Not just a copycat of Mika, the French singer shares why he is more than the curly hair and how his music is an explanation of himself.
- Oct 8, 2009
AceShowbiz - "Who is Sliimy?" was Twitter's trending topic back in July after Lady GaGa posted it on her status update. Few hours later celebrities like Ashley Tisdale, Britney Spears and Miley Cyrus also posted the same phrase on their accounts. So who is the one guy who make all these people wonder?
Discovered by new music mogul, Perez Hilton, French artist Sliimy was first known by his cover of Britney's "Womanizer" and later on, a contender for Mika. He is taking his first step into breaking the U.S. market with his debut album "Paint Your Face" which boasts the title track as well as "Wake Up".
To AceShowbiz.com, the aspiring singer talks exclusively about what kind of people would enjoy his music, what his personal take of Perez and Lady GaGa is as well as why people keep comparing him to Mika while he himself doesn't see any similarity.
ASB: How did you come up with the stage name Sliimy?
Sliimy: It is the nickname that my friend gave me when I was at school. He gave me this nickname because people were really stuck with this name and I was really skinny. And I just take Sliimy when I create my Facebook and MySpace. I thought it sound good so I just keep it.
ASB: How would you describe your music to someone who might not know you that well?
Sliimy: The album "Paint Your Face" is a universe where I want other people to imagine their own lives with my songs. My music is the pop culture, because I love the pop culture, it's the main culture, a little bit universal music. ...It's probably hard to describe music because it's like you're in front of the mirror and you have to describe yourself. But my music is an explanation of myself, I think.
ASB: When did you realize that you want to be a musician?
Sliimy: I always wanted to be a musician because I knew that music is the only way for me to be happy and try to understand myself. You can become a unity.
ASB:What do you want to achieve with "Paint Your Face"?
Sliimy: It's an explanation of myself and my world. So I want people to understand me maybe a little bit. And also in order to share my music to a lot of different people. In fact, it could become a unity. You can become a unity with your song, that's how I want it. It's really amazing to share your music to people during concert because people are really generous. They give you a charging energy all the time.
ASB: Before being discovered by Perez Hilton, what did you do?
Sliimy: I was always designing a concept in music in France. At the beginning when I create my MySpace, I was alone in my bedroom [laugh]. That's when I write my songs. I worked with some people and we would record in a home studio in France, my little hometown. Yeah, I was being myself, I was sharing lots of video, lots of music and have a little concert, an acoustic. So after I met Perez Hilton, it was basically the same like back in France. It's a great experience.
ASB: So what do you think of him personally?
Sliimy: He was really generous because he always try to share some sights.
ASB: Perez is also fond of Lady GaGa, what do you think of her?
Sliimy: Lady GaGa I really appreciate. I just saw her gig in Paris and she was amazing. I think she really understands the link between the visual and the music. She's really a trend-setter. She's really creative. Some people say that it's just marketing but I think she's a girl being herself and she's doing well.
ASB: Honestly did you ever get tired of being compared to Mika?
Sliimy: It's not really tired, it's a great honor. Sometime when you get tired people just said that I can't be because it's not there. You just have to read the lyrics. We're just different. I think the live performance is the most important. You have to see it live and after you can have your opinion. He's a great artist and he's a great comparison, but I think we are different.
ASB:Well one thing that you can't be compared to is that you come out as gay and he did not.
Sliimy: Well, it's something but it's not just that. You know you can't read through Mika's curly hair and call him that. It's funny because I met Mika a few weeks ago in New York City in the corridor and he was really outstanding. We were talking about all those comparisons. I don't know [what's with] the media, but we know we are different.
