The Rabat-Born Rapper Who Slept Outside in France

Djalito was born and raised in Rabat, Morocco, until the age of 13. He then moved to France with his mother and sister to join his father in Cergy, in the Val-d'Oise, arriving at Orly airport in August. He felt isolated and bored, and his command of French was limited. A friend put rap music onto a USB key, and he listened to it for six months, which helped his French improve. After several years his parents returned to Morocco, while he stayed.

At the end of his master's degree, his student visa expired and the renewal of his residence card was refused, so he could be expelled. He was told to go home, but he answered that he had been in France since he was 13 and that here was his home. He had no papers and no income, and, as Le Courrier de l'Atlas reports, he ended up sleeping outside. The article gives no dates, no city and no duration.

He tried to survive by making music. He was aware that a single police custody could have led to his permanent expulsion. He decided that rap was his way out, and he kept going despite the hardship, encouraged by messages from Moroccans and other Africans who liked his songs.

About two years later he signed with the label Because Music. His visa application was then accepted, and he felt liberated. In March 2021 he released his first project, Peinard et confiant.

The newspaper presents his story as one of success, told by Djalito with humour and humility.