Émile Ilboudo (born 20 September 1988),
better known by his stage name Imilo Lechanceux, is an
Ivorian-
Burkinabé singer, dancer and DJ. He sings in French,
Mòoré and
Dyula.
Lechanceux's music generally falls under the
coupé-décalé and
afrobeat
Afrobeat is a Nigerian music genre that involves the combination of West African musical styles (such as traditional Yoruba music and highlife) and American funk, jazz, and soul influences, with a focus on chanted vocals, complex intersecting ...
genres, and he also occasionally raps on his songs.
He has toured in West Africa, Europe, Canada and the United States.
Lechanceux is sometimes known by his nickname on songs, ''Le Fils du Pays'' ("The Son of the Country").
Life and career
Émile Ilboudo was born on 20 September 1988 in
Tiassalé
Tiassalé is a town in southern Ivory Coast. It is a sub-prefectures of Ivory Coast, sub-prefecture and the seat of Tiassalé Department in Agnéby-Tiassa Region, Lagunes District. Tiassalé is also a Communes of Ivory Coast, commune.
In 2021, ...
, Ivory Coast, the seventh of eight children of retired driver Johany Ilboudo and housewife Bernadette Zoungrana, both from Burkina Faso.
During his childhood, he did dance and theatre as a hobby. In 2004, at age 16,
he moved to
Tanghin-Dassouri
Tangin Dassouri is a city located in the Tanghin-Dassouri Department of Kadiogo Province in Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso (, ; , ff, 𞤄𞤵𞤪𞤳𞤭𞤲𞤢 𞤊𞤢𞤧𞤮, italic=no) is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of ...
, a village near
Ouagadougou
Ouagadougou ( , , ) is the capital and largest city of Burkina Faso and the administrative, communications, cultural, and economic centre of the nation. It is also the country's largest city, with a population of 2,415,266 in 2019. The city's n ...
, Burkina Faso,
where he continued his dancing alongside school.
At this time, he joined the
Atelier-Théâtre Burkinabé (ATB) theatre group.
Ilboudo started DJing in 2005 under the name DJ Imilo.
His parents could no longer afford to pay for his education, and he eventually started performing for small (bars) and later performed small shows.
Taking part in several DJing competitions, he was eventually recruited into the group Les Villageois ("The Villagers") with three other DJs, Baby, Tabaly and Zino, following a competition in 2009.
Ilboudo saved up money to rent a recording studio to record his own single, "Mot de Pass" ("Password"),
produced by
Serge Beynaud
Serge Beynaud (real name Guy Serge Beynaud Gnolou but sometimes also called Beynaud; born 19 September 1987 in Yopougon, Abidjan) is an Ivorian singer, songwriter and music producer, associated with styles such as Coupé-Décalé and Loko loko.
' ...
.
His brother loaned him 250,000 CFA francs to record the music video. Lechanceux sent out his single to promoters and managers, but initially none took interest. However, the song gained large exposure following its broadcast during the half-time of a quarter-final match at the
2010 Africa Cup of Nations
The 2010 Africa Cup of Nations, also known as the Orange (telecommunications), Orange Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, was the 27th Africa Cup of Nations, the biennial association football, football championship of Africa (Confederat ...
. Lechanceux subsequently received many calls from the same promoters and managers who'd turned him away.
His solo career began in 2010–2011, which is when he took the name Imilo Lechanceux.
Following the death of Ivorian musician
DJ Arafat on 12 August 2019, Lechanceux gave a commemoration at his funeral.
Lechanceux has performed at festivals alongside artists including
Floby
Floby is a locality situated in Falköping Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 1,499 inhabitants in 2010.
History
In 1858 the first portion of the railway line connecting Stockholm and Gothenburg was opened, and a railway sta ...
,
Dez Altino and
Hawa Boussim and has worked with Ivorian producers
Bebi Philip and Serge Beynaud.
Awards
Lechanceux won awards at the Cool Oneline Awards 2015 and the 2015 Faso Musique Awards.
He won the Golden Kundé and two other Kundé awards in 2017.
Discography
Albums
*''En Voici 1'' ("Here is 1") (produced by Serge Beynaud) (2013)
*''Dieu est ma Force'' ("God is my Strength") (2015)
* ''Elevation'' (2017)
Singles
* "Soutiens les Étalons" ("Support the Talons") (2015)
* "Wassa Wassa" ("Done Quickly, Done Well" in Dyula) (produced by Bebi Philip) (2015)
* "Talaba" (produced by Bebi Philip) (2015)
* "Attrapez Attrapez" ("Catch Catch") (2016)
* "Qui a Dit" ("Who Said") (featuring Revolution) (2016)
* "Une Minute au Village" ("One Minute in the Village") (2017)
* "Warb Nooma" (2017)
* "On Aime Ça" ("We Like That") (2017)
* "Elle Me Rend Dingue" ("She Drives Me Crazy") (2018)
* "Soukini" (2018)
* "M'Nonga Fo" ("I Love You" in Mòore) (featuring
Chidinma
Chidinma Ekile (born 2 May 1991), known professionally as Chidinma, is a Nigerian hip-hop turned gospel singer and songwriter. In 2010, she rose to stardom after winning the third season of ''Project Fame West Africa''. Following the release of ...
) (2019)
* "Pintinclin" (featuring Safarel Obiang) (2019)
*"Attegban" (featuring
Sidiki Diabate) (2021)
References
External links
Official Facebook
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lechanceux, Imilo
21st-century Ivorian male singers
Burkinabé male singers
Living people
1988 births
People from Agnéby-Tiassa
21st-century Burkinabé people