Matthieu Chedid (born 21 December 1971) is a French multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter.
Chedid began his career as a session musician playing both acoustic and electric guitar. In the late 1990s, he rose to fame as a singer-songwriter and musician under the alias M (often stylized as -M-), blending Nouvelle Chanson, electronic and rock music. In studio, he experiments with various instruments and electronic music, while on tour as -M- he mostly plays the guitar, and is known for his eccentric outfits and dramatic live performances, sometimes including special effects.
Chedid has also performed in the 2005 stage musical Le soldat rose and is part of French-Malian band Lamomali. Since 2018, he has been the most awarded artist at the Victoires de la Musique Awards with 13 awards, tied with Alain Bashung.
Chedid took an interest in music early on. In 1978, at the age of six, Chedid lent his voice to the chorus of his father's hit song T'as beau pas être beau alongside older sister, Émilie. During his teenage years and early twenties, Chedid was part of short-lasting groups such as Tam Tam , Les Bébés fous and Les Poissons Rouges with Mathieu Boogaerts, as well as Julien Voulzy and Pierre Souchon (respectively the sons of singers Laurent Voulzy and Alain Souchon) who went on to form the duo Les Cherche Midi.
Chedid performs and records under the stage name -M-. Chedid created -M- as means of overcoming his shyness on stage and also as a way of distancing his work from that of his father and grandmother. The pseudonym comes from Chedid's first initial but also refers to the similar-sounding French word aime, meaning love. The character -M- is a superhero, noted for having a playful nature, and recognized for his flamboyant costumes (primarily monochrome suits with slim trousers and long jackets with upward pointed collars) and hair styled into the shape of an M.[citation needed]
In 1997, -M- released his first solo album Le Baptême. During this time; he played mainly solo or with the cellist Vincent Ségal. The album received overall positive critical reception, but public recognition only came a few months later, with the release of the single "Machistador".[citation needed]
Je dis aime
Chedid performing in 2014
In 1999, -M- published his second album, Je dis aime a title that puns 'aime' (like/love) with 'M'. A few months later, the album was 11th on the French Charts, with more than 500,000 albums sold, thanks to a number of successful songs ("Je dis aime", "Onde Sensuelle", "Monde Virtuel", "Le complexe du corn-flakes", "Mama Sam").
Live, -M- played with Cyril Atef, Vincent Segal and DJ Shalom for the samples on some songs. He still works with his sister Emilie Chedid for the realisation of the clips. His live performance largely contributed to his success, playing on his character of -M- to transform every concert into a show. He won his first Victoire de la Musique awards for Male Artist of the Year and Concert of the Year.
"Belleville Rendez-vous" and Qui de nous deux
-M- gained international exposure through his recording of the song "Belleville Rendez-vous" for the soundtrack of the 2003 Sylvain Chomet animated film The Triplets of Belleville in both French and English. The song, with lyrics by Chomet and music by Benoit Charest, was nominated for a 2003 Academy Award. The music video for "Belleville Rendez-vous" uses both a live-action depiction of -M- and an animated depiction incorporated into footage from the film.
In autumn 2003, he released his 3rd album Qui de nous deux (Which one of us two) with the singles "Qui de nous deux", "La bonne étoile", "Mon ego". Softer, this album saw the birth of his first daughter, Billie, for whom an all-pink guitar was built by instrument-maker Cyril Guérin. A pink guitar can be seen in the video for "Qui de nous deux".
In 2007, he worked once again with Vanessa Paradis on her album Divinidylle, released in September 2007.
Mister Mystère
Rumors circulated before the release of his 2009 studio album, Mister Mystère, that Chedid had decided to drop the character -M- to record and perform under his given name.[4] The album, however, was released under the name -M- but included photographs of the singer without the wild costumes and hair associated with the -M- character. The music video for the first single, "Le Roi des ombres", showed Chedid burning a tiny effigy of his alterego.[5]
Louis, Matthieu, Joseph et Anna Chedid
Chedid was part of the musical group Louis, Matthieu, Joseph et Anna Chedid with several members of his family. They began with a tour in 2015, which was followed by a studio recording.
Îl, Lamomali, and Lettre infinie
In autumn 2012, he released the album, Îl, played with Lawrence Clais and Brad Thomas Ackley.
He worked with Toumani Diabaté and Sidiki Diabaté on a collective album, Lamomali, released in March 2017[6] The album also features many well regarded names from the world music scene, such as Philippe Jaroussky, Oxmo Puccino, Youssou N'Dour, Seu Jorge, and Fatoumata Diawara, lending a mesmeric world music flavour to it that celebrates cultural diversity and world peace. The album "showcases musical stylings from across the planet, whilst at its core it contains a traditional West African rhythm".[7]
Chedid is mostly known for his on-stage persona -M- whose signature hairstyle is reminiscent of the letter M and was initially achieved using hair wax.[4][10] According to Chedid, the hairstyle was inspired by the ear tufts of certain species of owls, from a lithography of an owl given by his grandmother Andrée.[11] The letter M also appears as a pattern in the character's clothes, in music videos and stage sets. With his energetic personality, eccentric outfits and hairstyle, the character has drawn comparisons with English musician David Bowie's stage persona Ziggy Stardust.[12][13][14] Besides Matthieu Chedid, the character -M- has also been portrayed by actor Vincent Lindon in the music video for Chedid's song La bonne étoile.[15] In promotional material and music videos for his 2009 album Mister Mystère, Chedid is seen with natural hair instead of the signature M-shaped hairstyle.[16] The lyrics of some of the songs, and the music video of Le Roi des Ombres ending with Chedid burning a tiny effigy of the -M- character, led to speculation about whether he would abandon his alter ego.[4][5] Chedid eventually kept performing the character, showing his natural hair or wearing M-shaped wigs or helmets.[17]
Les Âmes de Mogador (2003), with Patrice Renson : tribute to Essaouira (Maroc). A CD of ten unreleased tracks is included.
-M-, qui de nous deux (2004), with Claude Gassian : book produced during the recording of the album Qui de nous deux
-M- de A à Z (2005), by Mathias Goudeau
Le monde de -M- (2005), with Marianne Chedid, Sonia Rachline and Sophie Laurent : insight on his career, with a lot of pictures
-M- le mot dit : esthétique d'un funkistador by Marc Borbon: analysis of M's world through a fan's own experience
Le Livre Extraordinaire de -M- by Lisa Roze: package of an archival photographs, unpublished shootings, a book, postcards, a pop-up, a new song (Si Si No No), etc.
