Petite Noir is pleased to share with you the video for the title track from his new album, La Vie Est Belle / Life Is Beautiful. The video for the song, featuring Congolese-Belgian rapper Baloji, was made possible by Urban Outfitters, who co-helmed the production with director Alan Del Rio Ortiz, and Petite Noir’s constant collaborator, creative director Rochelle Nembhard.

Says Rochelle Nembhard: “With this video, I wanted to play on the manipulation of space – what it means to us in a world of design, technology and architecture, and how the spirit functions in relation to all these different virtual ‘realities’”.

Released this past September 11th to wide acclaim, La Vie Est Belle / Life Is Beautiful represents the first full expression of what Petite Noir (aka Yannick Ilunga) calls ‘Noirwave’, which is more a concept than a specific sound. Inspired by innovators like Mos Def and legends Fela Kuti and Tabu Ley, Noirwave encompasses a ‘new African aesthetic’. ‘I think for me’, says Ilunga, ‘It’s just the story their music tells and the sense of freedom. It’s about seeing the positive in dark times.’