Stromae On His Coachella Debut

Belgian rapper and singer Stromae was one of the most buzzed-about acts at Coachella, and that was before he brought Kanye West out to perform with him. His theatrical performance drew a crowd to the Mojave tent during the festival’s second weekend, and West’s appearance, sparked by his remix of Stromae’s European hit “Alors on Danse,” sealed the deal on one of the most memorable breakout moments at this year’s Coachella.

His international pedigree and popularity, funny videos, and his blend of hip-hop and dance beats make Stromae, in many respects, the ultimate festival artist in 2015. We spoke with the young artist about his Coachella debut, how to avoid clichés on stage, and what makes a great performer.

How does Coachella compare to what you imagined?
To be honest, I thought they could have more people here. I was surprised to see it was only 80,000, which is a lot of course. Maybe it’s because the image I had was so huge, in my mind it was like 300,000. It’s a big festival and I think it’s one of the most famous festivals in the world. So it’s a lot of pressure, yeah.

What inspires your live performance?
I think everything is inspiring, not only the stage, the people I meet in the crowd, some situations, some conditions. The first time I performed on stage that was almost the first concert I went to, so that was pretty interesting and a bit weird at the same time. So the reference I had was Kraftwerk, the vision I had was like a mix on the stage, the simplicity of Kraftwerk, the performance like every hip-hop artist does, “Put your hands in the air, make some noise,” and at the same time something really mainstream, like Beyoncé dancing with a screen. It’s a mix between all those. And I think I take different parts of everything I see. There is always a good part in everything.

Did the fact your first show was also one of the first shows you saw make it easier in some way?
No pressure, in a certain way it is interesting because you have no automatism. When you go on stage you have to say, “Make some noise.” You have to say, “Put your hands in the air.” And finally it’s pretty good to have no clichés. Of course, I saw some performances, but it was pretty new for me. I always need a reason to do something on stage, for me. I am not judging anyone, there is not a good way, there is not a bad way. You just have to justify everything.

Whose banter do you admire?
Because of the sincerity, Cesaria Evora, but I’m a fan of her music of course. She was real, she was true, she was just as she is on stage, drinking something, smoking a cigarette, not acting like ‘I’m smoking a cigarette ‘cause it’s cool.’ And she was spontaneous and completely sincere in this way. I could be sincere in another way and I think my sincerity is taking some parts of everyone. So I could dance a bit, but not too much. I want to act and tell some jokes, bad jokes, be ridiculous. That’s maybe my best part.

Give me a bad joke.
Two eggs in a fridge, one says to the other one, “How do you have hair and you are green?” The other one answered, “I’m a kiwi, a**hole.”

Have you told that one onstage?
I did it at the Fox Theater in Oakland, [Calif.]. That’s part of your job, when you are on stage, to be as ridiculous as you are pretentious on stage. It’s your job to say, “Okay, I’m exactly the same as you with the exception I’m on the stage performing. I’m a bit crazy and pretentious, but I’m as ridiculous as I am pretentious.”

What is coming up for you the rest of the year?
So we finish the West Coast tour and then we go back to Belgium, then our African tour, July we go again to Europe. Then we come back for the East Coast tour and finish with Madison Square Garden. It’s going to be close to the end of the project with the second album.

Are you already thinking about the next album?
I don’t want to think about those kinds of pressures, so no. I’m creating some ideas and stuff, but nothing really concrete, just stuff. When I do something, I do it 100 percent or 200 percent, so it’s difficult for me to do two things at the same time — when I’m promoting it’s okay, but when I’m touring, [working on a new album] at the same time is not possible. Like you said, it’s important to inspire yourself with everything you live, but after that you just need to be alone and being alone is priceless when you’re touring and promoting.

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Stromae On His Coachella Debut

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