#french american

[justdreamsandmusic]

1 ; Eponna Meridiana Wojciechowski

2 ; Meridiane Eponine Wojciechowski

3 ; Altros Hercs Clef once Francis Gallo Wojciechowski

[anakinsafterlife]

Music and Arts for Interview with the Vampire and other French-Enjoyers

I am so genuinely excited to find out that Zachary Richard, the Francophone folk singer from Louisiana, has released a novel! The story addresses the concerns of the American Francophonie with the story of a family wracked by politics and violence in the wakr of the American Civil War.

Friends, this the is the first American novel to be published in French since 1894! Although there is still a Francophone community in Louisiana to this day, they have been dealing with forced Anglicization for well over a hundred years, including the forced Anglophone education of Francophone children.

Zachary Richard remains an outlier in an largely English American cultural landscape. He wrote and recorded the majority of his songs in French and is popular in the international Francophone musical community.

I have been meaning to talk about Richard for a very long time, particular in the context of Interview with the Vampire. There are a good many cultural references in Interview, but unfortunately it seems that the show-runners are not really too informed about historical French arts because there aren't many references to French music or playwriting. Lestat would be more likely to act Moliere than Shakespeare. Louis would be somewhere in between, probably listening to and speaking both French and English songs. Unfortunately, I'm not too familiar with Black Creole musicians, of which there were/are indeed plenty in Louisiana. I've been meaning to educate myself in that area and post a selection along with my favourite tracks from Richard, but life has been very pressing indeed these last few years, so that never happened.

Here, then, are a few of my favourite songs from Zachary Richard and a few brief recordings from Black Zydeco artists, as well as the blurb from Richard's novel.

I didn't include translations, because that would make this long post long indeed, but Richard's lyrics are readily available in any search engine.

The novel:

Summary:

In the disarray that fell on southern Louisiana following the Civil War, André Boudreaux, seventeen years old, discovered life with his grandfather Drozin. This southern veteran, who became a rich man thanks to the arrival of the railway, tries to regain his prestige and his political power. But the sordid murder of André's uncle, the turbulent elections of 1882 and the political aims of his daughter-in-law will turn his world upside down. Les Rafales du carême is the first French-language novel published by a Louisiana author since 1894.

The music:

Dans les grands chemins. (On the big roads). A song about personal history and being drawn away from your place of origin to explore the wider world.

Au bord de Lac Bijou (On the shore of Lac Bijou). One of his bigger songs and very basic of me, but it's beautiful.

Le Ballade de Jean Batailleur. Again, one of his big ones, but it's a ballad about an orphan who grows up to be a criminal and dies alone. Depressing but gorgeous.

And this one gives me chills every time. It's a live rendition of Richard's song "La Promesse Cassee," performed with Celine Dion. This is hands down Dion's best performance ever, imho. Her voice is so nuanced and her expression so powerful, without ever once over-singing. The song's content probably has a lot to do with that. Richard wrote it in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, when New Orleans was so utterly devastated, and the US federal government promised aid, which, after days of waiting, never came. "The Broken Promise" is a scathing and haunting commentary on that betrayal.

"Laisse le vent souffler" (Let the wind blow) addresses the same issue, but years later. The singer tells the story of the police arriving to evacuate the community as another hurricaine approaches. He refuses to leave because he has already survived other storms and he has seen how the police have failed to support a scattered community in the past.

Can't believe I almost forgot this one:

Reveille--A powerful song addresses the expulsion of the Acadians, the forced removal (by British/English Canadian forces) of the Acadian French from the Canadian east coast and northern USA east coast. Many of the Acadians were shipped further south or "back" to Europe, where most had never been. Plagued by attendant atrocities of starvation, drowning and disease, thousands of Acadians were killed. Those who survived the journey down the American coast eventually became known by the shortened name of "Cajuns."

There are also a few extra things here from Richard's YouTube, where he highlights other Louisiana French singers and musicians. I've only included a couple, but people writing for Interview might want to explore his page more, since there's some Black Zydeco (Louisiana folk and French) musicians there.

