Sexion d'Assaut

A French rap collective with an old-school hip-hop style, Sexion d'Assaut spent a half-decade fostering an underground fan base before making their smash hit major-label album debut with L'École des Points Vitaux in 2010. Hailing from Paris, the collective includes primary members Maître Gims, Lefa, Adams, Maska, JR O Chrome, Black Mesrimes, Doomams, and L.I.O., in addition to numerous secondary members and affiliates. The debut full-length release by Sexion d'Assaut was the underground mixtape La Terre du Milieu (2005), which was released on the group's own label, Wati B. A couple so-called street albums followed, Le Renouveau (2008) and L'Écrasement de Tête (2009), the latter released in association with leading French independent label Because Music. There were also occasional solo releases by some of the group members. Though Sexion d'Assaut had already been releasing full-length recordings for a half-decade, their first major-label effort, 2010's L'École des Points Vitaux, was billed as their proper album debut. Released in association with Sony Music, L'École des Points Vitaux was a blockbuster success that reached number two on the French albums chart and spent months in the Top Five. The album spawned the singles "L'École des Points Vitaux," "Casquette à l'Envers," "Désolé," and "Changement d'Ambiance." ~ Jason Birchmeier