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IAM - Je danse le Mia (Clip officiel)

1993 · Golden Age of French Hip-Hop (1993–1994) — The clip was shot and released concurrent with IAM's landmark double album *Ombre est Lumière*, arriving at a moment when rap was still largely underground in France and before any domestic hip-hop act had achieved mainstream chart dominance. · music video

IAM - Je danse le Mia (Clip officiel) music video

1993Golden Age of French Hip-Hop (1993–1994) — The clip was shot and released concurrent with IAM's landmark double album *Ombre est Lumière*, arriving at a moment when rap was still largely underground in France and before any domestic hip-hop act had achieved mainstream chart dominance.French Hip-Hop Emergence / Marseille Rap Scene (1993–1994)Dir. Michel Gondry

What this video is

Released in 1993 and charting in France throughout 1994, 'Je danse le Mia' arrived at a pivotal moment when French rap had virtually no mainstream commercial presence — MC Solaar was the sole widely known exception. IAM had formed in Marseille as early as 1985 and released their debut album in 1991, but it was this single, drawn from the double album *Ombre est Lumière*, that broke the group nationally. The song…

Why it matters

This video represents a critical document of the first wave of French hip-hop achieving mainstream penetration. IAM's Marseille-rooted, Egyptology-inflected brand of rap was stylistically distinct from both American hip-hop and the Parisian school. The clip's production — directed by a…

The director

Michel Gondry (born 8 May 1963, Versailles, France) is a French film director, screenwriter, and producer. He began his filmmaking career directing music videos for the French band Oui Oui, then directed Björk's 'Human Behaviour' (1993), launching an…

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