The next time you hear someone moan about how youth is wasted on the young, point them in the direction of 16-year-old French producer Petit Biscuit (a.k.a. Mehdi Benjelloun).
A student at French classical music school the Conservatory, Benjelloun plays the cello, piano and guitar and is schooled in music theory. His formal training serves as the foundation for his wondrous exploits in electronic music that have a certain j’en est se qua. Benjelloun samples friends and uses their voices as the bedrock of the lush soundscapes heard on his recent self-titled five-track EP which contains the viral hit “Sunset Lover,” an utterly gorgeous tune that’s racked up over 25 million plays on Spotify. Magnifique!
Ahead of a handful of gigs next month in France, we caught up with the prodigy and asked him to share five songs currently are on his radar.
Louis The Child – “From Here”
“I really love how this guy blends good melodies and weird textures. This is future!”
Kaytranada – “Bus Ride”
“One of the most underground tracks from Kaytranada, but maybe one of his deepest tracks for me. It’s absolutely crazy how Kaytranada can transform old samples and add a really clear beat to make his tracks sound really unique.”
HONNE – “No Place Like Home”
“This track is the definition of love to me because of the heat of the synths, and of HONNE’s voice, coupled to the sweetness of JONES’ voice.”
Wingtip – “Eventually”
“‘Eventually’ is the track to make you feel good—there are lots of summer feels in this one.
Flume – “Helix”
“This is one of my most essential track—it’s in my ears everyday.”