J'ai une chanson dans mon coeur:

I couldn't find anything out about this. A young, Black American girl sings this song in an American school. I think, and hope, that she's another member of the French Louisianian musical community. Very sweet.

Zachary Richard talking about his influences and earlier Zydeco music in Louisiana.

[death-by-mercury]

[septembergold]

bernadettebanner & @hana.dehart

at Osterley Park and House - National Trust

[weepingwidar]

Lou Benesch (French-American, 1989) - The Kiss (2021)

[thunderstruck9]

Louise Bourgeois (French/American, 1911-2010), Les Fleurs, 2009. Gouache on paper, in twelve parts, each: 23 ½ x 18 in.

[tizeline]

Now that TikTok has been banned in the US, I want to inform all the US-Americans of the different reactions I've seen so far on the app about it

Everyone being really dramatic and acting like we're the people who survived the Thanos-snap in Infinity War

Some are holding fake funerals to honour the lost Americans

People being sad about TikTok feeling way more quiet than before

People being happy about TikTok feeling way more quiet than before

Everyone yelling about how superior km, celsius, 24-hour-clock, dd-mm-yy, etc is now that the Americans can't argue back about it

A lot of people being scared that TikTok is gonna get bought by an American company and the general consensus so far seems to be that we'd rather the Americans remain banished forever than that happening sorry lol no hard feelings

People being happy that they don't have to compete with Americans for clout anymore

People being insecure that they're not as funny as Americans

People not knowing who they're gonna make fun of now that the Americans are gone (the obvious answer is the English like cmon guys)

Everyone pointing out how the comment-section is way less toxic than usual (prolly confirmation bias, let's be honest)

[telekinetic-hedgehog]

frots & swears

[fullcravings]

Caramel Apple Pie Macarons

[disease]

"I PICK ON EVERYONE DEAD OR ALIVE" LOUISE BOURGEOIS // 1999 [lead and steel | 21 x 31.1 x 1.3 cm.]

[justdreamsandmusic]

Call Me Cherlocked Watson.

@themistressofdolls @callmejohnholmes @scp-l4-clef-alto-001

3 13 𝄡

Seth is about to use Tumblr's nice "Video" function to upload all of his/their Youtube videos of their Bet on Providence end of East Bay EP Townie Epon Stylo camping videos to Tumblr. Well, besides the December 16 & December 22nd ones I already posted. I was raised Armenian-Asyrian-Finnish-Irish from 1995 to 2020; then I found out I was an adopted British/French=/=Italian. I am very proud of what I did near Naragansett Brewery from 2022 to 2024; I won court cases from there und reraised myself. the Washington Bridge crew destroyed my French-German Barnstable Hausen stylo camp at which point I've made a Gauli-Greco/Roman stylo Derricked Pontoon Cella' Stockade camp in a metal drainage pipe I'm rather sure may be either Granite or Iron. Woodboarded, bordered by Pine Trees, plank roof last night, split Oaken tree in Milkcrate und surrounded by hamper, Trash Bin hamper, plastic boxes for clean furniture, prayer mattress in front of Grille und larger mattress, comforters, milk crates, suitcase, Jason M's guitare, a 10 Gallon Hat with Eponna Meridiana Wojciechowski antlers from 2024 Wynndtier, bike, n shopping carts plugging the backside. I have Catholic Japanese individuals in mind, not to mention computers. I do it for my Foundation und Temple.

Seth Grant Berouty-Piett 1995-2020

Seth Michael Grant-Lafierrere 2020 Epon und on an' all

Macedonia Greeces Ebonna, Rome-Italies Emponda, Gauli-Frances Eponna

[stelliumh3arts]

REBLOG AND SPREAD THE WORD!

CD: CAREFREEBROWNGIRL @tiktok/rednote/YT

Spread Awareness! Start the global movement now via any social media!✊

[killyridols]

we love you by louise bourgeois, 2005, welded steel wall plaque, 8.6 × 13.7 centimeters

[the-evil-clergyman]

Ophelia by Léopold Burthe (1851)

[have-you-seen-this-animal]

This animal was requested!

[weepingwidar]

Lou Benesch (French-American, 1989) - The Lover (2020)