1
00:00:34,073 --> 00:00:35,906
(In spoken verse) From time to time,

2
00:00:36,223 --> 00:00:38,078
Would you mind

3
00:00:38,787 --> 00:00:40,997
Taking me away from it all, just ...

4
00:00:41,469 --> 00:00:43,453
Going to the sea, just ...

5
00:00:43,930 --> 00:00:46,279
Letting it lick our feet, just ...

6
00:00:47,383 --> 00:00:49,194
Pretending to forget,

7
00:00:49,557 --> 00:00:53,090
Feeling every grain of sand
touch our palms and soles

8
00:00:53,114 --> 00:00:55,736
Feeling each piece of algae
caress our ankles

9
00:00:55,760 --> 00:00:58,164
Feeling the whole sky in our hair

10
00:00:59,910 --> 00:01:01,186
Blowing.

11
00:01:01,210 --> 00:01:02,441
From time to time,

12
00:01:02,465 --> 00:01:04,408
Would you mind

13
00:01:04,432 --> 00:01:06,187
Surprising me at a street corner

14
00:01:06,211 --> 00:01:08,476
Forgetting I asked you,
saying I'm astonished,

15
00:01:08,500 --> 00:01:09,720
Pleasantly surprised,

16
00:01:09,744 --> 00:01:11,314
And after a start I jump

17
00:01:12,544 --> 00:01:13,726
into your arms

18
00:01:14,265 --> 00:01:19,111
And after looking deep
into your eyes indiscreetly

19
00:01:19,135 --> 00:01:20,641
to find something,

20
00:01:21,708 --> 00:01:23,601
I steal a kiss from you

21
00:01:23,625 --> 00:01:27,235
to put in my pocket and keep
for when you're gone

22
00:01:27,919 --> 00:01:30,984
And because I'd feel alone
with all these people around.

23
00:01:31,599 --> 00:01:34,440
Then I'll take it slowly
in the palm of my hand

24
00:01:34,464 --> 00:01:37,131
And slowly put it on my cheek, there.

25
00:01:38,307 --> 00:01:39,577
See?

26
00:01:40,091 --> 00:01:41,911
Can you feel how soft it is?

27
00:01:42,898 --> 00:01:44,048
Can you feel it?

28
00:01:44,837 --> 00:01:46,097
From time to time,

29
00:01:46,121 --> 00:01:47,771
Would you mind

30
00:01:47,795 --> 00:01:49,350
Carrying me on your back,

31
00:01:49,374 --> 00:01:51,453
Whisking me away lightly,
far from the earth

32
00:01:51,477 --> 00:01:53,074
Where everything is so beautiful,

33
00:01:53,098 --> 00:01:55,878
Like the traces of your back,
like the curves of your back,

34
00:01:55,902 --> 00:01:58,062
Melody of my senses,
you can see how I think

35
00:01:58,086 --> 00:02:00,634
And my feet are so heavy
and my verses are so fleeting

36
00:02:00,658 --> 00:02:03,089
My "if's" and my syllables
grind me and plow me

37
00:02:03,113 --> 00:02:06,210
I leave ink footprints on the sidewalk.

38
00:02:06,234 --> 00:02:08,424
So just for once,

39
00:02:10,465 --> 00:02:11,781
Could you carry me?

40
00:02:13,600 --> 00:02:15,040
From time to time,

41
00:02:15,064 --> 00:02:18,477
Would you mind letting me caress you

42
00:02:19,278 --> 00:02:20,670
With the tip of my pen,

43
00:02:20,694 --> 00:02:22,152
With my fingertips?

44
00:02:22,544 --> 00:02:24,232
I'll redraw your face

45
00:02:24,256 --> 00:02:26,965
The way one sketches a landscape.

46
00:02:27,441 --> 00:02:30,491
I'll do it on a misty day
to hide my emotions a little

47
00:02:30,515 --> 00:02:32,054
And my "what-about-me's"

48
00:02:32,078 --> 00:02:33,476
My "I's," my games,

49
00:02:33,500 --> 00:02:35,777
Just for you, just for the two of us.

