Concept
Alix Mathurin (aliks matyˈʁɛ̃; born 28 December 1977) better known as Kery James, is a French rapper, singer, songwriter, dancer and record producer from Orly, who was born in Guadeloupe to Haitian parents. Prior to his solo career, he was in Idéal J where he was known as Daddy Kery. He is also part of French hip hop and rap collective Mafia K-1 Fry. Kery James arrived in continental France at the age of seven. His mother raised him in Orly, a suburb of Paris. He started at a young age to rap, dance, and write his own texts. The famous MC Solaar noticed him when he was only 10 years old in a cité (suburban housing estate) of Paris. He described the setting as "A place where the Islamic faith was omnipresent", then he added Ali to his name. After his conversion to Islam, it has been declared that James is a follower of the Association of Islamic Charitable Projects (AICP), known as Al-Ahbash. The media has labelled him "the rapper repented through Islam". Kery James is aware of it, he does not deny this story. "I prefer to be the one who hold this role rather than somebody else. Numerous young Muslims are tempted to be intolerant or extremist. If I can open their eyes it is a good thing for them". Idéal J At around thirteen years old, he became a member of the group Idéal Junior (later abbreviated to Idéal J). There he was known as Daddy Kery. Idéal J garnered a few singles with explicit titles like "Hardcore", "Pour une poignée de dollars" and a first album titled Original MC's sur une mission. In 1992, their single "La vie est brutale" was released showing great promise though one of the talented artists, Alter MC (who is nowadays known as Jessy Money), promptly left the group. In subsequent years while colleague DJ Mehdi progressed as a prominent producer, Kery worked extensively on writing new material, his texts reflecting a life that involved altercations with the police, street rivalries and an omnipresent fear of death.
