FEATURE:
Spotlight
Angèle
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THERE are a few…
PHOTO CREDIT: Kenza Le Bas
recent interviews with Angèle, though some are paywalled and it is quite hard to get a complete picture. However, I want to source from the ones that are easily available, as this is an amazing artist that more people should know about. I know that she has some European tour dates next year and will be stopping in the U.K. She plays London’s The Roundhouse on 1st May. Her new album, Instinct, is phenomenal. I would encourage everyone to listen to it. I only came across her music recently, so I was interested to read about her. A Belgian artist who has a big worldwide following, I can see the next few years being massive for her. In terms of the venues she plays and artists she collaborates with. Though she has collaborated with some major artists already, as Instinct reaches more and more people, I feel these new opportunities will come up. I want to start with Monocle and their interview from earlier in the year:
“Dressed in a black catsuit, Belgian pop star Angèle emerges from a smoky haze of red and blue to the sound of pounding beats. It’s the closing ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics and the audience is cheering. She is on stage to perform French electro act Kavinsky’s “Nightcall”, along with indie band Phoenix. It’s a crowning moment in her career.
Though the ceremony marked Angèle’s entry into the international pop pantheon, the Brussels-based musician was already a superstar in the Francophone world. Her debut album, Brol, was a bestseller in France in 2019 and was accompanied by a sold-out tour. That year her single “Balance ton quoi”, which details the everyday sexism that women endure, became a defining song of the “BalanceTonPorc” (“Denounce your pig”) movement – the country’s equivalent of MeToo.
It has been almost five years since Angèle’s most recent album, Nonante-Cinq, but she has recently started releasing new music, most notably “What You Want” with French duo Justice. Here, she tells Monocle about her love for Belgium, writing political songs and where you’ll find her relaxing this summer.
One of your best-known songs, ‘Bruxelles je t’aime’, is a love letter to your home city. What does Belgium mean to you?
It’s a crazy little country that has so much to offer. Being Belgian involves knowing how to make fun of yourself because nothing is ever that serious. I love that.
You grew up in an artistic family and your parents are famous in Belgium [Angèle’s father is the singer Marka and her mother is comedian Laurence Bibot]. How has that influenced you?
My parents were so supportive. Seeing them in their dream jobs, I grew up with the audacity to think that it was the norm. I always knew that I wanted to be in control and not get stuck in situations that I wasn’t happy with. I have had some bad experiences with the industry but have always been very independent. I created my own label and my own publishing company.
Your songs feel very intimate. To what extent do you write from your own experience?
My song “Ta Reine” is about two girls falling in love – well, one girl falls in love and the other is a little unsure. My best friend was going through something similar and I felt connected to that story too. When I got outed by the press [a tabloid magazine published photos of Angèle and her then girlfriend in 2019], I faced homophobia and it was shocking. But it was interesting how it suddenly felt as though I had written ‘Ta Reine’ for myself”.
I cannot find too many reviews for Instinct. I know it was reviewed by The Guardian here (the U.K.), but not a tonne of other reviews of it. That is a shame, as it is a remarkable album. There has been a shift in terms of her sound. Angèle's music has undergone this change. As Le Monde write, now, this incredible artist brings in “radical sounds that reflect a chaotic world”. She “distances herself from the buoyant moods of her early days, infusing her music with a new sense of urgency, even as she continues to craft catchy choruses”:
“Listening to Instinct, Angèle's third album, steeped in sounds and rhythms that flirt with the dance floor, it seems likely that the Belgian pop icon's electronic turn owes a great deal to the closing ceremony of the Paris Olympics. On August 11, 2024, at the Stade de France, which director Thomas Jolly had turned into a temple of French Touch, the Brussels-born singer performed "Nightcall" alongside the song's author Kavinsky and the band Phoenix. The glamorous performance went viral worldwide.
A few months after Kavinsky's death, Angèle, 30, recalls with emotion "Vinco," the figure of French electro, describing him as "funny, moving and authentic." She also speaks of the joy of performing that hit, an anthem of her teenage years and the soundtrack to her "first romantic relationship." She notes, however, that the global moment was not a turning point for her. "I had already started working on some new tracks, like 'What You Want' and 'Une seule vie,'" says the singer, speaking with Le Monde in mid-September in Paris. "The audience's response that day mostly validated the direction I was taking with this third album."
There is a more extensive interview I am keen to bring in. I will not source the entirety of The Guardian’s review of Instinct. They praised it, though said the album can be generic or frustrating at times. It may be the case that Angèle's best work is still ahead of her. However, I do think that Instinct is a superb album that deserves more. Fans have reacted to it positively. This section from The Guardian’s review did grab me: “Indeed, intermittently at least, Instinct makes a case that British audiences don’t know what they’re missing when it comes to Angèle, who has a penchant for suddenly grabbing the steering wheel and driving a song off road. On Verra starts out like a standard pop piano ballad – albeit with a hint of chanson about the melody – before it’s unexpectedly strafed with bursts of static and machine-gun-paced noise. You could initially imagine any number of pop stars essaying the sweet drift of Je Compte, but then it dramatically shifts gears, first into a four-to-the-floor rhythm topped with an assemblage of sampled gasps and warped vocals, then into a lo-fi piano ballad”. I shall end with Hypebae and their conversation with Angèle. If you get the chance to see her live at all then do so. I feel this is an artist who will continue to grow her fanbase. Plenty more albums ahead of her:
“Angèle might already be a household name across Europe, but if she’s not on your radar yet, consider this your introduction. The Belgian star has quietly built one of the most compelling careers in contemporary pop, performing at the Paris Olympics closing ceremony, taking the stage at Coachella, collaborating with Dua Lipa and becoming a Chanel ambassador along the way. At just 30, she’s already balancing chart success and cultural influence with a distinctly effortless cool.
