French International Pop Sensation Jain's Hit Song 'Makeba' Goes Globally Viral

Internationally acclaimed artist JAIN’s hit single “Makeba” from her debut album Zanaka (2015) is once again taking the world by storm, going globally viral across platforms. The song has accumulated an astounding 5 million creations and 9 billion views on TikTok in a span of just 3 weeks.

The song is skyrocketing across the board—reaching #1 on the Global Shazam Chart and charting across 166 markets worldwide. Additionally, the track has entered the Top 200 Global Chart and is currently charting in 27 countries on Spotify and in 41 markets on Apple Music. “Makeba” has gathered over 227M streams worldwide and continuing to climb, with triple-digit streaming growth this week.

With 80% of streams for “Makeba” originating outside of France—JAIN’s home country—her music transcends borders and is captivating audiences across Europe, the UK, Africa and Latin America.

Zanaka translates to “childhood” in Malagasy—her mother’s native country. The song “Makaba” is an ode to South African singer and civil rights activist Miriam Makaba. 
Most recently, JAIN released her new album The Fool on Columbia/Sony Music France to critical praise. 

“The Fool as an album is a love story” JAIN describes. “When I fell in love, I just started to write and sing nonstop”. She continues, “It feels like a fresh start for me as a woman. A lot of things have happened in my life, I feel more at ease with myself than before and I think you can hear that in the album.”

She recently performed “The Fool” and “Take a Chance” on France's top access prime-time show Quotidien—watch the television performances HERE and HERE.

Co-produced by long-time collaborator Maxim Nucci/Yodelice, with the participation of Metronomy founder Joseph Mount and renowned French DJ and producer Gesaffelstein, the international pop and folk album chronicles all the stages one goes through when making a fresh start: fear, excitement, innocence, doubts, letting go and epiphany.

She relies heavily on Tarot de Marseilles, an art her mother passed on to her which gives her the strength to jump into the unknown through an instinctive perception of the world’s dangers and possibilities. Each track is dedicated to a different card, empowering JAIN as we delve deep into her world.

Of the album’s namesake, “The Fool is the holiest card in the deck,” JAIN explains. “You can’t go on any kind of journey unless you’re willing to be foolish. Taking your first step, driving a car, falling in love. There’s always a risk you’ll lose your balance. At any moment. But in the end, the fool’s journey is the only journey.”

While the new album draws on artistic influences such as Kate Bush and Stevie Nicks, much of JAIN’s music originally blended a myriad of genres such as Arabic percussion, African rhythms, electro, reggae, soul and hip hop.

In 2018, her sophomore album Souldier (2018) reached #1 in France and went double platinum, while the single “Alright” is certified diamond. In the same year, JAIN was named by Rolling Stone as an “Artist You Need To Know.” She has performed on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert”, “Later… with Jools Holland,” opened the Ryder Cup in 2018, the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2019 and performed over 300 shows in 15 countries across Europe, North America, South America and Asia as well as festivals including Coachella and Lollapalooza.

JAIN has just kicked off her summer festival tour that will be followed by a Zenith tour in France in the Fall.

Born in France and raised primarily in the United Arab Emirates and Congo, JAIN released her debut album Zanaka in 2015. The album sold over 1 million copies worldwide and the singles “Come” and “Makeba” from the LP quickly climbed the charts, the latter of which earned the artist her first Grammy nomination for “Best Music Video” in 2018.

photo credit: Manu Fauque

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