iFLOW Magazine 2008 Official Website

LE VIE DE CHANSON
Date Posted: October 19, 2008
BY: JEWELZ for iFLOW Magazine International

Singer/songwriter, Marc Antoine is the "Brian McKnight" of the French world. A voice of clarity and ease, he takes his real life experience and place them into song. At a time when Montreal, Canada is not in the market to support R&B artists because of its rock socialites, Marc doesn't fret. He uses his social resources and affiliations in France to assist him in acquiring what would now be his major label opportunity with EMI France.

Canadian by birth and Haitian by heritage, Marc is a full blooded Frenchman as he states, "I was born in Montreal. My parents are from Haiti. I started in Montreal 3 years ago and it was very hard to start my career because the genre was mainly a Pop and Rock environment. In France, they do everything for me." With a knowledge of three languages, Creole, French, and English, It is evident that Marc's background provides the foundation to thoroughly write and sing his songs in the French language.

The debut album, "Comme Il Se Doit," was produced by Sonny Black and consists of songs like "Tant Besoin De Toi" (I Need You So Much); which was written about an interracial relationship he was in and members in their social circle did not approve. The video to the song also explains how cultural differences can cause an issue when those that you love puts you in a pressured position to choose whether to stay in that relationship. Many may also relate to his CD as long as they are able to understand the French language. An English translation of his album is not available at this time and is not primarily sold in the United States. However, iFLOW did some digging and American music lovers can purchase "Comme Il Se Doit" from Circuit City's website.

We all know that legal issues arise constantly in the U.S. of who has the right to use a name or phrase as either a product or stage name to perform. iFLOW was caught aback that there are not one, but two Marc Antoine's in the industry that are serving two different musical markets. Many heads can be scratched to how they are going to manage this as the French singers fan base increases. When asked whether he felt that using the same name as Hispanic Jazz Singer Marc Antoine would cau

se any complications in the future, Marc answered: " No, not really. I just found out two months ago that there is another Marc Antoine. He sings a different genre than me. I don’t see it as a problem and will deal with it if an issue arises." Now, smart and patient as he is, we can only wait and see how this will pan out in the future.

If we take into account that every great singer has an even greater singer ahead of them that they admire, at times mock their style and professionalism. To Marc, there are many artists singing in English and to set himself aside, he chose to do something different in the R&B market and that is to sing in French. To be honest, this seems to be a great idea in terms of the types of R&B artists that are circulating in the United States and brazing the airwaves like Usher, Omarion, and even Rihanna. These artists also admire a few of Marc Antoine's favorites like Stevie Wonder, Brian Mc Knight, and Michael Jackson. At present, he doesn't have to compete against them for album sales; however; they will have to compete with him for his. Why? American artists have to go out to obtain the international status that makes them great artists, Marc Antoine is already servicing these markets, but with an advantage: HE CATERS TO HIS AUDIENCE IN THE LANGUAGE THAT THEY SPEAK! He is creating his own vision.

"I have my voice, it's my instrument. I push to achieve a certain standard of quality for myself as apposed to the same quality as other artists have done vocally. The main difference is that I do not sing in English." ~ Marc Antoine 2008

It is not that Marc never inspires to record an album that will cater to markets that appreciates music sung in English, as this is also one of the three languages that he speaks. At the moment, his key focus is to sing in French and celebrate the fact that he has accomplished one of his key goals; to release his debut album. One day we can look for him to surface in America, but right now you will find him in France doing what he does best... Sing!

To learn more about Marc Antoine, you can visit the following websites. U.S. readers, some of these sites are written in French. please use the online French Dictionary to translate words and phrases into English.

ON THE WEB:

Did you know that Marc Antoine started his own record label (1804 Records) four years ago in Montreal, Canada because it was difficult for him to fulfill his dreams at that time