Tom Frager (born 1 July 1977 in

Dakar Dakar ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Senegal, largest city of Senegal. The Departments of Senegal, department of Dakar has a population of 1,278,469, and the population of the Dakar metropolitan area was at 4.0 mill ...

, Senegal) is a

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

songwriter A songwriter is a person who creates musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music genre and film scoring. ...

and performer in the group Gwayav' and is also a ten-time surfing champion in

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 ...

. He is primarily known for his French hit " Lady Melody", number one on the French charts for four weeks.

Biography

Born in

Senegal Senegal, officially the Republic of Senegal, is the westernmost country in West Africa, situated on the Atlantic Ocean coastline. It borders Mauritania to Mauritania–Senegal border, the north, Mali to Mali–Senegal border, the east, Guinea t ...

, Tom Frager grew up in Guadeloupe where he became the most successful local surfer of his generation. He moved to

metropolitan France Metropolitan France ( or ), also known as European France (), is the area of France which is geographically in Europe and chiefly comprises #Hexagon, the mainland, popularly known as "the Hexagon" ( or ), and Corsica. This collective name for the ...

in 2000 and lived in

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...

. He joined the team of France and, with his guitar, wrote songs during his travels around the world for competitions. Tom Frager mixed pop,

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...

ska Ska (; , ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a w ...

and

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

with original melodies and broken rhythm. His influences range from reggae by

Bob Marley Robert Nesta Marley (6 February 1945 – 11 May 1981) was a Jamaican singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Considered one of the pioneers of reggae, he fused elements of reggae, ska and rocksteady and was renowned for his distinctive voca ...

to rock by Sublime and pop soul by

Jason Mraz Jason Thomas Mraz ( ; born June 23, 1977) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. He rose to prominence with the release of his debut studio album, ''Waiting for My Rocket to Come'' (2002), which spawned the single "The Remedy (I Won't Wo ...

. Frager co-wrote with artists, like

Tom Curren Thomas Roland Curren (born July 3, 1964) is an American former professional surfer, known for being the first American to win the World Surf League Title. He secured three World Titles in 1985, 1986, and 1990, and achieved 33 event wins in his ...

and Keziah Jones' guitarist Amen Viana. He was on stage alongside

Alpha Blondy Seydou Koné (; born January 1, 1953, in Dimbokro), better known by his stage name Alpha Blondy, is an Ivorian reggae singer and international recording artist. Many of his songs are politically and socially motivated, and are mainly sung i ...

, Toots & the Maytals, Patrice, Groundation, Sizzla, Sublime Tribute, the People of the Grass and performed on major festivals such as French Francofolies of

La Rochelle La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle'') is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime Departments of France, department. Wi ...

or the Extravagance of Biarritz. Tom Frager & Gwayav' gave almost 400 concerts in a period of seven years. Frager achieved national notability in September 2009 with his song "Lady Melody", which entered the French singles chart at number one and stayed there for four weeks. The song was also number-one on the French digital chart. After the success of this first single from the album ''Better Days'', a new single, "Give Me That Love", was released. The album had a peak at number five in August 2009.

Gwayav'

In 2002, he formed the group Gwayav' with four of his friends, musicians and surfers. Their debut album ''Bloom Inside'' sold nearly 5,000 copies. ;Members * Tom Frager: vocals, guitar * Henry Daurel: guitar * Janine Terhoff: chorus * Carolina Carmona: chorus * Stephane Garcia Tudela: drum kit * Jerome Gron: piano * Lionel Dubourdieu: bass * Marc Closier:

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to p ...

* Thomas Renwick: guitar * Fabrice Lefèvre: sound engineer

Discography

Albums

;Tom Frager and Gwayav'

Singles

;Tom Frager and Gwayav' ¹ Digital Downloads

References

External links

Official site

Unofficial fan club
{{DEFAULTSORT:Frager, Tom 1977 births Living people French surfers Musicians from Dakar 21st-century French singers 21st-century French male singers French male singer-songwriters French singer-songwriters