Papaoutai

"Papaoutai" (pronounced [papautɛ], Papa, où t'es ?, French for "Dad, where are you?") is a song written and performed by Belgian musician 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.[1]

Not to be confused with Papatowai.
"Papaoutai"
Single by Stromae
from the album Racine carrée
Released13 May 2013
Recorded2012
Genre
Length3:53
Label
Songwriter(s)Stromae
Producer(s)Stromae, Papa Dizzy, Aron Ottignon
Stromae singles chronology
"Je cours"
(2010)		 "Papaoutai"
(2013)		 "Formidable"
(2013)
Music video
"Papaoutai" on YouTube

The song was performed live at the 2013 NRJ Music Awards, where it featured 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.

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[2]) 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 refers 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.[3] The video has received over 700 million views on YouTube.[4]

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?".

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 tries to make up excuses to prevent the narrator from discovering the truth about the whereabouts of his father of which the mother is even unaware.

The chorus of the song repeats the words "Où t'es papa, où t'es?", translating to "Where are you Dad, where are you?". The song continues with the narrator pondering about the day he would become a father and the worries that would arise from the pressure of being a parent. His worries also consist of whether he will be loved or hated by his children and how he will be able to take up the role. From this, it goes back to the chorus and ends with a repetition of the song before the first chorus, going back to his interaction with his mother about the whereabouts of his father.

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.[5]

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.[6]

Lamaoutai (Llama, where are you?) is a spoof created in November 2013 about the kidnapping of Serge the Llama from a circus in Bordeaux.[7]

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.

Track listing
Digital download
No.TitleLength
1."Papaoutai"3:51
2."Papaoutai" (Extended)6:18
3."Papaoutai" (Mystique Remix)5:01
4."Papaoutai" (Nicolaz Remix)5:52
5."Papaoutai" (Liam Summers Remix)4:04

Charts and certifications

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Austria (IFPI Austria)[52] Gold 15,000*
Belgium (BEA)[53] 3× Platinum 60,000*
Denmark (IFPI Denmark)[54]
Streaming 		Gold 1,300,000
France (SNEP)[55] Diamond 976,000*
Italy (FIMI)[56] 2× Platinum 60,000*
Netherlands (NVPI)[57] Platinum 20,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[58] 2× Platinum 60,000^
United States (RIAA)[59] Gold 500,000

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
Streaming-only figures based on certification alone.

Release history
Region Date Format Label
Belgium 13 May 2013[60] Digital download Mosaert

References
  1. "Racine Carrée by Stromae". iTunes Store (US). Apple Inc. July 26, 2013. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
  2. "Karl Ruben Noel". IMDb.
  3. Stromae: Disillusion, With a Dance Beat, by Scott Sayer, in the New York Times, October 15, 2013]
  4. Stromae - Papaoutai. YouTube
  5. Papadatos, Markos (13 August 2014). "Pentatonix to release first single and video from 'PTX Vol. 3'". Digital Journal. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
  6. "Erza a un incroyable talent". Le Républicain Lorrain. 24 September 2014. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
  7. Pour tourner le clip de "Lamaoutai", Serge le lama est amené en boîte de nuit à Cannes, Le Huffington Post, 23 November 2013
  8. "Austriancharts.at – Stromae – Papaoutai" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 31 January 2014.
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  14. "Stromae Chart History (Euro Digital Song Sales)". Billboard.
  15. "Stromae: Papaoutai" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland.
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  39. "Ukrainian Top Year-End Radio Hits (2013)". Tophit. Retrieved 10 August 2019.
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  43. "FIMI - Classifiche Annuali 2014 "TOP OF THE MUSIC" FIMI-GfK: un anno di musica italiana" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
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  51. "Top AFP/AudioGest – Top 3000 Streams" (PDF) (in Portuguese). AudioGest. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
  52. "Austrian single certifications – Stromae – Papaoutai" (in German). IFPI Austria. Retrieved 9 January 2015.
  53. "Ultratop − Goud en Platina – singles 2013". Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 January 2015.
  54. "Danish single certifications – Stromae – Papaoutai". IFPI Denmark. Retrieved 26 March 2019.
  55. "French single certifications – Stromae – Papaoutai" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved 9 January 2015.
  56. "Italian single certifications – Stromae – Papaoutai" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved 9 January 2015. Select "Tutti gli anni" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Select "Papaoutai" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Singoli online" under "Sezione".
  57. "Dutch single certifications – Stromae – Papaoutai" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. Retrieved 9 January 2015. Enter Papaoutai in the "Artiest of titel" box.
  58. "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Stromae; 'Papaoutai')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 January 2015.
  59. "American single certifications – Stromae – Papaoutai". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH. 
  60. "Papaoutai - Single by Stromae" – via music.apple.com.
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