On the eve of the Fête de la Musique, Mathilde Caillard, a activist presenting herself as a “techno-activist,” known under the pseudonym “MC dance for the climate,” made a call to music professionals on Instagram: “Many of you will have a microphone in your hands. Today, in France, many people would like to have a microphone to speak about the seriousness of the moment and encourage people to vote to defeat the far-right.” A techno remix of the 1984 song by the band Bérurier Noir, La jeunesse emmerde le Front national, was composed for the occasion by a member of the collective Planète Blum Blum. However, the 42nd edition of the Fête de la Musique in the streets of Paris on Friday, June 21, did not turn into a political mobilization moment.
Around the Parisian squares where the demonstrations traditionally take place, the atmosphere was festive. Didier, 51, in a Hawaiian shirt and straw hat, sipped a mojito in front of a Cuban music concert, at the foot of Rue de la Fontaine-au-Roi (in the 11th arrondissement), next to Place de la République. “We have to forget about the elections, we’re here to dance, right?” he said in a unifying gesture. Beers were being poured into glasses under the sun. A line formed in front of a pizzeria. The rap producer and composer The Alchemist signed T-shirts for a crowd of young people on the sidewalk. Among the passersby, a few jerseys from the French football team reminded that at the same time, on Friday night, there was a Euro match between France and the Netherlands.
Just a stone’s throw away, on Boulevard Saint-Martin, Juana Sainte-Marie, 34, with a neon green wig and rhinestones on her teeth, set up a DJ table in front of the hair salon she opened eight months ago. In the back of this “versatile and multicultural place where all types of hair are treated,” sits a wig in the colors of the Palestinian flag. “We must not forget what is happening right now,” commented the manager. “But we won’t talk about politics tonight. It’s a party, a moment we offer to our colleagues and passersby.” Before the start of the celebration, Yael Sainte-Rose, 38, a cook, accompanied a gospel group giving a concert at Place de la Bastille. For him, this evening was an opportunity to “get out of the house and out of the current political context.” Puzzled by the offerings of political parties running in the elections, he is unsure of which party to vote for: “Left, right, front, back. We no longer know who to trust. It’s a game of chess with our lives,” he sighed.
