Karl Appela better known as Blacko, also known as Afrikaf, Tikaf Lakour, Solitary Lion and Black Renega (born in
Montfermeil
Montfermeil () is a commune in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris.
Montfermeil is famous as the location of Thénardiers' inn in ''Les Misérables''. It has made the headlines due to troubles in its soc ...
, (
Seine-Saint-Denis
() is a department of France located in the Grand Paris metropolis in the region. In French, it is often referred to colloquially as ' or ' ("ninety-three" or "nine three"), after its official administrative number, 93. Its prefecture is Bobigny ...
, France on 5 February 1979) is a French singer and
hip hop artist of
Réunion
Réunion (; french: La Réunion, ; previously ''Île Bourbon''; rcf, label= Reunionese Creole, La Rényon) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas department and region of France. It is located approximately east of the island ...
origin. He was member of the hip hop group
Sniper
A sniper is a military/paramilitary marksman who engages targets from positions of concealment or at distances exceeding the target's detection capabilities. Snipers generally have specialized training and are equipped with high-precision r ...
from 1997 until his departure in July 2007. After his split, he has moved to solo performances.
Career
He started performing at the age of 12 and sang with the American rapper Issa Dina when he was just 16. With his friends, he formed a hip hop formation called KDM (Killer du Microphone) in South of France. Moving to Deuil-la-Barre in 1995, he was associated with the A.R. Possee group and later at 15, Kaotik.
His association in the hip hop collective Comité de Deuil and his meeting with
Tunisiano
Bachir Baccour (born 19 May 1979), better known by his stage name Tunisiano, is a Tunisian rapper living in France. Prior to pursuing a solo career, he was a member of M, Sniper and other rap groups.
Career
Bachir Baccour's parents were born in ...
resulted in created the character Personnalité Suspecte and thanks to his skills in ragga hip-hop, he became a noteworthy part of the collective with M Group piece "9.5.1.7.0."
In 1997, he became part of the hip hop group
Sniper
A sniper is a military/paramilitary marksman who engages targets from positions of concealment or at distances exceeding the target's detection capabilities. Snipers generally have specialized training and are equipped with high-precision r ...
with musical event
FrancoFolies Francofolies or Les Francofolies may refer to:
* Les FrancoFolies de Montréal, a music festival in Montréal, Québec, Canada
* Les Francofolies de La Rochelle
Les Francofolies () are an annual music festival founded in 1985 in La Rochelle, P ...
in La Rochelle. Sniper included Blacko in addition to
Tunisiano
Bachir Baccour (born 19 May 1979), better known by his stage name Tunisiano, is a Tunisian rapper living in France. Prior to pursuing a solo career, he was a member of M, Sniper and other rap groups.
Career
Bachir Baccour's parents were born in ...
(Bachir Baccour), Aketo (Ryad Selmi) and initially DJ Boudj. The group mixed rap, reggae and songs in its repertoire. DJ Boudj left after the initial two albums, ''Du rire aux larmes'' (2001) and ''Gravé dans la roche'' (2003). With Dj Boudj leaving, the remaining trio had two more albums ''Trait pour trait'' and ''À toute épreuve'' in 2006. A final tour in 2007 would mark the end of Sniper.
Even prior to break-off in 2005, he had success with a joint work with
113 113 may refer to:
*113 (number), a natural number
*AD 113, a year
* 113 BC, a year
*113 (band), a French hip hop group
* 113 (MBTA bus), Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority bus route
* 113 (New Jersey bus), Ironbound Garage in Newark and run ...
in "Un jour de paix". Immediately upon break-off of Sniper in 2007, he was featured in French rapper
Soprano
A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...
's hit "Ferme les yeux et imagine toi". This gave him great exposure as a solo artist. In 2009, his first solo reggae album ''Enfant du soleil'' halted with the Desh Musique label refusing its release. Instead Blacko took part in Kool Shen's 2009 album ''Eldorado''. In 2010, he released his 17 track album ''Enfant du soleil'' independently online, explaining his fall-off with Desh Musique and his musical orientation for ragga and reggae.
This created further legal problems with the label through the courts. End of 2011, he released an EP of 5 title under the title ''Instin Kaf'' made available for free downloads. In 2014, his single "Le temps est compté" has charted on
SNEP, the official French singles chart.
Discography
Albums
;with
Sniper
A sniper is a military/paramilitary marksman who engages targets from positions of concealment or at distances exceeding the target's detection capabilities. Snipers generally have specialized training and are equipped with high-precision r ...
*2001: ''Du rire aux larmes''
*2003: ''Gravé dans la roche''
*2006: ''Trait pour trait''
*2006: ''À toute épreuve''
;Solo
EPs
Singles
;with Sniper
*2001: "Pris pour cible"
*2001: "Quand on te dit"
*2002: "Du rire aux larmes"
*2002: "On s'en sort bien"
*2003: "Gravé dans la roche"
*2003: "Sans (re)pères"
*2006: "Trait pour trait"
;Others
*2005: "Un jour de paix" (with 113)
*2006: "Être un homme" featuring Krys
;Solo
*Did not appear in the official Belgian Ultratop 50 charts, but rather in the bubbling under Ultratip charts.
;Featured in
;Others
*2007: "Leur France" - Dragon Davy featuring Blacko
*2010: "Femme de courage" - Atheena featuring Blacko
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blacko
French male singers
French reggae singers
French rappers
Living people
1979 births
Because Music artists