Fababy

A late starter to the hip-hop game, French-Ivorian MC Fababy only began rapping at the age of 18 but quickly made up for lost time to become one of the scene's major young talents. Born in Paris in 1988, he grew up in the Noisy-le-Grand commune and, after spending two years in urban collective Lyrical Bitume, launched his solo career with his first mixtape, Entre2Mondes, in 2008. After attracting online attention with an anti-Valentine's Day freestyle rap featuring Despo Rutti, he was invited to appear on the Cosa Nostra compilation series and La Fouine's Capitale du Crime, Vol. 3; signed a deal with the Banlieue Sale label; and released his debut studio effort, La Symphonie des Chargeurs, in 2012. ~ Jon O'Brien