Despite receiving a lukewarm reception in France, they have become one of the most successful French-language musical groups in the U.S. Apart from their two albums, they have also made appearances on songs by the Black Eyed Peas, Talib Kweli, and Yerba Buena.
Website: http://www.lesnubians.org/
September: Third Album "Nü Revolution" is released!
An unconventional female duo that came out of Bordeaux, France, in the 1990s, Les Nubians offered a jazzy, sophisticated style of R&B that combined French lyrics with the influence of Sade, Soul II Soul, hip-hop, and African pop. The duo consists of sisters Helene and Celia Faussart, who were born in France to a French father and a Cameroonian mother. After living in France as children, the siblings moved with their parents to the African country of Chad in 1985, when Helene (born 1975) was ten and Celia (born 1979) was six. The sisters lived in Chad for seven years before returning to France as teenagers. Helene and Celia had been singing most of their lives, and when they first formed Les Nubians, they were an a cappella group that specialized in covers of R&B, reggae, and African songs. Eventually, they started working with bands and performing original material. Helene and Celia absorbed a variety of music along the way, and they have expressed admiration for artists ranging from Ella Fitzgerald and Abbey Lincoln to the Fugees and African icons Miriam Makeba and Fela Kuti. Their promising debut album, Princesses Nubiennes, was released by Virgin worldwide in France, Switzerland, and Belgium in June 1998 before coming out on Omtown/Higher Octave in the U.S. in September of that year. It became America's most successful French-language album in more than a decade, and Les Nubians also graced recordings by Talib Kweli and Black Eyed Peas, as well as a Red Hot tribute to Fela Kuti, Red, Hot & Riot. Sessions for their second album brought the pair to Jamaica, Cameroon, London, and Paris, including a host of intriguing collaborators: top underground rapper Talib Kweli, fellow Cameroonian Manu Dibango, pianist Ray Lema, and broken-beat maestro IG Culture. The results appeared as One Step Forward, released in March 2003 by Higher Octave. In 2004, they recorded the track "Going All the Way" featuring reggae star Beres Hammond for UNITY: The Official Athens 2004 Olympic Games album. In 2005, Les Nubians issued Nubians Present Echoes, Chapter One, a collection of spoken word pieces by poets and hip-hop artists from the U.S., France, and Africa. The duo also covered "With or Without You," for inclusion on the compilation In the Name of Love: Africa Celebrates U2, in 2008. Les Nubians finally re-entered the recording studio in 2010, emerging with the EP Nü Revolution Nubiatic in the latter part of the year and the full-length, Nü Revolution in the spring of 2011. ~ Alex Henderson and Thom Jurek, Rovi
Solide
Les Nubians Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Mon histoire commence
Quelque part en plein cauchemar
C'est le ventre vide
Que je marche pied nu
J'entends les bombes
Et je presse le pas
C'est le souffle de la vie
Et je cours, cours
Et je cours, cours
Je cours
Haha, haha, haha, haha
Il faut survivre, rester solide
Et ne pas l'oublier
Même si le monde est perfide
Joue le encore
Lance les dés
Reste lucide
Oh, oh
What goes down shall come down up
Quelle est ma soeur ton regard
Triste quand j'y pense
Des montagnes de béton
Ma prison immense
Je respire par procuration
Sous perfusion
Suis-je l'enfant damnée de la nation?
Et tout brille dans la ville
Mais pas dans le coeur des gens
Des diplomes pleins les poches
Pas d'embauche c'est moche
Y'a pas de place pour moi ici
Et je cours, cours
Ne pas l'oublier
Et je cours, cours
Dans la rue
Et je cours, cours
Stay strong
Rester solide
Et ne pas l'oublier
Même si le monde est perfide
Joue le encore
Lance les dés
Reste lucide
Ma soeur
What goes up must come down
Reste solide
Même si le monde est perfide
Joue le encore
Lance les dés
Reste lucide
What goes up must come down, down
Hoo, hoo, hoo
Le vent qui souffle
M'emmène là-bas
Qui m'appelle là-bas
Un nouveau son de vie
C'est mon coeur qui bat
The lyrics of Les Nubians' song Solide are powerful and deeply moving, speaking to the struggles of living in poverty and the need to stay strong and resilient despite the challenges. The song is an invitation for the singer's sister to share her story, and it is clear from the lyrics that both sisters have experienced hardship and adversity.
