Stromae
| Stromae | |
|---|---|
Stromae at the NRJ Music Awards 2011
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Paul Van Haver |
| Born | 12 March 1985 |
| Origin | Etterbeek, Brussels, Belgium |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) | |
| Instruments | |
| Years active | 2000–present |
| Labels | |
| Website | www |
Paul Van Haver (born 12 March 1985, Brussels), better known by his stage name Stromae [stʁɔmaj], is a Belgian-Rwandan musician, singer, rapper and songwriter. Stromae was born to a Rwandan father, Pierre Rutare, and a Belgian mother, Miranda Marie Van Haver. He is originally from Laeken, in Brussels. He established himself in both the hip hop and electronic music genres. Stromae came to wide public attention in 2009 with his song "Alors on danse", which became a number one in several European countries. In 2013, his second album Racine carrée was a commercial success, selling 2 million copies in France alone and nearly 600,000 units elsewhere.
Stromae was born in Belgium to a Tutsi father and a Belgian mother. His father, a successful Rwandan architect, was killed during the 1994 Rwandan Genocide. His mother raised him and his four siblings in Brussels, and later in a nearby suburb. She encouraged each of her children to play a sport and an instrument. Stromae studied percussion. His mother placed him in a Roman Catholic Jesuit school after he failed in the public school system at the age of sixteen. He formed a small rap group with friends while still in school. His early influences included Belgian singer-songwriter Jacques Brel, Cuban son, and Congolese rumba. Even though he was raised as a Belgian, he has stated that he did not always feel that he was from Belgium.
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