“At Macumba, Macumba, she dances every evening. For the port dockers, who only think about drinking,…” Lyrics sung by Jean-Pierre Mader which resonate in the head, and which the customers of the 23 Macumbas established in France enjoyed repeating during their evenings spent in the nightclubs of this name.
Even if fans of the title will still be able to enjoy it in the future, they will no longer be able to do so in one of these famous nightclubs. In fact, the last establishment of the franchise is preparing to close its doors on the night of Saturday February 22 to Sunday February 23, 2025.
This is Macumba d'Englos, near Lille. A closure which saddens the man who made the franchise famous, despite himself. Guest this Thursday January 23, 2025 on BFMTV, Jean-Pierre Mader has indeed expressed his sadness.
Jean-Pierre Mader saddened by the closure of the last Macumba
“It’s an era that is ending”he observed before regretting: “It’s synonymous with the passing 1980s.” The 69-year-old singer later described the history of Macumba nightclubs. Or rather, what differentiated them from other nightclubs, more famous and above all more difficult to access.
“They were big clubs, quite prescriptive of what was going to be played on the radio; there were a lot of resident DJs. They were also places where you could get into easily, unlike the big clubs in Paris where there were a doorman who filtered”remembers Jean-Pierre Mader.
The 69-year-old singer also remembers a “less anxiety-provoking period”, during which “people were mixing.” “There was a friendly side, we could all get together and party, there was no social barrier, it was open to everyone”he adds to support his words.
-It was not intended to advertise them.
Regarding his famous title, co-written with Richard Seff and inspired by the name of the nightclubs, Jean-Pierre Mader assures him, he did not wish to do disguised advertising for the brand. “It would have been a stroke of genius, and a lot of money!”he estimates with humor before continuing: “Unfortunately, I didn't have that idea. (With) Richard Seff, we were looking for a place to locate this migrant before the time. The news, unfortunately, caught up with us.”
As our colleagues at BFMTV, The Macumba franchise was created in 1966, subsequently giving rise to 23 establishments in France. The last evening of the Englos club will take place on the night of Saturday February 22 to Sunday February 23.
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