Matthieu Tota, is the son of professional footballer André Tota and his mother is Brigitte Tota. His parents divorced in 1998 when he was just 13. As a child, he studied at an elementary school in Hohberg, and later at Collège Paul-Émile Victor in Mundolsheim, and Lycée Aristide Briand in Schiltigheim near Strasbourg. As a young man, football (soccer) became his first ambition and he wanted to be a professional player. But he opted for music.
Matthieu Tota explained about the origin of his name Pokora in an interview during the documentary Mis à jour broadcast on 26 August 2010 about him on NRJ 12 television station. He said he was searching for an artistic name and happened to be talking to his grand mother of Polish origin and the importance of humility came up. So he asked her how do we say humility in Polish language and she said "pokora". So Matthieu immediately decided to call himself Pokora. Matt came form his name Matthieu. So he became to be known by his stage name Matt Pokora.
He earned some public attention as a member of French R&B group, Mic Unity. In fall 2003, he participated in the third season of Popstars, a French talent reality television show broadcast on M6. The concept of the program was to present possible candidates the winners of which would take part in the formation of a boy band or girl band. He was a crowd and jury favourite, and became a member of a boy band called Linkup formed with Lionel and Otis, two other winners in 2003 Popstars. The female winners were formed into another group Diadems formed of Marylore, Angel, Pookie, Ophélie and Alexandra. In the final showdown, the boy band including Mattieu Tota won the series over the girl band Diadems, who ended up runners-up.
Their first Linkup single "Mon Étoile" was very successful topping French charts, and the debut album Notre Étoile was moderately successful. However the second single release "Une seconde d'éternité" was much less successful despite good sales.
The band tried again their hand in a collaboration with the British boy band Blue making a bilingual English/French version with Blue based on the latter's song "Bubblin'". The bilingual English/French Blue/Linkup version was entitled "You & Me Bubblin". Soon afterwards, Linkup disbanded due to poor performance of sales on releases
In 2004, soon after the break-up of Linkup, Mattieu started working preparing for a solo career collaborating with the producers Kore & Skalp.
Under the stage name Matt Pokora, he released his first eponymous solo album originally entitled Matt Pokora. In 2005, he was forced to change his chosen name after a lawsuit from French R&B singer Matt Houston. As a result, he changed his stage name to M. Pokora and re-released the album as M. Pokora.
The debut single from M. Pokora was the very successful. Called "Showbiz (The Battle)" it was a Top 10 hit in France, and also charted in Belgium and Switzerland. The second single Elle me contrôle featuring Sweety reached #6 in France and Pokora received two NRJ Music Awards for the single. Yet a third successful single was released called "Pas sans toi". The album released on Universal was certified gold.
He also started collaborating with Hakim Ghorab who became his long-time choreographer and took part in many of his music videos. He also developed a close collaboration with music video director Karim Ouaret who directed most of his successful videos.
Through The Eyes
M. Pokora Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Yes, without pain
See a million people
Standing homeless in the rain
You can read about it
Be outraged
You can change the channel
It is somebody's problem
Not your problem, no
You can try to forget it
Close your eyes
Looking out through the eyes
Of a sweet baby girl
Try to see what she sees
Out of this crazy world
Looking out through the eyes
Of a sweet baby boy
Try to see what he sees
In a world been destroyed
Hey you, it's time to look alive
Hey you, we gotta help those kids to survive
Listen people, can't you see?
