113

The brainchild of three friends from Vitry-sur Seine, a southern suburb of Paris, came to fruition in 1996 when French hip-hop group 113 hit the scene. Under the wing of hip-hop collective Mafia K'1 Fry, Yohann Duport (A.P.), Karim Brahmi (Rim' K), and Mokobe (Mokobe Traore) cast their creative nets far from the banks of commercial hip-hop, using the rap art form to pay homage to their African and Maghreban heritage and incisive lyrics to give voice to their Euro-immigrant experience. 113 earned their first scrap of notoriety with the 1998 single "Truc de Fou" (Tricks of the I...