Over the past decade the French reggae scene has consisted of just three names: Tonton David, Princess Erika and Raggasonic. This core trio would pop up on the French mainstream every now and then, sell a few thousand albums, win themselves a gold disc - and then go away again! But Tonton, Erika and Raggasonic are no longer alone. A whole host of new French reggae names have exploded onto the music scene in 1999, clocking up some very impressive album sales - the hottest new arrival Pierpoljak has sold over 400,000 albums to date, Tryo have clocked up 300,000 and Sinsémilia are not far behind with 200,000!

Pierpoljak, Tryo and Sinsémilia, who each represent very different strains of reggae, illustrate the rich diversity of the burgeoning French scene. What's more, while this exciting new trio are locked away in the studio working on new album releases for the year 2000, there appears to be no shortage of newcomers ready to step into the breach and take advantage of the French media - and, more importantly, the French record-buying public's - sudden interest in the New Reggae Sound.

First out of the starting-blocks is Djamatik, who is currently testing the waters with his new album Djamatik Connections (released on Small/Sony). Djamatik appears to have put his career with the Neg’Marrons on hold - despite having recorded the successful 1997 album Rue Case Nègres with the group. But the singer has certainly not cut his ties with Secteur Ä, the famous rap collective from Sarcelles in the Paris suburbs. Doc Gynéco, Passi, Stomy Bugsy and Ärsenik - all former members of Secteur Ä - have got into the habit of guesting on one another's albums. And now Djamatik gets the chance to prolong the tradition, crossing the hip hop/reggae divide by inviting Secteur Ä to guest on a track on his new album.
Djamatik Connections takes the fusion sound a little further too. In fact, 13 of the 14 tracks on Djamatik's new album are duets, which trace a golden triangle between Paris, the West Indies and Jamaica. The Martiniquan-born singer pays tribute to his roots in the French Antilles, inviting a whole range of acts from his homeland to guest on his new album - including reggae group Metal Sound and zouk star Joëlle Ursull plus Jacob Desvarieux and Jocelyne Béroard (two members of internationally-renowned zouk group Kassav'). Djamatik also called upon the services of a few long-serving Jamaicans, heading off to Birmingham to record Roots Black with Steel Pulse and working with top DJ Buju Banton in Kingston.

Various doors were opened for Djamatik thanks to his collaboration with Tyrone Downie who plays the multiple roles of musician, songwriter and producer on Djamatik Connections. This is not the first time that Tyrone, the legendary keyboard-player from The Wailers - who played with Bob Marley from 1975 to 1981 - has worked with an up-and-coming French reggae star. In 1994 Tyrone acted as consultant on Tonton David's Allez Leur Dire then helped Tonton out the following year on Récidiviste. Getting a taste for the French lifestyle, Tyrone then went on to settle in the South of France, where he has become a kind of 'permanent ambassador' of Jamaican reggae, stamping the work of his young protégés with a hallmark of authenticity.

Baobab are another confident new arrival on the French reggae scene. In fact, the group were so sure of their hot new sound that they were ready to finance the production of their first album themselves. Luckily, a talent scout from Polydor arrived on the scene, offering them the chance to release their 13-track album Naturel on Polydor/Universal. The four members of Baobab have known each other for ten years since they were at school together in Montreuil, in the Paris suburbs. So the group have had a long time to forge their distinctive sound, individual members going off and touring/recording with other French groups. (Up until very recently Benoît, for example, played guitar with Pierpoljak).

Moving away from the heavy reggae rhythms of the late 70s, Baobab have modernised the reggae sound for the next Millennium, adding a lighter touch and occasionally replacing instruments with synths and music programming. This approach gives added emphasis to Baobab's lyrics penned by the group's lead singer Manu. "Our main preoccupation is knowledge and education, and writing plays a major role in that," says Manu, summing up the group's philosophy in a nutshell. “Naturelle”, the first single release from the group's album, is a subtle reference to one of reggae's age-old themes - the rights of cannabis smokers!
Another rapidly-rising group on the French reggae scene are Rasta Bigoud from Brittany (who also sing about cannabis on their song Sensé). Fusing reggae sounds with their regional identity, the group are currently causing a stir with their new album on the Songly label, Breizh Zion. Rasta Bigoud, who don't take themselves too seriously, play a classic reggae sound and have already made a major name for themselves on the live scene, touring the West of France. In fact, the new French reggae sound has mainly established itself on the live scene, groups building up a faithful following of fans without having to pass through the mainstream media. Tryo and Sinsémilia both launched their careers this way and another great success story on the live scene is K2R Riddim, who have just released their "Live" album on the Tripsichord label. Prior to that the group spent the past year performing some 90 concerts!

Sooner or later groups who make it on the live scene have to go into the studio however and this is where lack of experience and, more importantly, lack of finances often interferes with production quality. Kinkéliba are one of the new wave of rising reggae stars who have managed to produce a suprisingly good first album with "Couleurs Croisées" (released on Musisoft). This merry band of musicians from Rouen have managed to produce an album which is smoothly impressive from a production point of view and also boasts excellent musical arrangements and songwriting. In fact, Couleurs Croisées almost makes you forget reggae was invented on the other side of the Atlantic!