What would French rap be today without the contribution of the 93 scene, particularly that of Sevran? We don't have the answer, but it wouldn't be nearly as cool. DA Uzi is one of those who have given French rap a taste of authenticity, a taste of the street, in short, a taste of 93. And he's obviously as at ease on the mic as he is in front of our lenses, for this new collaboration!
DA Uzi, the street itself
When Kaaris revolutionized French rap in 2013 with his album "Or Noir", he also brought a little light back to his home town, Sevran. A town that has long been disparaged by the media, at the heart of a department that is itself the most singled out. A lot has been said about the town, but the most important thing is that it was a huge reservoir of raw talent that just needed a little spotlight to explode. No one was ready for what was to come, and Sevran turned out to be a kind of French Atlanta: the capital of trap music, where all the trends of the movement were represented, with artists such as 13 Block, Kalash Criminel, Maes and DA Uzi quickly finding success. A child of Sevran since the age of 15, he started rapping at an extremely young age, almost as soon as he arrived in the town. If he came to prominence a little later than the other rappers in his town, it's due to a rather eventful career, because it has to be said that DA Uzi has known the street, the real one, the one in Sevran where everything can go very fast. But since his comeback in 2017, he's been unstoppable, and for good reason: he's got energy and experience to spare, much more than some of his rap game colleagues.
This energy exploded into the public eye with her series of incredible freestyles, published on Youtube at the time, "La D en Personne". A series of hyper street freestyles, with rather crude clips and poignant lyrics. DA Uzi has a lot to say, and he says a lot in these early freestyles. Introspection, street life, ambition, all wrapped up in a touchingly raw attitude, he quickly caught the public's eye. Given the success of his freestyles (over 20 million views in total), he decided to push the concept to the limit and turn it into a project, which was well received. Immediately afterwards, he delivered another incredible freestyle performance on the "Rentre Dans Le Cercle" show, hosted by Fianso. Once again, it was his energy and authenticity that allowed him to explode even further. Since then, he has embarked on a new stage in his career, being extremely productive, both solo and featuring. Yes, the rapper is one of those artists who loves feats, especially with his Sevran brothers. As luck would have it, there are plenty of talented rappers from Sevran, so there's no shortage of good material.
Le rappeur du 93 a sorti 4 autres albums après « La D en Personne » et à chaque fois, il a continué à toucher un peu plus de monde. Aujourd'hui, il est un visage qui compte dans le rap français, ce qui lui a notamment permis d'inviter Gazo, Ninho, Lacrim ou encore Naps sur son dernier album, « Le Chemin des Braves ». DA Uzi a d'ailleurs une énorme liste de feats à son palmarès, preuve qu'il est validé par ses collègues et c'est bien normal, il peut être hyper drôle, très sympathique. Il est authentique, peut-être parfois même à l'excès dans certains morceaux. Il livre tout dans sa musique, on sent même que certaines paroles ont été dures à écrire, il ne se cache jamais. En interview, il reste très naturel, jamais il ne fera de langue de bois, mais est à côté de ça extrêmement bienveillant et lucide sur les épreuves qu'il a pu traverser. La musique était clairement un exutoire pour lui au début, mais on voit qu'il a aujourd'hui élargi ses influences, commencer à donner un peu dans d'autres styles, il est en train de réussir à être un artiste complet, tout en gardant toujours cette même énergie et cette spontanéité, qui font sa force.
DA Uzi and PXP: 100% street
It's this very street energy that we drew on for our shoot with DA Uzi. The shoot was a great success, with several atmospheres in keeping with the rapper's world. The first part took place in a hangar, in the company of a top-of-the-range German vehicle. With the help of tarpaulins and lighting effects, we managed to create a very successful underground atmosphere. In the trunk, a full load of PXP flip-flops! Tap shoes have become a staple of today's streetwear outfits (thanks to rappers and NBA players), and they seem to make the Sevran rapper very happy. In any case, he flashes a wry smile as he poses in front of the trunk. On his shoulders, an outfit from the Graffiti capsule, one of our most successful recent releases. Graffiti jogging bottoms, in a gradient from purple to green, with the Graffiti hoodie, also in a gradient in the same hues. A very street ensemble, but at the same time very warm, in a rather summery mood. We're really pleased with the rendering at Project X, because we know that DA Uzi is very fond of the jacket + tracksuit bottoms combo, which we've seen in several of his videos.
Same setting, but a slightly different mood, this time with something a little darker, but which is a pretty important piece for us. We're known for being good with velvet, and here's an example, with this black ensemble from the Waffle capsule. The black embossed velvet jogpants for the bottom, the embossed velvet hoodie for the top and you're all set. Add to this the little detail that kills, the PXP bag slung over the shoulder, for an outfit streetwear that's that of the perfect street adventurer. No wonder it looks so good on DA Uzi! The advantage of this outfit is its apparent simplicity at first glance, and as soon as you get closer, you see more and more little details that enrich it all. The rapper and I then stuck to these black shades, but we decided to liven things up a bit by giving him the "Underground" capsule. The artist wears it perfectly: an oversized hoodie with the Street art print on the torso, with jogging bottoms that also have the same street art prints, for a very successful "men's ensemble" effect. Combined with a pair of white Nike shoes, the result is an outfit with a really effective look.
Finally, we gave DA Uzi what is perhaps our greatest classic: our outfit. Signature. The signature collection is, as you can see, very streamlined, very minimalist, trying in the design to get closer to luxury models, while retaining an identity street that is very dear to us. For the rapper, we immediately opted for a signature ensemble, with the unisex hoodie paired with signature jogging bottoms with logo embroidery. All in the same color, a soft green that fits in well with the setting in which the photos were taken. DA Uzi, proudly seated on his BMX repainted in the same colors, seems to be really enjoying his outfit, to which he's added a little black pannier, with a bob Project X Paris for a very street look. In short, a memorable shoot with DA Uzi, who was impeccable, authentic and true to himself. Just like in his music!