It's between you and me,
We can change destiny
You and me, we must agree
To step out tragedy
Find a way set them free
Looking out through the eyes
Of a sweet baby girl
Try to see what she sees
Out of this crazy world
Looking out through the eyes
Of a sweet baby boy
Try to see what he sees
In a world been destroyed
(You can make a difference)
Don't pretend you can't see that
(Can't go pretending)
Don't pretend you can't see that
(You can make a difference)
Open your eyes
Open your eyes
Looking out through the eyes
Of a sweet baby girl
Try to see what she sees
Out of this crazy world
Looking out through the eyes
Of a sweet baby boy
Try to see what he sees
In a world been destroyed
Looking out through the eyes
Of a sweet baby girl
Try to see what she sees
Out of this crazy world
Looking out through the eyes
Of a sweet baby boy
Try to see what he sees
In a world been destroyed
Yo 2008
It's time to open your eyes man
The lyrics of M. Pokora's song "Through The Eyes" call out to listeners to be more aware of the struggles faced by others and to take action to make a difference. The song begins by acknowledging the various ways people might encounter difficult realities, whether through personal experience or news media. However, the lyrics emphasize that it's easy to distance oneself from these issues, to see them as someone else's problem. The chorus then changes perspective, asking listeners to imagine themselves seeing the world through the eyes of a sweet baby girl or boy. By doing so, they might gain a greater sense of urgency and responsibility to help those in need, especially children who are particularly vulnerable.
The second half of the song is more forceful in its call to action, urging people to not ignore the suffering of others and insisting that change can happen if individuals work together. The repetition of the phrase "looking out through the eyes" reinforces the idea of taking a different perspective, one that centers empathy and compassion. The final lines of the song, "Yo 2008 / It's time to open your eyes man," suggest that the song was written with a particular moment in time in mind, but its message remains applicable to any era.
Line by Line Meaning
You can watch disaster
You can view or observe the destruction and chaos happening.
Yes, without pain
Without experiencing any emotional or physical discomfort.
See a million people
Observe millions of individuals.
Standing homeless in the rain
Homeless people exposed to the rain and its effects.
You can read about it
You can consume information about it.
Be outraged
You can have strong feelings of anger and shock about it.
You can change the channel
You can switch the television programs or topics.
Turn the page
You can move on to the next chapter or article.
It is somebody's problem
The issue belongs to someone else.
Not your problem, no
You are not responsible for fixing the issue.
You can try to forget it
You can attempt to erase it from your memory or ignore it.
Close your eyes
Shut your eyes down to avoid seeing it.
Looking out through the eyes
Viewing the world.
Of a sweet baby girl
Through the perspective of an innocent female child.
Try to see what she sees
Attempt to understand her point of view.
Out of this crazy world
From this bewildering, bizarre world.
Of a sweet baby boy
From the vantage point of an innocent male child.
In a world been destroyed
In a world that has been ravaged and ruined.
Hey you, it's time to look alive
It's time for you to pay attention and take action.
Hey you, we gotta help those kids to survive
We need to assist those children in staying alive and thriving.
Listen people, can't you see?
Pay attention, individuals. Can you not perceive it?
It's between you and me,
The responsibility rests on our shoulders.
We can change destiny
We can alter the fate that lies ahead.
You and me, we must agree
We must come to a mutual decision to act.
To step out tragedy
To prevent or avoid further disaster.
Find a way set them free
Discover a method to liberate those children from their situation.
(You can make a difference)
You hold the power to enact change.
Don't pretend you can't see that
Stop assuming you are ignorant of it.
(Can't go pretending)
We cannot continue to maintain that illusion.
Open your eyes
Acknowledge and become aware of the situation.
Yo 2008
An exclamation indicating it is the year 2008.
It's time to open your eyes man
It is now the opportunity to realize and perceive the truth.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Wojciech Alicki
2020? Same piekne wspomnienia....
Grubas
Ta piosenka powinna zrobić światową karierę.
Kuba Olszewski
piękna piosenka moge ją słuchać 24godz na dobę matt pokora to polak! piękne xd
:-) d-_-b
Ola Laa
2008 always in my mind and heart. Thanks Matt
Emma Quiviger
Wow i love it when he sings in english its much better than boring old french.
VOUS ENTENDEZ CA, HEIN?
BulgarianSouljah
I'm a guy, and I can say he is perfect. All his music is amazing!! & he looks so cool...
Kary
😔❤️ such a sad song
CAMELIA ANCA
I'm the only one who think that Matt Pokora is gorgeous,amazing,talented,good looking ???well i hope not...
Cécile LPT
hell no
Michaela Kimmel
wow *-*