Timal joins Le Cercle PXP
Timal, fire in the voice
Can you touch the hearts and ears of listeners when rapping almost shouting? The answer is obviously yes. While most rappers from older generations tried to have the coolest possible style, giving the impression of sliding on the beat, others ended up choosing a different voice. One where you use the microphone to pour out your rage and convey a kind of raw, contagious, wild energy. One of the first to have huge success with this style of rap was DMX in the USA. A crazy voice, some tracks where he almost screams in certain choruses, incredible charisma on record but above all a true weapon of war when he hits the stage to turn the crowds upside down. In France, we also had our rappers in this style, capable of transmitting this kind of energy on a track. Notably LIM back in the day, and today, it's Timal who carries the torch of these artists who push their voice very high in volume when they rap. And we can say that in this style, he is extremely effective, even formidable.
It has now been about 7 years since the rapper, who comes from Champs-sur-Marne in the 77, has been terrorizing the game with every release. Especially at the start of his career, he had a strong penchant for freestyles, which we definitely enjoy. The artist literally flooded YouTube with his fiery verses in 2016 and 2017, with several freestyle series that left a mark on listeners, some exceeding 10 million views (all had at least one million). Notably, the "Rapports" freestyle series, as well as "Trop Chaud" and his long numbered series from 1 to 15, almost all masterclasses. You get it, he’s a mic devourer and instrumental burner, and he even made all of this part of his artistic identity, going as far as naming his albums "Trop Chaud" or "Caliente". He’s not really the type of rapper to make a themed album and tell you a story; his goal is rather to chain powerful punchlines until you’re in the same warrior mindset as him. And it works!
But Timal, it’s not just that. His name is already a big nod to the Antilles, as he is of Guadeloupean origin. And at 25, the rapper is still constantly evolving and has added many strings to his bow. We notably saw him exploring melodies, like his feature with Booba, "Caméléon," on the 2021 album "Arès." Or his feature with Heuss L'Enfoiré, "Bruce Wayne," as well as many other tracks. You can feel his desire to keep that mic-burning image while surprising listeners with catchier songs, always successfully. He’s also gone international, with a strong drill collab alongside Digga D for "Frenches." A truly recognized talent who seized the comeback of kick rhymes in 2016 to burn any mic he could get, somewhat like a younger Fianso. They even had a major aggressive feature back then.
Timal & PXP: the hottest collab
An artist full of energy, which suits us perfectly at Project X Paris, because we love that. We had big plans for this collaboration with Timal, and the shoot fully met our expectations with art direction inspired by the artist and his discography. In his videos, he seems to favor sober and effective streetwear, though he sometimes allows himself more colorful outfits. We started by having him try our classic pieces from the Signature capsule. Especially our iconic PXP hoodie, the black Signature hoodie with the stylized white logo on the chest. Paired with a brand-new black Project X cap, this time with the brand name in uppercase and a redesigned logo for the occasion. Small smoked glasses, white cargo-style pants, and a pair of black and white sneakers: the outfit is simple but incredibly effective, especially in this warehouse setting with flaming barrels, a nod to the rapper’s world.
We continued exploring this universe in the second part of the shoot, this time with more flames arranged in a semicircle around the rapper for a maximum “badass” effect. We moved to something slightly more ambitious, with a full set hoodie + Signature jogger bottoms in the same color. This time, we chose brown, a less common but extremely stylish and warm shade, enhanced by the flame reflections. Again, we added killer details, with the white Project X Paris cap (the new model with the redesigned logo and uppercase brand name) and very sober white sneakers that have exactly the stylish effect expected. Timal feels very comfortable in the outfit, and it shows in the photos as he strikes more poses and enjoys the cameras pointed at him.
Since everything was going so well, we took the opportunity to have him try some less ordinary pieces. Including this third part of the shoot, where we find him still in the warehouse, flamethrower in hand and wearing a superb jacket. Or rather, a quilted teddy jacket with diamond-patterned stitching and snap buttons to close it if needed. Again, a lighter brown color with “old school” logos on the chest and sleeves, reminiscent of the US college styles from the 90s. The teddy jacket is worn over a cream-colored sweatshirt, not forgetting the ever-present white cap. All paired with light-colored cargo-style pants and a pair of sneakers a bit more eccentric than the previous ones. Finally, to close the shoot in style, we decided to have Timal try one of our latest trends: the Smiley capsule, whose logos reinterpret famous emojis in street style. A total success on the rapper, with a black embroidered smiley hoodie worn with a wide cargo pant, also black. All topped with an oversized varsity-style jacket with embroidered patches, one of our finest pieces. The real highlight was the flaming PXP logo placed behind the rapper during the shoot. You get it, this collab with Timal was on fire, and we hope to do it again soon because his world really inspired us.