Shizzio and Desi Boome - In Paris

Shizzio has teamed up with Desi Boome to do their own version of In Paris by Jay-Z and Kanye West. Called Pakis in Paris, the video was released yesterday and features the rappers hanging out together in the French capital. It’s ironic that the video of Pakis in Paris was released on the same day that the media was reporting President Sarkozy’s opinion that there are too many foreigners in France.

Shizzio and Desi Boome sound great together and each artist gets an equal exposure. Desi Boome sounds good in both French and Punjabi and switches well between the two languages. I do like the collaboration between Shizzio and Desi Boome, but it would have been nice if they could have done something brand new. They have made this track work, but they are talented artists capable enough to come up with their own material. Hopefully they will work together again on an original track.

Using La Defence in the background of the video was brilliant. It is a great piece of edgy French architecture that was suited to the video. However, using the Eiffel Tower was cliché even if it does instantly remind people that the video is set in Paris. The French capital is not short of iconic bulidings and it would have been nice to see one of these instead of the Eiffel Tower. The video has a spontaneous feel to it and is much more interesting to watch than the video by Jay-Z and Kanye West.

It's great that the lyrics are on youtube with the video, but they raise a few issues. I would have liked a more imaginative hook than "bounjour, au revoir, Pakis in Paris". Surely they want to stay a little longer in Paris than a few minutes and make their presence felt? “Oui oui, no urine” is quite possibly a crime against la langue française.

It is my opinion that people from the subcontinent should not call each other Pakis as it makes it ok for people from other cultures to use the word in a negative and racist way. I know it’s supposed to be a copy of the other track, but I can’t help thinking that it would have been cleverer to use Desi rather than Paki. Especially as Desi Boome is known for a track called Assi Desi.

In case anyone is wondering what Desi Boome is saying in French here is my very rough translation. It’s been quite a while since I’ve spoken any French and Desi Boome uses a few slang terms and colloquialisms, so if any francophones want to correct it, please do!

In France there is a crisis but we still want the same money
Sad to say that it’s a problem
I’m a Desi who can test me
Undecided I miss your decision does it have precision?
You want to test us,
You are coming to the end of your round, I’m just getting started