She is taking part in the closing night of the Pride march in Paris, at Place de la République, on the eve of a highly scrutinised first round of legislative elections. Who is Louïz, a personality from Reunion Island who is increasingly making her voice heard? Find this issue of #MaParole recorded in 2022.
Louïz is participating this Saturday, June 29, in the closing evening of the Pride March in Paris. The evening will take place in a particular context, on the eve of the first round of the early legislative elections. The transgender singer, dancer, choreographer from Reunion Island will be on stage alongside Bilal Hassani, Eddy de Pretto and Piche. On this occasion, we invite you to rediscover the issue of #MaParole dedicated to Louïz in 2022.
“I faced a lot of criticism during my youth for being too effeminate and I sometimes had to face incomprehension when announcing my transition!“Despite everything, Louïz followed her path while trying not to worry too much about how others looked at her. It all started for her in Bellepierre in 1983. Until the age of 12, it was “carelessness“. Jovani Louise lived in a wooden hut under sheet metal, in this working-class neighborhood in Saint-Denis de La Réunion.”On rainy days, cars wouldn’t pass on the dirt road. And to go to school, we had to put plastic bags on our shoes.”recalls Louïz in #MaParole.
Her father worked for the city of Saint-Denis, her mother was a cleaning lady. The youngest with two older sisters, she didn’t ask herself too many questions about her identity as a boy. Of course, she preferred dancing to football, much to her father’s despair. But nothing too serious. It was at school that the problems started a little. Jovani Louise was insulted. Her classmates made fun of her appearance.“I was not a model of manhood”she jokes today. Her feminine voice, her fine features, her overly well-drawn mouth, her long, curved eyelashes, everything was a pretext for mockery.They told me, it’s not possible to have eyelashes like that, you wear makeup.”, remembers Louïz. To deal with an influx of sarcasm, Louïz developed a strategy: try to “make more of a man” and seduce girls. Fortunately, she had two friends, one a little effeminate and another on the contrary very strong. Together, they had peace. But above all, Jovani Louise threw herself into dancing and created a troupe in Bellepierre The dancer began to imagine musical comedies. Robin Hood, the Lycanthrope (werewolf) and Superstar Tribute then in 2016, The Genesis of Dracula. This musical was named Best Musical Show during the Voices of the Indian Ocean ceremony. Jovani Louise played a trans role which changed her life a little.
What makes us take the plunge one day? For Louïz, the turning point happened on December 31, 2009. His friends had organized a costume ball and everyone told the other how to dress up. For Jovani, his friends chose Rihanna. When Jovani saw himself with “this wig“, there was something of a shock.”Everything I had buried was found in the mirror” she said today in #MaParole. Then, we had to wait several years. Time to prepare, “to gain self-confidence”. Jovani became Louïz thanks to a medical transition. “It was difficult, because there was a drug at the time, androcur, which had terrible side effects, causing major bouts of depression.”. Louïz got through this ordeal thanks to the unwavering support of her family and friends. And then at the time, she was working at the Cité des arts de La Réunion on a program in conjunction with the Philharmonie de Paris to create a classical orchestra of 105 children who had never touched a musical instrument. A project that excited her and allowed her to experience her change serenely. Afterwards, she had to change her identity at the administrative level by going through a judge and then by contacting the town hall. At the town hall, they had a little trouble understanding, but it went smoothly. Louïz had an official existence and she wasn’t there to be an extra.
In 2020, Louïz participated in her first miss competition. It was in Thailand in Pattaya. It was the Miss International Queen pageant. “I sent the application three weeks late, I thought it was over, but to my great surprise, they selected me“. The young woman made it into the top 5 and won the talent prize. In Reunion Island, Louïz got involved in the LGBTQIA+ cause by becoming the patron of the Orizon association. Thanks to her action, she was able to meet Jean-Luc Romero, a Paris elected official who is very active in the fight for LGBT rights. During the Pride Ball, Louïz was awarded the crown of Miss Trans France 2021. A nice surprise for the Reunion Island native, who thanks to this crowning, will soon represent France at the Miss Trans Star International 2022 competition in Santa Suzanna near Barcelona on Saturday March 12.
“I hope to send a message of hope to the international trans community” says Louïz in #MaParole. She also hopes that “in the near future, we will no longer have to talk about the LGBTQIA+ community, because that will mean that we will just be able to live together as humans without having to justify belonging to a community“.
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Sound recording: Anatole Debeaumont
To find all the episodes of #MyWord, click here.
► February 22, 1983
Born in Saint-Denis, Reunion Island
► 7 mars 2020
Miss International Queen competition in Thailand
► October 31, 2021
Named Miss Trans France
► 12 mars 2022
Miss Trans Star International Contest in Barcelona
► June 29, 2024
Closing night of the Paris Pride march
