Mika, what are you doing?

[dhampyresa]

So I've been listening to Mika pretty much on repeat for the past couple of days. At some point, I realised that all the songs of his I had on my MP3 player were from either Life in Cartoon Motion (2007) or The Boy Who Knew Too Much (2009) and I asked myself, "What's Mika done since then?" Because I'd kind of lost track of what he'd been doing, aside from him coming out as gay at some point in the last five years. (Wow. Already?)

This is what he's been doing since then:

"MIKA - Boum Boum Boum" (Watch on YouTube)

So apparently Mika sings in French now? (I am impressed by his lack of accent. He even does the "r"s and the "u"s properly!)

I have to admit that I started to laugh at "les bourgeois du 16eme" and kind of haven't stopped since. He's a cowboy! He's James Bond! He's in a noir movie! He's Lawrence of Arabia! Everyone's having gunfights! I have no idea what's happening!

I have no idea why Mika is singing in French, or what's going on in that video (the lyrics, on the other hand, are very explicit), but I really don't care.  It's making me laugh and making me happy the way Mika's songs always do.

Rock on, Mika. Rock on.

Comments

[draycevixen.livejournal.com]

I think Mika lived in Paris until he was about 10? I have some vague memory of an interview where he said he was fluent in French because he'd first gone to school in Paris.

[dhampyresa.livejournal.com]

He might have. It would certainly explain the "r"s and "u"s. You know how there's this cliché/stereotype that the French can't pronounce "th"? It's the same for native Anglophones and "r"s and "u"s. Having them try to pronounce "serrurie" is a ball and a half and a good rebuttal to ze stupid French thing. /tangent

I admit that I don't pay attention to celebrity news, which means I do end up missing when new albums come out.

[draycevixen.livejournal.com]

I don't normally watch interview shows so... *g*

I think there are a lot of linguistic things where it can be difficult to pick up but never impossible because the voice box is the same the world over. I have a Japanese colleague who gets tired of the comments on a Japanese person's trouble with "r" and "l". Yes, it's difficult for a native Japanese speaker, but no, not impossible.

[dhampyresa.livejournal.com]

I'm not saying it's impossible, I'm just saying it's difficult, especially the older you get.

[draycevixen.livejournal.com]

I was actually responding to the "accusation" that the French can't pronounce "th." :D

I spent my formative years in South London. If I'm very tired "th" still comes out as "f" and "f" as "th." For instance, "thief" becomes "fieth."