The first verse paints a vivid picture of the singer's experience, walking barefoot and hungry amidst the sounds of bombs. She runs with the breath of life carrying her forward, determined to survive and remain strong. The chorus emphasizes the importance of resilience and not forgetting these struggles, even in the face of a cruel world. The second verse continues this theme, speaking of the singer's experiences in a concrete jungle, feeling trapped and forgotten. Despite her frustration, she refuses to give up and run, instead choosing to stay strong and resilient.
Throughout the song, there is a sense of hope and perseverance, with the refrain "what goes up must come down" reminding the listener that even in the darkest moments, there is always the possibility of overcoming and rising again. The final lines of the song, with the wind blowing the singer to a new life, encapsulate this sense of hope and possibility.
Overall, Solide is a powerful anthem of resilience and hope, reminding listeners of the importance of staying strong in the face of adversity.
Line by Line Meaning
Raconte ma soeur ton histoire
Tell me your story, sister
Mon histoire commence
My story begins
Quelque part en plein cauchemar
Somewhere in a nightmare
C'est le ventre vide
It is an empty belly
Que je marche pied nu
That I walk barefoot
J'entends les bombes
I hear the bombs
Et je presse le pas
And I quicken my pace
C'est le souffle de la vie
It is the breath of life
Qui me porte là-bas
That carries me there
Et je cours, cours
And I run, run
Il faut survivre, rester solide
You must survive, stay strong
Et ne pas l'oublier
And not forget it
Même si le monde est perfide
Even if the world is treacherous
Joue le encore
Play it again
Lance les dés
Roll the dice
Reste lucide
Stay clear-headed
Oh, oh
Oh, oh
What goes down shall come down up
What goes down will come up
Quelle est ma soeur ton regard
What is your look, sister
Triste quand j'y pense
Sad when I think about it
Des montagnes de béton
Mountains of concrete
Ma prison immense
My immense prison
Je respire par procuration
I breathe vicariously
Sous perfusion
Under perfusion
Suis-je l'enfant damnée de la nation?
Am I the cursed child of the nation?
Et tout brille dans la ville
And everything shines in the city
Mais pas dans le coeur des gens
But not in people's hearts
Des diplomes pleins les poches
With pockets full of diplomas
Pas d'embauche c'est moche
No work, it's ugly
Y'a pas de place pour moi ici
There's no place for me here
Et je cours, cours
And I run, run
Dans la rue
In the street
Stay strong
Stay strong
Rester solide
Stay strong
What goes up must come down
What goes up must come down
Ma soeur
My sister
Reste solide
Stay strong
Hoo, hoo, hoo
Hoo, hoo, hoo
Le vent qui souffle
The blowing wind
M'emmène là-bas
Takes me there
Qui m'appelle là-bas
Who calls me there
Un nouveau son de vie
A new sound of life
C'est mon coeur qui bat
It's my heart that beats
Contributed by Alice D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@cetossa
Bravo les filles : quelle originalité !
🇨🇲🇨🇲🇨🇲🇨🇲🇨🇲🇨🇲
@chukemmang
A song just as beautiful as the angels singing it. Les Nubians make me regret not taking my French classes seriously. I love all their songs even though I don't understand 99.9% of the lyrics. Music is truly universal.
@theredroadeast723
These Sisters are oh so BEAUTIFUL. I have loved their music since the 90s!
@gee3883
Wow . I have just discovered these two singers such an incredibly beautiful sound they created.
@jfrau76
j'ai acheté ce disque juste pour avoir cette chanson, cest mon morceau préféré de vous.
@domju5637
Afropean soul
@LuciousWeatherby
Awesome work ladies!
@toya9858
Your voices are so amazing
@Earthmama1
I love the artistic Expression of your voices
@mgangatokadar
Kinda laid back vibe, great vocals. Great song.