Coupé decalé

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Coupé Décalé (or Couper-Décaler-Travailler) is a form of music and dance that was created in 2003 in the Paris diaspora by musicians from the Ivory Coast ; its original base is the ziglibithy .

The NZZ carries out:

“In Abidjan's colloquial language Nouchi,“ couper ”means something like“ to be drunk ”or“ to mischief ”. In the context of the Ivorian youth living in Paris, who have to find their way through in some dubious ways, the meaning has shifted to “cheat” or “steal money”. Once you've got rich in a criminal way, the «décaler» comes into play - it is important to get home as quickly as possible. Once in Abidjan, it is finally the turn of the «travailler». However, this does not mean practicing a middle-class profession, but rather spending whatever money you have earned: You drive German limousines, buy Italian clothes, wear Swiss luxury watches, drink champagne, smoke Cuban cigars, eat Russian caviar and enjoy the nightlife in the bars and clubs. "

- NZZ

Its origins lie in the dance of the village Akoupé , not far from Abidjan, which was caricatured by the youth of the capital. A new dance developed out of fun, embedded in electronic music that has influences from the Ivorian Zouglou , the Cameroonian Makossa, the Soukous and the Congolese Rumba .

Musicians like Douk Saga , Molaré and Lino Versace, who died in 2006 (they call themselves «la Jet Set» after a Parisian disco and because of their way of life) have left Africa as a result of political instability and settled in Paris. They shy away from the political issues that predominate in the music of their homeland and praise a purely hedonistic attitude towards life.

These homages are in the tradition of the Atalakus , singing entertainers who form an integral part of the Congolese orchestras and are solely responsible for sprinkling praise into the songs. This is supplemented with amusing phrases, creative word formations or onomatopoeic sounds and repeated in a monotonous way with a high level of linguistic and performative innovation. New dance steps are constantly being invented and named with original names.

Douk Saga christened his own style “sagacité”, Molaré invented “farot-farot”, and Shanaka Yakuza promotes “drogbacité” - these dance steps imitate the movements of Didier Drogba , the Ivorian football star in the English club Chelsea. Other key terms in the Coupé-Décalé vocabulary are “ambiancer”, “bien galopper” (galloping to dance), “boucantier” (putting on a show in public) or “s'envoler” (running away). They are one of a limited set of verbs that are used in many songs.

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