50
00:02:35,801 --> 00:02:36,991
You know,

51
00:02:37,783 --> 00:02:39,053
It's so easy.

52
00:02:40,172 --> 00:02:41,886
I just have one last request

53
00:02:42,592 --> 00:02:43,958
I won't keep you much longer

54
00:02:43,982 --> 00:02:45,138
I just wanted to ask you

55
00:02:45,162 --> 00:02:48,192
If from time to time you wouldn't mind

56
00:02:51,682 --> 00:02:53,650
Saying "You and me,"

57
00:02:53,674 --> 00:02:55,015
Like in the movies

58
00:02:55,039 --> 00:02:56,986
saying, "We," that's all.

59
00:02:57,010 --> 00:02:58,986
Saying, "You send me,"

60
00:02:59,010 --> 00:03:00,184
saying, "You shake me,"

61
00:03:00,208 --> 00:03:02,876
saying, "You intoxicate me,"
saying "You inspire me,"

62
00:03:02,900 --> 00:03:05,512
Saying "you" again and again
at the top of your lungs

63
00:03:05,536 --> 00:03:07,912
because deep in my head
you're overflowing.

64
00:03:07,936 --> 00:03:09,852
Saying, "Your kisses burn me, carry me,"

65
00:03:09,876 --> 00:03:11,027
Saying, "I like you,"

66
00:03:11,051 --> 00:03:12,709
And more, yes.

67
00:03:14,053 --> 00:03:15,203
From time to time,

68
00:03:16,228 --> 00:03:19,149
Would you mind taking me away
from it all, you know, just ...

69
00:03:19,173 --> 00:03:20,249
(End spoken verse)

70
00:03:20,273 --> 00:03:22,073
(Singing) Going to the sea

71
00:03:22,869 --> 00:03:26,853
Letting it lick our feet, just ...

72
00:03:28,347 --> 00:03:30,888
Pretending to forget

73
00:03:32,157 --> 00:03:37,877
For between you and me

74
00:03:39,155 --> 00:03:41,275
The one I prefer

75
00:03:42,545 --> 00:03:43,695
is you.

76
00:03:44,543 --> 00:03:45,710
(End singing)

77
00:03:48,950 --> 00:03:50,521
(Speaking) It's with those lines

78
00:03:51,561 --> 00:03:54,435
that I won The French Slam
Championship in 2005.

79
00:03:54,459 --> 00:03:55,610
It's true!

80
00:03:55,634 --> 00:03:57,203
(Applause)

81
00:03:57,227 --> 00:03:58,377
Thank you.

82
00:04:02,884 --> 00:04:06,457
You probably weren't expecting
a slam champion to look like this, right?

83
00:04:07,259 --> 00:04:08,568
So what is "slam"?

84
00:04:09,016 --> 00:04:12,882
It's an open stage where anyone
in the audience can express themselves.

85
00:04:13,311 --> 00:04:15,645
You have three minutes
to do whatever you want.

86
00:04:15,669 --> 00:04:18,733
No props, music or set decoration -

87
00:04:18,757 --> 00:04:21,573
just words, voice, body.

88
00:04:22,263 --> 00:04:23,995
A field of free expression,

89
00:04:24,019 --> 00:04:27,248
where rappers, poets,
storytellers, singers

90
00:04:27,272 --> 00:04:29,278
or simply word lovers

91
00:04:29,944 --> 00:04:33,008
can meet, share.

92
00:04:33,750 --> 00:04:36,258
It's rather similar
to what we're doing here today,

93
00:04:37,226 --> 00:04:39,874
although TEDx is not a slam scene.

94
00:04:40,298 --> 00:04:44,519
It isn't! You can't come onstage
after me, sorry!

95
00:04:45,932 --> 00:04:50,270
Well, except for the people
hidden backstage, waiting for their turn.

