Ménélik

Ménélik is one of those associated with the early commercial success of rap in France. A college friend of MC Solaar, Ménélik worked with Jimmy Jay and Posse 501, before being spotted by Gilles Peterson, who got him to sing on acid jazz projects. His collaboration with Germany's No Sé brought Ménélik his first hit in 1995 with "Quelle aventure! His second hit, "Tout baigne", did not, however, enable the album Phénoménélik (1995) to break through. Ménélik opened for MC Solaar and won a Victoire de la Musique award in 1996. Preceded by the hits "Je me souviens" and above all "Bye-Bye", Je Me Souviens, released in 1997, was certified gold in 1998. This was to be the end of the story for Ménélik, whose subsequent albums OQP (2000) and E-Pop (2001) were flops. Renamed MNLK, Ménélik released MNLK Project in 2008, but never returned to the spotlight.