2000.Bobbells Paradise: Slaï biography
Slaï's fame crossed over to French mainstream as radio stations picked up on his repertoire of tropical songs as the genre gained more popularity in France and the genre being used in many mainstream French songs. As a result, Slaï decided to release his "Flamme" after many years of its original release in France, the single reaching number 4 on

SNEP SNEP (, in English National Syndicate of Phonographic Publishing) is the inter-professional organisation that protects the interests of the French record industry. Originally known under the acronym SNICOP, the organisation was established in ...

, the official French Singles Chart. Coinciding with the belated single, and with increased interest in tropical sounds, was his second album ''Florilège'' that reached 14 in the French albums and was certified double gold. Follow-up singles included "La dernière danse (ne rentre pas chez toi ce soir)" reaching number 9. In 2008, Slaï released ''Caraïbes'' that cracked the Top 10 in France.

In popular culture

In the French 2013 tribute album dedicated to tropical sounds that had been popular with the French public, the collective chose to include Slaï's famous hit "Flamme" as one of the definitive tropical songs of the period. It was included in the repertoire of songs on the 12-track album ''

Tropical Family ''Tropical Family'' is a banner for a musical collective of artists who came together in 2013 to collaborate on an album of tropical music and summer-y dance songs. The 12-track album was released on 1 July 2013, with 12 cover versions of well-kno ...

''. "Flamme" was interpreted by

Axel Tony Axel Tony (born in Colombes in 1984) is a French singer of mixed Cameroonian / Martinique / Vietnamese origin. He is signed to Universal Music France. Career Axel Tony was born to a Cameroonian father and a Martiniquais-born mother (of Vietname ...

and Layanah on the album. Slaï himself took part however in two other tribute tracks on the same album. They are "Les Poèmes de Michelle", a

Teri Moïse Teri Moïse (March 25, 1970 in Los Angeles, California – May 7, 2013 in Madrid, Spain) was a Haitian-American French singer. Her parents emigrated from Haiti to South Central, Los Angeles. After high school she studied economics at the Unive ...

song which Slaï did in solo. On a second track, the song "Il jouait du piano debout" from

France Gall Isabelle Geneviève Marie Anne Gall (9 October 1947 – 7 January 2018), known professionally as France Gall, was a French ''yé-yé'' singer. In 1965, at the age of 17, she won the Eurovision Song Contest 1965, tenth edition of the Eurov ...

, Slaï performed it as a duo with

Mélissa Nkonda Mélissa Nkonda (born November 6, 1990, in Saint-Saulve, Nord, France), is a French singer. She is known for having participated in season 7 of the French reality show ''Nouvelle Star'' in 2009. In 2010, she won a contest called ''Je veux sign ...

Discography

Albums

Singles

References

External links

Official Facebook
{{DEFAULTSORT:Slai French people of Guadeloupean descent 1973 births Living people People from Val-d'Oise 21st-century French singers 21st-century French male singers