96
00:04:51,162 --> 00:04:54,082
I've always been attracted to the stage,

97
00:04:55,186 --> 00:04:56,601
since childhood.

98
00:04:57,114 --> 00:04:58,535
I'd sing all the time

99
00:04:58,559 --> 00:05:01,431
and imagine doing super-dramas
in costume for my parents.

100
00:05:02,200 --> 00:05:05,105
I thought only other people
could make a living out of it.

101
00:05:05,129 --> 00:05:06,438
It was a childhood dream.

102
00:05:07,526 --> 00:05:09,979
Today, I'm a singer-songwriter

103
00:05:10,003 --> 00:05:11,160
and performer.

104
00:05:11,184 --> 00:05:12,431
That's my job.

105
00:05:12,455 --> 00:05:15,955
Discovering slam at 17 was a catalyst.

106
00:05:16,583 --> 00:05:18,086
That's when I realized

107
00:05:18,110 --> 00:05:20,557
how I really wanted to climb onstage,

108
00:05:20,581 --> 00:05:22,715
I also realized
I wanted to write to be ...

109
00:05:23,821 --> 00:05:25,401
heard.

110
00:05:25,852 --> 00:05:27,811
Suddenly everything became possible!

111
00:05:27,835 --> 00:05:30,336
And when, at 20, I left everything
to make a record,

112
00:05:30,360 --> 00:05:33,561
I wasn't afraid at all,
that much was clear.

113
00:05:33,585 --> 00:05:37,521
Today, I refer to that time as the most
spontaneous summer of my life.

114
00:05:39,007 --> 00:05:41,437
I released my first album in 2009,

115
00:05:42,331 --> 00:05:44,751
then a second one in 2015.

116
00:05:45,346 --> 00:05:49,346
Between the two releases,
the world of music changed a lot.

117
00:05:50,307 --> 00:05:54,243
I self-produced the second album, "Une."

118
00:05:54,719 --> 00:05:56,965
The songs were ready,
and I didn't want to wait

119
00:05:56,989 --> 00:05:59,622
for a record company to decide
whether to produce it.

120
00:05:59,646 --> 00:06:01,561
I ended up being an entrepreneur,

121
00:06:02,005 --> 00:06:03,230
a ship captain.

122
00:06:04,499 --> 00:06:07,746
Within that period
of movement, of transition,

123
00:06:08,633 --> 00:06:10,530
I had to learn a new trade --

124
00:06:11,643 --> 00:06:12,982
in fact, many trades:

125
00:06:13,006 --> 00:06:16,566
producer, head of marketing,

126
00:06:16,590 --> 00:06:19,558
project manager, community manager,

127
00:06:19,582 --> 00:06:22,995
caught in a whirlwind
of emails, of logistics,

128
00:06:23,019 --> 00:06:27,044
a flurry of goals and mandatory codes
that you have to follow

129
00:06:27,068 --> 00:06:30,214
when you want to make a record.

130
00:06:31,202 --> 00:06:32,385
Gradually,

131
00:06:33,815 --> 00:06:34,980
I lost control,

132
00:06:36,170 --> 00:06:39,416
forgetting that, hidden
under the multiple hats,

133
00:06:40,559 --> 00:06:41,852
I was an artist,

134
00:06:43,290 --> 00:06:45,098
first and foremost.

135
00:06:47,011 --> 00:06:50,631
(Singing) All around,

136
00:06:50,655 --> 00:06:55,294
thoughts dancing back and forth

137
00:06:57,278 --> 00:07:03,604
All around, thoughts dancing
back and forth

138
00:07:04,755 --> 00:07:07,226
I put them

139
00:07:08,663 --> 00:07:12,267
I put them on

140
00:07:12,838 --> 00:07:16,052
I put them on

141
00:07:18,869 --> 00:07:20,020
my boat

142
00:07:21,565 --> 00:07:23,772
I put them

143
00:07:25,432 --> 00:07:29,683
I put them on

144
00:07:29,707 --> 00:07:34,877
I put them onto my boat

145
00:07:35,766 --> 00:07:37,092
My paper boat

146
00:07:38,774 --> 00:07:41,456
And I let them sail away

147
00:07:42,361 --> 00:07:43,615
(End singing)

148
00:07:47,985 --> 00:07:53,485
(Applause)

149
00:07:54,827 --> 00:07:56,166
My record was released.

