[Live Report] We Love Green: After the rain, the good weather

If the bad weather of the day before prevented to maintain the planned concerts, the We Love Green festival was able to maintain its programming for the end of the weekend. After three years of absence, the We Love Green festival is back in force for a new edition maintained with one watchword: new world. At a time when the ecological issue is struggling to find a place in major debates, the festival highlighted climate issues through a rich and diversified program, between conferences, round tables and committed interventions.   14:20 – The beginning of the festivities As soon as we arrive on the plain that we are directly caught by the set of the dj Salomé the cat who welcomes festival-goers. If I was planning to make an express round trip to the Think Tank, I quickly found myself sitting with the audience of the podcast "See you soon to see you again" hosted by Sophie-Marie Larrouy, religiously listening to her guests: journalists Salomé Saqué and Paloma Moritz, as well as environmental activist Camille Étienne. We talked about journalism, of course, activism, but also the place of the climate issue in the mainstream media and the difficulty of imposing it, especially as a woman. The question of training journalists on these issues also arose (ensuring that "ecology is no longer a rubric"), the way in which information is shared at its level, despite the reactions that this provokes. Thus, between tips not to feel overwhelmed, sisterhood and an attempt at a (messy) pitch of The Matrix, the discussion ended with a thunderous applause from the audience, and allowed to start the day on a high note. Head to the Canopy to see the group Half Pipe. Discovered with the Tremplin Rock 2019 des Hauts de Seine, Parisians have already been able to rub shoulders with the world of festivals at Rock en Seine the same year, and were therefore able to confront the audience of We Love Green. And suffice to say that the meeting was successful. With rock music with punk and jazzy accents, Oscar, Mayeul, Benjamin and William turned the stage of the Canopy with pure moments of enjoyment worthy of the great rock shows. The highlight of the show was the pogo joined by the singer, William, to enter into full communion with the audience. 15:00 – Mysticism At the end of Half pipe, a large part of the festival-goers head to the tent of the Clairière to see Ibeyi. On the occasion of the release of their album Spell 31, the two sisters gave us the pleasure of being present on the We Love Green stage. From the first resounding notes, we are enchanted by the voices of the Franco-Cuban sisters who, as usual, give the impression of being a whole group of vocalists. "We bring magic " they proclaimed at the beginning of the show, something that the two confirmed throughout the show, between mysticism and pure turn-up by ending on their hit " River". At the same time that the concert was in full swing, it's the same for the rest of the Bois de Vincennes where the stands are boiling, where Johnny is singing in the green room, and where other concerts take place like that of Mandarine. If you do not know this band and the name puzzles you, it will surely be the same with regard to its music. And for good reason, "We like to do things that surprise people," said Palmero, the Toulouse rapper. A mix of rap, jazz and soaring pop, this rap group offers a new form to the musical genre with dance prods, texts bordering on the absurd and a (very) choreographed show. And the mix works: we let ourselves go timidly on "Kung fu twister" and then we end up joining the group in its "danse macabre" which has everything of a joyful group dance. Licked choreographies 4:10 pm – International Radical change of atmosphere, heading to the Prairie stage where Londoner Greentea Peng performed. Between soul and RnB enriched by kora chords, spirituality and love, the singer charmed the audience of the Bois de Vincennes with a comforting and irresistible voice, so irresistible that even the sun ended up pointing the tip of her nose. Another Brit was in the game, Central Cee, the star of the UK drill. 4:30 pm and the space of the Clairière is packed. His DJ manages to increase the pressure before the arrival of the rapper, before the latter arrives determined to return the festival. Thus, Central Cee appears as an Olympic player with flawless concentration and leaving no respite to his audience, chaining titles one after the other. However, the 24-year-old driller lets his audience display a frank smile, thanking them several times to finally celebrate with him the obtaining of his French gold record for "Obsessed with you".   16:56 – The weather is good, the sky is (almost) blue Happy festival-goers I can't say if it was the euphoria of the festival or the joy of being together despite the problems of the day before, but a benevolent atmosphere permeates the whole festival. People dance, sing, take pictures, walk, in short, enjoy the space of the wood, indulging in this generalized well-being after a period under covid difficult. So, in the middle of the woods, you may come across a group of people singing "Freed From Desire" at the top of their lungs. The set of the Australian dj, Partiboi69, is also in full swing and offers a happy return to the past with a remix of Linkin Park, but I prefer to head to one of the expected artists of the weekend, I named Arlo Parks. 5:15 pm and the young singer's audience is already there waiting for her for 5:30 pm. The scenography is flowery, like his music, similar to a fragile rose whose thorns can still hurt you. And for good reason, the arrival of Arlo Parks is sweet and jovial, with greetings in perfect French ("I'm sorry if my French is not terrible" will apologize several times the modest British). Arlo Parks will rock us with his sweet voice while singing his album Collapsed in Sunbeams with flagship titles like Eugene or Black Dog, with more ardent moments. Unfortunately, I can't stay until the end but I have a pleasant memory of it and head to the Prairie to meet the Wet Leg group. 6:10 p.m. – When there's more… Complete discovery concerning me, the English rock band Wet Leg explodes the charts with each new hit. However, when we see them dressed as two porcelain dolls and the freedom of the group, we are only marked by their raw talent. Pure and hard rock as we appreciate it, catchy lyrics, and liberating energy, this is the recipe for the scenic success of Wet Leg, and this, without bad pun with the rain that has, unfortunately, been an obstacle to the complete appreciation of the show. After a short walk to see the sets of singer Juliette Armanet and DJ Shygirl, head to Angèle's concert at La Prairie where her most loyal admirers gathered. Forcing my place in front of the stage in the hope of capturing beautiful images, the weather decided otherwise with violent showers shortly after the start of the concert. Impossible to take out his camera, but possible to enjoy the show with an Angèle leader of the troupe accompanied by her crew of dancers. The Belgian continues the songs of her latest album Nonante cinq, but also her hits including the famous "Balance ton quoi", "Tout oubli" and "Fever".   20:45 – An end in apotheosis It would be lying to you to tell you that I did not wait 1 hour standing in the pit for NLP. Just like a large part of Angele's audience who, at the end of the show, remains firm, ready to wait an hour too. So we try to pass the time: we look at the installations of the stage, we check to know who are the people who appreciate Ademo and Nos as much as we do to see what brings us together and differentiates us. We also spend time observing the discomfort that multiplies as the time of the concert approaches, to look with disgust at the pale young boy who vomits in the face of the first row as he is evacuated from the pit. We also sing, imagining the songs that will be played ("Imagine that they sing "Da"??). But despite the complaints, the arguments, the rough predictions, all this hangs in the air when the lights go out. The phones and the screams rise, the screen shows two lights, pink and blue, two stars twirling above the stage to finally land on it and reveal the two brothers. If the audience of NLP at We Love Green is characterized by its notable differences, it is in perfect osmosis at that time. He is in osmosis when he screams the lyrics of "Deux Frères", "Onizuka" or the "Ma vie, ma vie" from the single "A l'ammoniaque". If the two brothers arrived late at 10 p.m. and some, they quickly took us away, from there to forget that we were in festival. Nos The festival ended for me with this apotheosis. On the way out, you could hear that the party was in full swing with a Bianca Costa at the think tank, or Maceo Plex at Lalaland. Anyway, We Love Green will be back in force for this new edition, and we hope that next year will be more forgiving.