French record producer Bob Sinclar, who has been nominated for a Grammy Award, is also a DJ, remixer, and proprietor of the Yellow Productions label. As Chris The French Kiss, Bob Sinclar began DJing in 1986 when he was 18 years old, focusing on funk and hip-hop music. His first club smash was “Gym Tonic,” which Thomas Bangalter of Daft Punk co-produced and which featured voices that were illegitimately lifted from a Jane Fonda workout tape. A character from the movie Le Magnifique by Philippe de Broca served as the inspiration for the Bob Sinclar persona.
The “French touch” of house music, which heavily incorporates sampled and filtered disco strings, is widely credited to Le Friant. His song “I Feel For You,” an ode to French musician Cerrone, peaked at #9 in the UK Top 40. It is on his second album Champs Elysees. He collaborated with vocalist James “D-Train” Williams on the song “Darlin’”. Le Friant has also published works using other aliases. He has experimented with hip-hop and acid jazz under the names The Mighty Bop and Reminiscence Quartet. Also, he founded the Africanism project, where a group of musicians makes house music with a blend of Latin, jazz, African, and tribal influences.
