Printemps de Bourges, shatta, rap et nouveaux talents
B2 French listening practice · French · Curated for upper-intermediate learners
What is “shatta” music?
At the Printemps de Bourges festival, Martinican artist Maureen explains the sound taking over French clubs: «le chata était créé en Martinique» (“shatta was created in Martinique”). Le shatta is a fast, percussive dance-music genre from the French Caribbean, grown out of Jamaican dancehall.
Sung largely in créole, shatta has surged from Martinique and Guadeloupe into mainland French charts. Maureen, whose album is titled Queen, ties it to feminism: “elle s’assume” (“she owns who she is”). For learners it’s a window into French beyond France, the Caribbean créole world that shapes today’s francophone pop.
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Words above this video’s level
Quick glosses for vocabulary that goes beyond this video’s B2 level.
Source: wordfreq 3.1.1 (general) · Lexique 3.83 (spoken). Buckets approximate; exact ranks not stored.
- ▸Martinican and Guadeloupean dancehall and shatta artists like Kalash.
- ▸French festivals spotlighting new francophone talent, from rap to créole pop.
- ▸On French and Caribbean dancehall playlists.
- ▸In créole-language music charting across the francophone world.