Difference in Style: Northern and Southern French Hip-Hop

France has slowly developed into the next biggest hip-hop capital after the United States of America, but unknown to many, there exists two notable difference in style: Northern and Southern French Hip-Hop.

The geographical location is what primarily sets apart these two styles, with major cities such as Paris comprising the Northern Hip-Hop group while other cities such as Marseilles are what make up the Southern style of French Hip-Hop. However, we can easily tell one from group from the other without necessarily having to look into their geographical background. Just by listening to the lyrics of their music, we can identify if the music comes from the north or the south.

Songs which put emphasis on social awareness, such as discrimination in our everyday lives and which literally brings down the people to the harsh reality that life has to offer is typical of the Southern Hip-Hop style. On the other hand, songs which go straight to the point and are more focused to tackle specific issues, such as drug trading and trafficking, encounters with law enforcement, or even teen gang wars, are what interest the Northern Hip-Hop genre. This type focuses on more on general problems which plague the country, as compared to the Southern genre, which chooses to look into the basic individual and personal problems.