{"id":25284,"date":"2016-11-23T21:17:45","date_gmt":"2016-11-23T20:17:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/french\/?p=25284"},"modified":"2018-02-22T15:14:33","modified_gmt":"2018-02-22T14:14:33","slug":"im-only-a-french-soulman-ben-loncle-soul","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/french\/im-only-a-french-soulman-ben-loncle-soul\/","title":{"rendered":"I’m Only A French Soulman – Ben L’Oncle Soul"},"content":{"rendered":"

When you hear une chanson<\/strong> (a song) and it stays in your head all day you can be sure you will remember it forever. If you can find a song that catchy in French, it will help you study by making you practice every time you think of la chanson<\/strong>! One of the first French songs to get stuck in my head all day is Soulman<\/em> by Ben l’Oncle Soul<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\"Ben

Ben l’Oncle Soul<\/a> by By Thesupermat. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0<\/p><\/div>\n

There are many musicians who sing in French and make amazing music. People are quick to think of Stromae<\/a> or Edith Piaf<\/a>, but for me there’s another big name: Ben l’Oncle Soul<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Ben l\u2019Oncle Soul is a French gospel and soul singer who entered the mainstream French music scene back in 2010 with le tube<\/strong> (the hit song) Soulman<\/em>. He has loved la musique<\/strong> (music) all his life and you can hear that passion when he sings his soulful songs.<\/p>\n

Ben is from Tours, a smaller city in central France. It is also where I’ve spent most of my time in France. Beyond ses chansons entra\u00eenantes<\/strong> (his catchy songs), the fact that Ben is from Tours makes me appreciate him even more!<\/p>\n

Son nom de sc\u00e8ne<\/strong> (his stage name) may seem strange, but it comes from son surnom<\/strong> (his nickname). Le n\u0153ud papillon<\/strong> (the bow tie) he often wears makes him look a bit like the man on the logo for Uncle Ben\u2019s<\/em> brand rice, which led to him gaining le surnom<\/strong> l’Oncle Ben<\/em>. Ben changed the name slightly to Ben l’Oncle Soul<\/em> in order to \u00e9viter<\/strong> (avoid) any possible copyright issues.<\/p>\n

Sa musique<\/strong> has clear American influences, from his gospel and soul inspired original songs to ses reprises<\/strong> (his covers) of famous American songs like Seven Nation Army<\/em><\/a> by The White Stripes<\/em> or Fly Me To The Moon<\/em><\/a> by Frank Sinatra<\/em>.<\/p>\n

La chanson<\/strong> that always gets stuck in my head is Soulman<\/em>. Le tube de 2010<\/strong> that mixes a soulful sound with catchy lyrics. La chanson<\/strong> is short and fun and makes many references to la culture populaire<\/strong> (pop culture), and ben sings at a nice pace so it’s easy to follow along and catch all les r\u00e9f\u00e9rences<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\u00c9coutez la chanson<\/strong> (listen to the song) and you\u2019ll be singing along in no time!<\/p>\n