Supreme NTM

The embodiment of what is called hardcore hip-hop in France for over a decade, NTM included, at its core, Didier Morville (aka Joey Starr) and Bruno Lopes (aka Kool Shen). Both born in 1968, they grew in the Seine St Denis department, where they went to school together, but had no special connection until 1983, when they both attended a dance show in the Trocadero (including American dancers showing their ability to breakdance and smurf). They got together from then on, and trained themselves on these dances (in the Actuel Force group).
The TV show H.I.P H.O.P that aired in 1984 just strengthened their belief, which really took off in the suburbs, where nothing else was designed to keep the kids busy. Graffiti was the next form of expression they tried, bombing trains and stations on the line 13 (which went from their town to Paris). They integrated the NTM posse, formed by the DRC (Da Red Chiffons) and the TCG (The Crime Gang). Later, the posse got larger with the fusion with the 93 MC, and the crew became 93 NTM. So, at first, NTM was mainly a group of writers, not predestined to be MCs. It was only their acquaintance with the Assassin posse that got them to music. The first step on radio was on Radio Nova, in the Deenastyle show, hosted by Deenasty and animated by Lionel D. They grew rapidly in technique, as their rage was already there but needed better forms. A few months later, they made the first part of the Souris Déglinguée concert at the Olympia. In 1990, they had dropped "Je Rappe" on the Rapatittude compilation that gave them their first massive exposure to the new generation of musicians of the French rap music. And while on tour with the other artists of the compilation, they signed with Epic, a Sony subsidiary. Their first maxi was called Le Monde de Demain (The World of Tomorrow) and was released that same year. The lyrics prefigure the events that would take place a few months later in France, including anger in the suburbs and student demonstrations ("So now go see in the suburbs, you, who command in the higher sphere, don't take this like a game, my call is serious, because the youth changes, this is what disturbs you"). The record sold more than 50,000 copies. In 1991, they began their first tour, Authentik, which would become the name of their first album, released in the middle of the year. In July, they appeared in New York with Son of Bazerk for the CMJ New Music Seminar. During this trip, they recorded some remixes with Kirk Yano. They finished their tour in 1992 in Paris at the Zenith, where the audience was packed and wild. They began the pre-production of their second album at the end of the year, after the release of a single, "Boogie Man." The album 1993 J'appuie Sur la Gachette..., mostly produced by DJ'S, was a commercial deception, and produced a controversy with the title 'Police', which led to a investigation. In this song, they tell their truth on the law enforcement, and a lot of radios would then boycott NTM. Despite their difficulties to get more widely known for their talent, they got known for their uncompromising positions: the dimensions of rap music were still too big for the French ears and market. In 1994, they entered a studio in New York to prepare their new album, which announced their separation from DJ'S, who had produced their first two albums. In February 1995, the first single came out, "Tout n'est pas si facile," and the album followed the next month. DJ Clyde is now at the controls, the lyrics are as subversive as ever, still having to request equal rights for all. A single "La Fièvre" is a bomb, and is programmed on all the radios; what a revenge for the group that was banned less than a year before. The album is a commercial success, the best album of NTM to see the light, and still very underground in its philosophy and rawness. The following tour makes them win recognition, being scheduled in the most popular festivals and concert halls. However, controversy is never so far when you dare to tell a disturbing truth. In a concert organized by SOS Racisme in the south of France, the police present in the concert hall lodged a complaint against NTM for verbal assault to policemen. After first court order, they caught 3 months in prison plus a 6 months banning of work in France. The second decision in court reduced the sentence to a big fine. But the debate was there: can we condemn a group that has violent comments, but who is indeed telling a truth that is shared by a lot of people that live in the suburbs? 1998 saw the last album of NTM, that shows more maturity in the rap game than a lot of rappers can even think of. On the first day, the album was sold at 40 000 copies, which is very impressive in France. Singles like "Laisse pas trainer ton fils" and "Ma Benz", combine the still remaining rawness and the subversive side that NTM ever had, with the knowledge of the street and its effect on the youth they learned through the years. Here the two MCs are at the peak of their talent, having found the ways to express all the rage inside, being both wild and wise. This combination is the trademark of NTM, that first began breakdancing, wrecking trains and then channeled their energy into the music where it turned into wisdom. After this album, both MCs created their own label, BOSS for Joey Starr and IV My People for Kool Shen, continuing to release new materials for themselves and their posse.
- Vincent Latz, All Music Guide