Karim Kacel was born in Paris, in the city's 14th arrondissement, on 30 August 1959. Shortly after his birth Karim's parents moved to the Paris suburbs where the young boy grew up surrounded by a rich mix of musical culture, listening to everything from French jazz and rock to traditional Arab music from his parents' homeland (Karim's mother hails from Algeria, while his father comes from Kabylia). In his teens Karim would go on to develop a veritable passion for French chanson, discovering the classics of Serge Reggiani, Jacques Brel, Georges Brassens and Georges Moustaki (the legendary French singer with whom Karim would go on to forge a close friendship).

Karim was a passionate young music fan and he soon taught himself to play the guitar and started writing song lyrics and poetry. Karim remained distinctly unmotivated by his studies, however, leaving school at the age of 16 without really knowing what he wanted to do. He trained as a boxer for a while, but then became interested in the idea of working locally with problem children. It was this experience which would give Karim the chance of using his guitar-playing and his singing talent.

After several years teaching singing and music to local children, Karim decided to take part in an audition organised by the Pathé-Marconi label in 1982. The audition, which was filmed by a national TV crew, proved to be a major turning-point in young Karim's career. For the young singer was not only spotted by a prominent artistic director - he also turned out to be a huge hit with television viewers who voted massively for him in the post-show poll.

After his success at the Pathé-Marconi audition, Karim's career took off with lightning speed. Indeed, just a few weeks later, the young singer found himself in the studio recording his debut single entitled "Banlieue" (The Suburbs). The song proved a huge hit with the public. What's more, "Banlieue" also received rave reviews from the critics who praised Karim's vocal style and the sheer intensity of his musical delivery. In short, Karim Kacel proved an instant winner capable of reaching a wide audience. However, several critics were also quick to pigeon-hole Kacel as a typically "Arab singer" and this label proved particularly hard to shake off, especially given the success of the hard-hitting single "Banlieue" (which depicted day-to-day immigrant life in the Paris suburbs).

It was not long before festival directors and tour organisers began to pick up on Karim Kacel's work and the young singer was soon much in demand. By the spring of 1984, Kacel was already performing at the famous Printemps de Bourges festival in the "Tremplins" (Up-and-Coming Talents) section. But it was Kacel's impressive series of concerts at the Théâtre de la Ville in Paris in September '84 that really established the singer at the forefront of the French music scene.

1984 would also see the release of Karim Kacel's first album "Gens qui rient, gens qui pleurent" ("People Who Laugh, People Who Cry"). This accomplished debut album revealed Kacel's talent for composition and lyric writing, and proved once and for all that the young singer's vision stretched way beyond the Paris suburbs. Kacel's international career also began to take off around this period, his tour schedule filling up with countless dates throughout Europe. Kacel also performed extensive tours in Mauritius and North and East Africa, becoming a veritable ambassador for French music abroad. In 1985 the young singer was even invited to perform in front of the Pope, who was on an official visit to Belgium.

Kacel released his second album "P'tite soeur" ("Little Sister") in 1986. The album, for which Kacel wrote both music and lyrics, proved to be a huge hit with the critics and later that year the singer was awarded the prestigious 'Prix Charles-Cros'. In fact, 1986 turned out to be a year of critical triumph for Kacel, for that year he also carried off the 'Prix Georges Brassens' at the Sète Music Festival (in the South of France). Needless to say, Kacel's second album also received rave reviews in the French media, critics praising the singer's sensitive lyrics and poetic writing style. Critics also lauded Kacel's vocal prowess and the powerful emotional intensity of his live performances.

By this stage of his career Kacel was devoting an incredible amount of time and energy to his busy concert schedule. Barely ever off stage, the singer appeared to derive immense satisfaction from live contact with his fans. In 1988 Kacel finally returned to the studio, however, releasing his third album "Sans en avoir l'air" later that year.

In 1988 Kacel would score another major critical triumph, winning the prestigious 'Piaf' award for Best Live Show of the Year (for his concert at the Olympia). In 1989 Kacel triumphed once again, carrying off the 'Prix Petit Robert' for his songwriting efforts. What's more, the famous French music star Léo Ferré turned up to the Francofolies festival in Montreal to present the award to Kacel in person.

While Kacel's commercial success never regained the dizzy heights reached by sales of "Banlieue", the singer continued to triumph with the critics. In 1991 the French press was filled with rave reviews of Kacel's new album "Ruses de Sioux" and "Mother Mother", the first single release from the album, received extensive airplay on French radio. The 13 tracks on "Ruses de Sioux" neatly pulled together Kacel's diverse musical influences, mixing jazz, rock and classical arrangements with some superb melody lines. Although Kacel's album sales lapsed far behind his critical success, the singer's (numerous) live shows continued to attract a faithful following of fans.

In the summer of '91 Kacel branched out in a totally new direction, staging a musical with the French vocal ensemble Les Octaves. The show, entitled "T'as beau t'appeler Van Gogh" ("It's All Very Well Being Called Van Gogh …") premièred in Avignon in the South of France. As soon as the show was over Kacel threw himself back into his hectic tour schedule, performing dates up and down the country and playing in even the most obscure venues in the smallest French towns and provinces. Every now and then Kacel would return to his base in Paris where, in 1993, he celebrated his tenth year in the music business at the Café de la Danse. Needless to say, hundreds of faithful fans turned out to support Kacel during his two-week run at the Café de la Danse. The following year Kacel brought the house down once again when he performed at "La Fête de l'Humanité" (the annual French Communist Party festival held in Paris).

In 1995 Kacel finally returned to the studio to work on his new album "L'Orage est passé" ("The Storm Is Over"), written in conjunction with his pianist and orchestra conductor Angelo Zurzolo. The subject matter on "L'Orage est passé" marked a new turning-point as far as Kacel's lyrics were concerned. Leaving the world of social issues and urban problems behind, Kacel turned his attention to more mystical themes, writing songs about spiritualism, religious faith and metempsychosis.

Kacel went on to release a new CD album in November 1997. The album, entitled "Ce n'est qu'un jeu" ("Only A Game"), proved that by this stage of his career Kacel had reached the zenith of his vocal prowess. Indeed, as the singer moved into his forties his voice really came into its own, adapting itself to a whole range of new genres such as salsa and rap. Kacel's new album was suffused with Italian influences. (This was hardly surprising as the singer had actually recorded "Ce n'est qu'un jeu" in Capri with a team of Italian musicians and sound engineers).

Kacel would return to Capri the following year to record a series of new songs for his 18-track compilation album "Futur Intérieur". Needless to say the album, released earlier this year, proved to be another huge critical triumph. Highlights include Kacel's covers of the Nougaro classic "Toulouse" and Lucio Dalla's "Caruso" and a special adaptation of his first hit "Banlieue", which has been specially reworked Italian-style as "Banlieue (Capri deux heures du matin").

Karim Kacel continued to keep a low profile in the French media, but he returned to the music news in March 2002 with a new album entitled "Rien que pour toi". The album included musical tributes to his father's home region of Kabylia (in Algeria) as well as his new adopted home, Brittany (c.f. the Celtic orchestrations on tracks such as "Tu ne peux rien" and "A vos souhaits"). The album received a particularly warm welcome from music critics.

May 2002