150
00:07:57,065 --> 00:08:00,422
I managed to find help,
partners to accompany me,

151
00:08:00,446 --> 00:08:02,736
I received a lot of praise but …

152
00:08:04,620 --> 00:08:05,821
something was wrong.

153
00:08:07,387 --> 00:08:09,043
I felt disappointment,

154
00:08:10,061 --> 00:08:11,228
frustration

155
00:08:12,349 --> 00:08:13,855
and even guilt.

156
00:08:14,795 --> 00:08:16,548
I felt I had somehow failed

157
00:08:16,572 --> 00:08:19,011
when, at my level,
it was quite the opposite.

158
00:08:20,503 --> 00:08:21,807
How did I get there?

159
00:08:23,995 --> 00:08:25,524
I compared myself.

160
00:08:26,121 --> 00:08:29,287
I constantly compared my project
to other people's.

161
00:08:30,334 --> 00:08:32,078
I felt they managed better than me;

162
00:08:32,102 --> 00:08:34,606
I was fooled by all the images of success

163
00:08:34,630 --> 00:08:37,714
that you see on social networks,
on the Internet.

164
00:08:39,375 --> 00:08:42,096
In fact, many people
must have thought the same about me

165
00:08:42,120 --> 00:08:45,109
when visiting my Facebook page,
always full of good news.

166
00:08:46,110 --> 00:08:47,635
We only highlight the positive.

167
00:08:48,078 --> 00:08:50,171
We almost never talk about our trials.

168
00:08:50,195 --> 00:08:53,298
And suddenly, we feel
we are the only one facing difficulties.

169
00:08:53,322 --> 00:08:55,838
But of course that's not true.

170
00:08:57,020 --> 00:08:58,345
We all face them.

171
00:08:59,954 --> 00:09:02,877
We might be better off
talking about them more often, right?

172
00:09:03,560 --> 00:09:06,356
Me, I never did enough.

173
00:09:06,929 --> 00:09:10,752
Though I worked from morning to night
seven days a week -

174
00:09:11,688 --> 00:09:12,971
never enough.

175
00:09:13,472 --> 00:09:15,804
I spent my time on the phone
or on my computer.

176
00:09:15,828 --> 00:09:17,649
I wasn't spending any time writing.

177
00:09:18,430 --> 00:09:20,549
For me, the captain,

178
00:09:20,573 --> 00:09:24,613
it was a terrible inner storm.

179
00:09:26,478 --> 00:09:28,335
And a downpour.

180
00:09:30,556 --> 00:09:36,696
I was - am - so proud of this album.

181
00:09:37,870 --> 00:09:39,616
I loved every bit of it!

182
00:09:39,640 --> 00:09:42,449
And despite that,
I saw my glass as half empty.

183
00:09:43,242 --> 00:09:45,628
I focused on what remained to be filled,

184
00:09:46,312 --> 00:09:48,343
rather than on the road already traveled.

185
00:09:49,391 --> 00:09:53,232
I'd get up in the morning
with this question looping in my head:

186
00:09:56,333 --> 00:09:57,506
What's the point?

187
00:09:59,111 --> 00:10:01,395
It was time to sound the alarm

188
00:10:02,101 --> 00:10:03,252
and respond to it.

189
00:10:04,403 --> 00:10:09,329
At one point, I just couldn't enjoy
my success anymore,

190
00:10:10,209 --> 00:10:12,457
even though my childhood dream

191
00:10:12,481 --> 00:10:14,376
was right there, before very my eyes.

192
00:10:14,845 --> 00:10:17,381
I released 2 CD’s, I won prizes.

