Manu Chao (born July 21, 1963) is a French latin folk singer.
Chao's parents were Spanish, but moved to Paris to escape Francisco Franco's fascist regime (which lasted until the dictator's death in 1975). He was brought up in Paris and now lives in Brazil.
From 1987 until 1998 Chao was a member of Mano Negra band. He sings in French, Spanish, Arabic, Portuguese and English, often mixing them in the same song. Although he's one of the world's biggest selling artists, he is not well-known in the English-speaking world.
His music has lots of influences: Rock, French chanson, Spanish-American salsa, Algerian raï. He gathered them from the immigrants to France and his travels on Iberoamerica.
Some of Chao's lyrics are about love, living in ghettos and immigration, as well as some songs which carry a left-wing message. He has lots of followers among the European left and the antiglobalisation movement, though some resent his being part of the music establishment.
Discography
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