French Music – Christophe Willem Posted by Tim Hildreth on Jun 18, 2019 in Culture, Music, Vocabulary
Christophe Willem exploded onto the French pop scene in 2006 when he won the French singing competition Nouvelle Star (the French version of American Idol / Pop Idol). Since then he’s become one of my favorite singers, though his songs (and particularly his videos) aren’t always well suited for a blog. I recently came across this one though which is catchy, relates to our recent discussions of shopping, and has lots of great vocabulary.
One of the other reasons I like this particular song and video, is how clever it is. I love the inventive products featured throughout, and I love how Christophe plays with the idea that, as the winner of a reality TV competition (téléréalité or télévision réalité or even télévision vérité), he is the “produit de l’année” … until the next winner is crowned.
| Présentateur : Et maintenant, mesdames et messieurs, | Announcer : And now ladies and gentlemen, |
| Pour vous ce soir | For you this evening |
| Le grand, le majestueux | The great, the majestic |
| Christophe Willem | Christophe Willem |
| [Produit 2002 : La lampe humaine] | [Product of 2002 : The human lamp] |
| [Produit 2003 : La cage à silence] | [Product of 2003 : The cage of silence] |
| De tous les salons | In all the expos |
| Les foires et les grandes expositions | The trade shows and the big shows |
| Souvent imité | Often imitated |
| Souvent copié | Often copied |
| Jamais égalé | Never equaled |
| Harrods et Wal-Mart | Harrods and Walmart |
| Ont fait de moi | Have made me |
| Un produit vraiment très smart | A very chic product |
| Vraiment très smart | Really very smart |
| Je suis le locataire | I’m the renter |
| D’une gloire éphémère | Of an ephemeral glory |
| Élu produit de l’année | Selected as the product of the year |
| Grâce à mon inventivité | Thanks to my inventiveness |
| Radio Monoprix | Radio Monoprix |
| Susurre mon prénom | Whispers my name |
| Les samedi midi | Saturday noon’s |
| [Produit 2004 : L’imperméable chauffant] | [Product of 2004 : The self-warming raincoat] |
| Mes sourires offset | My crooked smiles |
| Font déborder | Flood (overflow) |
| Votre boîte aux lettres | Your mailbox |
| Cora et Shopi* | Cora and Shopi |
| Feront de ma vie | Will make my life |
| Un produit fini | A finished product |
| Fini, tout est fini | Over, everything is over |
| Je suis le locataire | I am the renter |
| [Produit 2005 : Le parapluie à neige] | [Product of 2005 : The snow umbrella] |
| D’une gloire éphémère | Of an ephemeral glory |
| Élu produit de l’année | Chosen as the product of the year |
| Grâce à mon inventivité | Thanks to my inventiveness |
| [Produit 2006 : Le chewing gum au gout éternel] | [Product of 2006 : Eternity-flavored chewing gum] |
| Et quand viendra l’inventaire | And when it comes time to take stock |
| Je serai le produit | I will be the product |
| De l’année dernière | Of the past year |
| Élu produit de l’année | Selected product of the year |
* Cora and Shopi are European retailers.
For a little more Christophe Willem, check out this performance of L’été en hiver (Summe in winter) from C à vous in 2014 which fits nicely with our recent exploration of the seasons.
Photo of Christophe Willem by Patrick Subotkiewiez – https://www.flickr.com/photos/28781447@N04/19611643294/in/dateposted/, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=43412253
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About the Author: Tim Hildreth
Since my first trip to France at 16, I have been a passionate francophile. I love the language, food, music, art, people, and more that make France and la Francophonie in general such an amazing part of our global community. Having lived in France and studied the language and culture for over 35 years, it is my great pleasure to be able to share a little bit of my deep love with you through this blog.