193
00:10:17,875 --> 00:10:21,395
I sang at major festivals
in beautiful venues like the Olympia,

194
00:10:21,419 --> 00:10:23,753
took part in many wonderful projects

195
00:10:23,777 --> 00:10:25,405
and above all,

196
00:10:25,429 --> 00:10:27,236
I make a living out of my art.

197
00:10:27,260 --> 00:10:30,203
How lucky I am!
It should be absolute bliss!

198
00:10:32,456 --> 00:10:33,842
But at one point,

199
00:10:33,866 --> 00:10:39,232
I forgot who I was and why
I was doing all those things.

200
00:10:41,351 --> 00:10:43,630
But the important thing
is to realize it, right?

201
00:10:44,766 --> 00:10:45,931
It's normal to doubt.

202
00:10:46,757 --> 00:10:48,550
It's not a straight road.

203
00:10:49,449 --> 00:10:52,773
It's hectic. It's a journey.

204
00:10:54,423 --> 00:10:56,282
Today, I want to look at my glass,

205
00:10:57,018 --> 00:10:59,119
see it as half full,

206
00:11:00,184 --> 00:11:02,278
and love this half, find it beautiful.

207
00:11:02,728 --> 00:11:04,388
I want to continue to write,

208
00:11:04,412 --> 00:11:06,023
cultivate my singularity

209
00:11:06,047 --> 00:11:07,801
and stop comparing myself to others,

210
00:11:07,825 --> 00:11:10,810
because that's what paralyzes me.

211
00:11:11,744 --> 00:11:15,633
Most of all, I don't want to lose sight
of that one reason so fundamental,

212
00:11:15,657 --> 00:11:18,535
that it's the answer every time
I ask, "What's the point?" -

213
00:11:19,785 --> 00:11:22,248
because I love what I do
more than anything else.

214
00:11:22,272 --> 00:11:24,633
Because I love looking for
the right words,

215
00:11:24,657 --> 00:11:26,291
listening to how they sound.

216
00:11:26,315 --> 00:11:29,113
Because I love sharing them
onstage with my voice,

217
00:11:29,137 --> 00:11:33,339
my hands, my face and my bare feet!

218
00:11:33,363 --> 00:11:34,801
Because it is vital for me

219
00:11:34,825 --> 00:11:37,324
and I can't imagine doing
anything else with my life.

220
00:11:37,348 --> 00:11:39,874
That's why I make music,

221
00:11:39,898 --> 00:11:42,123
not to achieve this vision of success

222
00:11:42,147 --> 00:11:44,295
that the world wants to impose on us.

223
00:11:46,745 --> 00:11:47,937
I have succeeded.

224
00:11:49,722 --> 00:11:52,150
And it's icing on the cake
if, within my words,

225
00:11:53,058 --> 00:11:55,050
people recognize themselves.

226
00:11:55,982 --> 00:12:01,434
(Singing) When silence screams

227
00:12:05,095 --> 00:12:06,939
It becomes deafening

228
00:12:08,352 --> 00:12:11,153
Tiny sounds

229
00:12:11,177 --> 00:12:14,582
Become a giant's cries

230
00:12:15,283 --> 00:12:19,879
Our words are compasses,
our guides on the ocean

231
00:12:19,903 --> 00:12:22,959
Words as continent

232
00:12:24,760 --> 00:12:26,775
That's what we'll keep

233
00:12:26,799 --> 00:12:30,463
When the clouds speed by
and we can't touch them

234
00:12:30,487 --> 00:12:34,570
On the tender island blue
impossible to land

235
00:12:34,594 --> 00:12:38,560
Our words are three-masted ships
sailing in these clouds

236
00:12:38,584 --> 00:12:40,298
Our words like sailboats

237
00:12:40,322 --> 00:12:42,294
That's what we'll keep.

