Aya Nakamura, who is rumored to be performing an Edith Piaf song at the Paris Olympics, has been publicly attacked by far-right groups before receiving support from musicians and politicians, AFP reports.
There were boos at the mention of the French-Malian singer at the first major election meeting of Reconquête, Eric Zemour's far-right party, at the Dôme in Paris.
Elsewhere, a small far-right group called Les Natifs posted on its networks a picture of a banner hoisted by about ten of its members on the banks of the Seine that read: 'Y'a pas moyen Aya, ici c'est Paris, pas le marché de Bamako'-or 'No way, this is Paris, not the Bamako (Mali's capital) market'.
The phrase "Y'a pas moyen" (No way) is taken from her hit song "Djadja", which has garnered over 950 million views on YouTube.
According to L'Express, in February, Aya Nakamura spoke to Emmanuel Macron about the possibility of performing at the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games (26 July - 11 August), possibly doing a cover of an Edith Piaf song. Neither the French president nor the world's most listened-to French singer have yet confirmed this rumour.
Aya Nakamura reacted to the post on social networks: 'You guys can be racist but not deaf... That's the thing that really bothers you! I'm becoming the number 1 state topic in debates and so on, but what do I really owe you? Absolutely nothing."
Singer Dadju, one of French R'n'B's biggest artists, launched into a defensive rant on his social media account, "That's why we're always behind. You are attacking the biggest artist in the country with fourth grade arguments...It wasn't even a question, but now she has to sing, we will support her. Talking about how this isn’t Bamako... sons of b*tches..." he wrote.
Sports Minister Amelie Udea-Castera also supported the singer, telling her "not to care what the world thinks of you as we support you."
LFI deputy Antoine Llemmetre also sided with Aya Nakamura, attacking Les Natifs: "They claim to love their country but want to exclude the most listened to French-speaking singer in the world after Edith Piaf. You can't be racist and patriotic in France." /BGNES
