Aminta Sène releases her first album, at 43 years old. The iconic singer from the streets of Poitiers recounts her extraordinary journey.
His childhood. “I was born in Poitiers. I grew up in Paris, then in Couronneries and in Fontaine-le-Comte. Music was always there, I always sang. And the first instrument I had in my hands was a keyboard, a little electronic thing. »
His first stupidity. “My mother moved to Fontaine-le-Comte. I went to the abbey and played the organ in secret. One day, an organ teacher surprised me. She came to my mother's house to say that she wanted to pay for organ lessons for me. My mother said no at first. Then she changed her mind, so much the better! »
Five songs at the Glastonbury festival in front of 75,000 people
His schooling. “I had a somewhat turbulent adolescence. Very young, I was into alcohol, depression, all that. At Théophraste-Renaudot college, everyone didn't care about flute lessons. But I took it too seriously, I was all in! My dream was to go to the Victor-Hugo high school, for the music option. The middle school teachers sent a letter to the Victor-Hugo high school. They knew music would save my life. I was taken! There, the teachers, students and maintenance workers came together to give me my first guitar. They gave me this gift for my 17th birthday. »
His biggest concert. “I did the Glastonbury festival in 2003, in front of 75,000 people. It was a five-song intermission. A friend of my mother, a very rich guy, had allowed this. We went to Oxford for a while. The scene? I was just scared because I came from behind. I didn't see the crowd before. I was introduced as the French Tracy Chapman. So I started with a Tracy Chapman cover, obviously! Then I proceeded with my sounds. The immensity of the moment, of the crowd, I really realized the next day. »
His experience with Superbus. “I tried my luck in Paris for several years. I sang in bars. One day, I make the set, I send it well. As I go to the bathroom, someone taps me on the shoulder. And it's Patrice Focone, the guitarist of the group Superbus. He invited me to the studio the next day. I went there, I performed and suddenly a manager told me that I was going to follow the group Superbus. He told us that with my group, we would be signed to a label when the third Superbus album was released in 2015. I believed it. Except that when the time came, he told me that nothing had been signed. And then I fall I don't know how many floors. »
His experience of the street. “Everything is falling apart. I return to Poitiers and stop playing music. I don't sing anymore, I don't play anymore. The guitar is put away! I don't want to hear about it anymore! And then, one day, I said to myself that, too bad, the environment didn't want it. It doesn't matter, I'm just going to sing in the street and we'll see what happens. Today, people know me very well. Words and looks keep me alive. I feel like I'm serving a purpose. »
Son CD. « My producer and I met in a street intersection when I was singing. He talked to me about performing. I said yes without really believing it was true, that he was going to call me back. We did two studio sessions where we recorded. Before that, I never had a concrete trace of my music. This is my first CD. CThis is the first time that a project has truly been completed. It's my Christmas present. »
The CD “Just in Time” is available from the record store Les Mondes du Disque, at 20, rue Pétonnet in Poitiers. Aminta's music can be found on all streaming platforms.
