Gaël Faye

Born on 6 August 1982 in Bujumbura, Burundi, to a Rwandan Tutsi mother and a French father, Gaël Faye fled civil war and the Tutsi genocide at age 13, arriving in France in 1995. A rapper and slam poet with the collective Chant d'encre, he formed the duo Milk Coffee and Sugar before releasing his debut solo album, "Pili Pili sur un croissant au beurre," in 2013 on Motown France. In 2016, he published his first novel, "Petit Pays," a moving account of his childhood before the bombs fell, awarded the Prix Goncourt des lycéens. His second novel, "Jacaranda," continues this reflection on memory and Rwanda's reconstruction. Between music and literature, Gaël Faye brings a rare, sensitive voice, deeply marked by exile.