Coupe décalé singer and composer Sré Jean Ariel was born on July 1, 1990 in Cocody, Côte d'Ivoire. The son of a pastor, he learned to sing and play the piano in the church choir. Even before graduating from high school, he joined the Orchestre de la Radio-Télévision Ivoirienne (RTI) as a pianist and rhythm section member. He met DJ Arafat, with whom he began collaborating. He became the official arranger for artists on Arafat's label, Yôgônovo. In 2015, he decided to take his turn at the forefront of the scene with the album "Dis-Moi Master". He quickly made a name for himself with the singles "Kadigbeu" and "Laisse-moi le Kplo". These danceable tracks made it into all the playlists and opened up a royal road for the artist. His beat-making skills and vocal performances set him apart, placing him somewhere between coupé-décalé, pop, traditional music and hip-hop. His singles follow one another with equal success, with tracks like "Ghetto" and "Yelelema" topping the charts, and "pêtêpêtê" used as soundtracks for TV shows. In 2017, he received two awards, Revelation of the Year and Best Artist "Next Generation" at the Coupé Decalé Awards. His ties with DJ Arafat dissolved when his contract was renegotiated, and he left the label. He lost the rights to his albums and his videos were withdrawn from platforms. A hard blow that doesn't demoralize him, the artist is a star, racking up over four million views with the single "Sympa", released in 2018. He signed to Sony Music in September and released the hit "Amina". The collaboration with Sony Music Africa lasts three years, the artist not being satisfied with the promised international development, despite a fine European tour. He set up his own label, releasing " Toffole " in 2022 and the album Mutation in February 2023.