The singer-songwriter first broke through in 2018 with her debut album Brol, which introduced her sharp lyricism and playful yet pointed take on modern life. Its standout single “Balance Ton Quoi” quickly went viral, evolving into a feminist anthem that resonated far beyond the charts and became closely associated with the French #MeToo movement. Two years later, Angèle’s reach expanded globally when she teamed up with Dua Lipa on the bilingual lockdown hit “Fever,” a cross-border smash that propelled her beyond the Francophone pop world.
But the spotlight hasn’t always been easy to navigate. French tabloids notoriously outed the singer before she had the chance to do so on her own terms, while the public often placed heavy expectations on her as a feminist figurehead. When controversy later surrounded her brother, the backlash was swift and, at times, unfairly directed at her. In 2021, Angèle addressed the pressures of sudden fame in her Netflix documentary, offering a candid look at the emotional toll of life in the public eye. Now, entering a new decade of life and career, she returns with a renewed sense of self and sonic freedom.
Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your music career so far?
I’m from Belgium, and I live between Brussels, Paris and New York. I’m super lucky, because I love to spend time in different places. I’ve been doing music for the last 10 years, almost, producing, writing and sometimes also working with other artists, and that’s actually why I’m here. I just did a new song with Justice, and I’m super happy because it’s been years since I’ve released anything, so here I am back again. It feels amazing.
You’ve been through a lot with the French tabloids. How do you cope with the media attention?
That’s also a work in progress. I mean, growing up literally helps, but also taking time for yourself. I’ve been away from the media and all of that attention for almost two years, and that was super important to me and really helped. I would say before that, I was still a little girl stuck in my body. It was difficult because any criticism, any negative comments or tabloid pieces were super painful and pretty cruel. Then I got to understand that was, unfortunately, part of being a celebrity and being vocal. Doing shows in front of people who love you comes with that very dark side, but I’ve learned to cope. I would say all of that happened with time, and I think now I’m in a much better position. I’m also very aware of how lucky I am. I used to know I was lucky, or my brain knew, but I didn’t feel it because I was so overwhelmed. Now that I’ve had a lot of time for myself, I feel really grateful. Whenever something negative happens now, I can take it and push it away.
So, not only does it feel like you’re entering a new era sonically, but also linguistically. After representing French music on a global stage, what made you decide to start singing in English? Why now?
I actually started singing in English at the very beginning. I studied in Antwerp, where we don’t speak French, we speak Flemish, and so the school was in English. I was only singing standards, because it was a jazz school, so when I really first started singing, it was in English for maybe two years. It’s fun because it’s kind of like going back to my roots, even though I’m not an English speaker. I’ve always loved the way English sounds, and I think it allows for tons of different intonations and pronunciations, with different types of stress in the words that don’t really exist in French. It’s a completely different way to approach singing.
Again, it all happened super naturally. The first album had a few English songs and for some reason, the second didn’t. I don’t really have an explanation for why. I think I was just more inspired by French at that time. Also, I wrote it during COVID when I didn’t travel at all. Over the last two years, I’ve had the chance to spend a lot of time in New York and abroad, so I think that’s when it came to my mind to bring English to my music.
You’ve collaborated with other major artists too, including Dua Lipa. Who would be your next dream collaboration?
That’s a great question. It’s hard to say, though, because I’m a little superstitious, so I don’t want to jinx it. But I’m super impressed and inspired by the female scene right now. In pop music, there are so many incredible artists, and I’m really excited to see more female producers. That used to be so rare. I don’t think that we’ve ever been told that we were allowed to do that. When I started producing, I really didn’t believe in myself. With time, a lot of guts and a little naivety, I just did it. I got super lucky and met incredible people and producers. Even working with Justice in terms of the technical aspect was amazing. I got to understand technically what they were doing, even though there’s a whole part that’s just too genius and I’ll never understand. Feeling legit as a producer was, honestly, a long path. But I’m seeing more artists, for example, PinkPantheress getting Producer of the Year at the BRITs, Rosalía got one a few years ago, that’s super important. I’ve met some amazing female producers that I’ve been able to connect with. We need to cheer each other on and feel like we don’t have to apologize for taking up a space that was typically taken by men. Men are also super ready for it, I think. It’s super exciting and I can’t wait to see the scene grow”.
I am going to wrap up here. The superb Angèle is someone I would recommend to anyone. She has this adoring following, though there are people who do not know about her. I do think Instinct is a fantastic album and it should have got more press coverage. No matter. As there are some tour dates next year, it means she will reach new people and there will be more eyes her way. I wonder if she will play some U.K. festivals next year or not. Do make sure that Angèle is…
ON your radar.
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