238
00:12:42,318 --> 00:12:46,056
And when the sky weeps,
darkening with sobs

239
00:12:46,080 --> 00:12:49,766
So the sounds, the colors,
get caught in the scrolls

240
00:12:49,790 --> 00:12:53,673
Our words at arm's length
are our weapons, our torches

241
00:12:53,697 --> 00:12:55,868
Our words as flags

242
00:12:55,892 --> 00:12:57,408
That's what we'll keep.

243
00:12:57,432 --> 00:13:01,096
When the doors are closed
and we're left outside

244
00:13:01,120 --> 00:13:05,128
Knocking helplessly
with our hands, our bodies,

245
00:13:05,152 --> 00:13:08,797
Our words will remain there,
etched into the decor

246
00:13:08,821 --> 00:13:11,282
Our words like treasure

247
00:13:11,306 --> 00:13:12,796
That’s what we'll keep.

248
00:13:12,820 --> 00:13:16,561
When my lips are sealed
and I don't know what to say

249
00:13:16,585 --> 00:13:20,518
When I don't know what to do but cry,
even though I want to smile

250
00:13:20,542 --> 00:13:24,316
My words softly slide to avoid the worst

251
00:13:24,340 --> 00:13:26,775
My words like sighs

252
00:13:26,799 --> 00:13:28,331
That's what I'll keep.

253
00:13:28,355 --> 00:13:32,600
When we'd like to keep
every memory, every name

254
00:13:32,624 --> 00:13:36,012
To remember everything, every feeling

255
00:13:36,036 --> 00:13:38,441
Words are our struggles,

256
00:13:38,465 --> 00:13:41,433
Words are ...

257
00:13:43,920 --> 00:13:46,486
emotion

258
00:13:48,949 --> 00:13:51,412
Our words like songs

259
00:13:52,906 --> 00:13:55,443
That's what we'll keep.

260
00:13:57,682 --> 00:14:04,395
(Applause)

261
00:14:07,482 --> 00:14:08,665
Thank you.

262
00:14:09,718 --> 00:14:10,903
Thank you.

263
00:14:11,948 --> 00:14:13,098
That's it,

264
00:14:13,638 --> 00:14:15,166
that's all I want to keep,

265
00:14:15,778 --> 00:14:17,484
this little taste of being onstage,

266
00:14:17,508 --> 00:14:19,840
this need to convey with my voice,

267
00:14:19,864 --> 00:14:21,516
sharing words that inspire.

268
00:14:21,540 --> 00:14:24,299
It's kind of what we've done
together this afternoon.

269
00:14:26,237 --> 00:14:28,214
That's what matters to me.

270
00:14:29,377 --> 00:14:31,648
And I'm sure that you, too,
know the answer

271
00:14:31,672 --> 00:14:33,852
to your "What's the point?" -

272
00:14:35,050 --> 00:14:37,058
that one idea stronger than any other,

273
00:14:37,082 --> 00:14:40,519
that will always be there to guide us
when we lose our way.

274
00:14:41,381 --> 00:14:44,646
Mine, the work of 20 years,

275
00:14:45,404 --> 00:14:47,204
my dream since I was a little girl,

276
00:14:47,676 --> 00:14:49,507
I don't want to forget it anymore

277
00:14:49,531 --> 00:14:52,358
or all of these victories
that belong only to me,

278
00:14:53,120 --> 00:14:55,888
and to my path full of twists and turns.

279
00:14:56,795 --> 00:14:59,069
As long as they remain,
I will be able to go on,

280
00:14:59,093 --> 00:15:01,419
despite the doubts and obstacles,

281
00:15:01,934 --> 00:15:03,640
the rough sea.

282
00:15:04,655 --> 00:15:09,181
Perseverance and passion are my allies.

283
00:15:09,938 --> 00:15:14,035
So let's raise our half-full glasses

284
00:15:15,480 --> 00:15:19,865
and rejoice that so much room remains
to keep on filling them.

285
00:15:20,885 --> 00:15:22,036
To us!

286
00:15:22,060 --> 00:15:25,282
(Applause)