Papaoutai

"Papaoutai" (Papa, où t'es?,, French for "Dad, where are you?") is a song written and performed by Belgian singer Stromae. The song was released as a digital download in Belgium on 13 May 2013 as the lead single from his second studio album Racine carrée (2013). The song peaked at number one in Belgium and France and became the best-selling single of 2013 in Belgium. A remix of the song featuring Angel Haze also appears on the album.

The song was performed live at the 2013 NRJ Music Awards, where it featured American rapper will.i.am. The song is also featured on the 2014 dancing game Just Dance 2015 for PAL regions and is available as DLC for NTSC regions.

The song was the most viewed French-speaking song on YouTube until 2023, when it was passed by Indila's song "Dernière danse" (English: "Last dance").

It became the second French-language video to pass 1 billion views on 27 August 2023.

Music video
The music video accompanying the release of "Papaoutai" was directed by Adam Nael and released on YouTube on 6 June 2013 at a total length of three minutes and fifty-two seconds. The video shows a young boy (played by Karl Ruben Noel ) trying to interact with his father (played by Stromae), who sits motionless, his expression and body resembling that of a mannequin. Father and son are dressed in identical outfits consisting of garishly patterned aqua shirts and shorts, knee socks, and orange bowtie. The video has the ambiance and decor of the 1950s. The boy looks longingly through the window at other parents and children who likewise wear matching outfits that identify them as pairs: a mother and daughter dressed similarly to Dorothy Gale in The Wizard of Oz do a dance while walking their identical dogs; a garbageman and his son collect rubbish together while doing another dance; while still another father (played by Ceasare "Tight Eyez" Willis, one of the creators of Krumping) does an aggressive, threatening dance at his reluctant son before the boy finally begins to imitate him.

Frustrated, the son does various dances in front of his own father until one of his efforts provokes the father to smile. Outside, father and son do their own dance together, but it is soon revealed that the boy is dancing alone and his father is still stiff and unresponsive. In frustration, the son joins Stromae on the sofa, assuming a rigid, lifeless position identical to his father's.

The song and video refer to the absence of Stromae's father—who had little presence in Stromae's life even before being killed in the 1994 Rwandan genocide—and to Stromae's fear of being unable to be an effective father with no memory of ever having a father of his own. As of August 2023, the video has received over 1 billion views on YouTube.

Lyrics and meaning
The title of the song is an intentionally misspelled form of the phrase Papa, où t'es?, which translates as "Dad, where are you?" Empapaouter also means "to trick someone" in old slang.

The lyrics of the song are about a boy living with his mother who suspects something is wrong when he no longer sees his father. The mother makes up excuses to try to prevent the narrator from discovering the truth about the whereabouts of his father of which even the mother is unaware.

Covers and parody
American a cappella group Pentatonix and violinist Lindsey Stirling covered the song on Pentatonix's album PTX Vol. 3, released on 23 September 2014.

Erza Muqoli performed this song with self-accompaniment on piano for her audition for the ninth season (2014–2015) of the French television show La France a un incroyable talent.

Lamaoutai (Llama, where are you?) is a spoof created in November 2013 about the kidnapping of Serge the Llama from a circus in Bordeaux.

Letícia Carvalho covered the song on The Voice Portugal on 11 October 2015.

Alexandre Heitz performed the song on The Voice of Germany on 2 October 2018.

Kenza Blanka covered the song on series 8 of The Voice UK on 9 February 2019, singing it in English and Arabic and French.

Dutch singer Froukje Veenstra covered the song with a Dutch addition on 10th of June 2020, for the '3FM Live Box' showcase on YouTube, rapping about the needs of those with or without a father, meanwhile giving personal thanks for her own father.

Other uses
Dutch rapper Joost Klein namedrops Papaoutai in his song "Europapa", which was sent to represent the Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest 2024, before being disqualified. Joost Klein's parents also passed away when he was a child.

Certifications
<--Post by François Delétraz a Figaro Magazine journalist-->