Paris honours entertainer Josephine Baker with vibrant new mural
The artwork, set just off the Canal de l'Ourcq, is the latest creation by urban artist FKDL and part of a local street art festival aimed at boosting community spirit. And it's not just a pretty painting – it's a powerful reminder of Baker's legacy.
'I feel moved and I feel happy, because this is part of a memory of my mother,' said her son Brian Baker at the mural's unveiling on Saturday, speaking to the Associated Press. Brian is one of 12 children Josephine Baker adopted from across the globe – a group she fondly referred to as her 'rainbow tribe', or what Brian calls 'a little United Nations'.
Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Baker became a huge star in the 1930s after moving to France in 1925 to escape segregation in the United States. But her life was never just about the spotlight. She bravely spied on the Nazis for the French Resistance during the Second World War, and later marched beside Martin Luther King Jr. during the U.S. civil rights movement.
The new mural – designed to represent freedom and resistance – is one of several recent artworks commissioned in the area by the group Paris Colours Ourq. FKDL, who specialises in celebrating women through street art, said Baker has long been a personal inspiration.
'Josephine Baker has always been, for me, a somewhat iconic figure of that era. Both wild and free-spirited, but also deeply connected to music, musicals, and dance,' he said. 'She was an extraordinary character, an incredible woman.'
In 2021, Baker became the first Black woman to be inducted into France's Panthéon, joining the ranks of Voltaire, Marie Curie and Victor Hugo. But according to her son, she never cared for the limelight.
'My mother wouldn't have liked words like iconic, star, or celebrity. She would have said, no, no let's keep it simple,' he said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
France 24
3 days ago
- France 24
Black Sabbath frontman Ozzy Osbourne dead aged 76: family
The hell-raising singer, who had been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2019, passed away just over two weeks after playing a farewell concert in his home city of Birmingham, England. "It is with more sadness than mere words can convey that we have to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away this morning," read the family's statement. "He was with his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time." Osbourne was instrumental in pioneering heavy metal -- an offshoot of hard rock -- as Black Sabbath enjoyed huge commercial success in the 1970s. Nicknamed the "Prince of Darkness", he once bit off the head of a bat while on stage. Born John Michael Osbourne on December 3, 1948 in Birmingham, he left school at 15 and did odd jobs including factory work before teaming up with school friend Geezer Butler in several bands. He brought the curtain down on a wild career earlier this month when Black Sabbath rattled through their most iconic songs in front of an adoring crowd at Villa Park, home of Premier League football club Aston Villa. "It's the last song ever. Your support has enabled us to live an amazing lifestyle... Thank you from the bottom of our hearts," Osbourne told the crowd after finishing the set with "Paranoid" -- the band's most famous song.
France 24
3 days ago
- France 24
Black Sabbath frontman Ozzy Osbourne dies at 76
Ozzy Osbourne, frontman of 1970s heavy metal band Black Sabbath, died Tuesday, just weeks after his farewell show. He was 76. 'It is with more sadness than mere words can convey that we have to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away this morning. He was with his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time,' a family statement said. In 2020, he revealed he had Parkinson's disease after suffering a fall. Known to fans as "The Prince of Darkness" and the "Godfather of Heavy Metal", Osbourne earned his infamy biting the head off a bat on stage and pursuing a drug-fuelled lifestyle before reinventing himself as a loveable if often foul-mouthed reality TV star. He kicked off his career blaring out Black Sabbath's hits, from "Paranoid" to "War Pigs" to "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath". Those plus a string of solo releases saw him sell more than 100 million records worldwide. The hard riffs and dark subject matter – from depression to war to apocalypse – combined with an instinct for Halloween theatrics. As a performer, Osbourne sprinkled audiences with raw meat and, in 1982, had his encounter with a bat thrown on stage by a fan. He always insisted he thought it was a toy until he bit into it, realised his mistake and rushed to hospital for a rabies shot. He later sold branded bat soft toys with a removable head. The original Sabbath lineup reunited for the first time in 20 years in July 2025 in Osbourne's hometown of Birmingham in the UK for what Osborne said would be his final concert. 'Let the madness begin!' he told 42,000 fans. Rock heavyweights Metallica, Guns N Roses, Slayer, Tool and Pantera all played as the concert as did veteran rockers Steven Tyler, Billy Corgan, Ronnie Wood and Travis Barker. At the concert Osbourne performed sitting, at times appearing to have difficulties speaking as he thanked thousands of adoring fans, some of whom were visibly emotional. "Thanks for your support over the years. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I love you," said Osbourne. Wood wrote on social media on Tuesday: "I am so very sad to hear of the death of Ozzy Osbourne. What a lovely goodbye concert he had at Back To The Beginning in Birmingham." 'Looking for a good time' Osbourne was a regular target for conservative and religious groups concerned about the negative impact of rock music on young people. He always acknowledged the excesses of his lifestyle and lyrics – but poured scorn on the wilder reports that he was an actual devil-worshipper. "I've done some bad things in my time. But I ain't the devil. I'm just John Osbourne: a working class kid from Aston who quit his job in the factory and went looking for a good time," he said in a 2010 biography. John Michael Osbourne was the fourth of six children, growing up in Aston, in the city of Birmingham in central England. He struggled with dyslexia, left school at age 15, did a series of menial jobs, and at one point served a brief prison sentence for burglary. Then came Black Sabbath. "When I was growing up, if you'd have put me up against a wall with the other kids from my street and asked me which one of us was gonna make it to the age of 60, with five kids and four grandkids and houses in Buckinghamshire and California, I wouldn't have put money on me, no fucking way." Britain's Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood, a member of parliament representing a Birmingham constituency, said on social media platform X that she was devastated to hear the news of his death. "One of the greatest gifts my city gave the world," Mahmood wrote. "My thoughts are with his family." It was those latter stages of his life that provided the setting for his reinvention in 2002 as the star of US TV show "The Osbournes". Cameras followed the aging rock god ambling round his huge house, pronouncing on events in his heavy Birmingham accent and looking on bemused at the antics of his family - a format that won them all legions of new fans. Osbourne's family included wife and manager Sharon, five children including Jack, Kelly and Aimee, and several grandchildren.
Euronews
4 days ago
- Euronews
Malcolm-Jamal Warner, star of 'The Cosby Show', dies aged 54
Malcolm-Jamal Warner, who became widely known in the 1980s as Theo Huxtable on 'The Cosby Show', has died aged 54. Costa Rican authorities said the actor drowned on Sunday while swimming off Playa Cocles, on the country's Caribbean coast. He was pulled deeper into the ocean by a current and rescued by beachgoers, according to Costa Rica's Judicial Investigation Department, but showed no vital signs when Red Cross responders arrived. Warner was 13 when he landed the role of Theo – the Huxtables' only son – on what would become one of the most-watched American sitcoms of its time. The series, which ran from 1984 to 1992, became a cultural reference point for many, and Warner's performances were central to some of its most memorable moments, including an early debate about school grades and a later scene where Theo awkwardly tries to conceal an ear piercing. The role earned him an Emmy nomination and a kind of recognition that stayed with him for the rest of his career – not always comfortably. 'Theo was very good to me. And I think that show and that role is timeless,' Warner said in a recent interview with Melyssa Ford on her 'Hot & Bothered' podcast. But he also spoke of wanting to distance himself from the character: 'Somebody called me America's favourite white Black boy. And I was 15. ... It hurt me. ... That's cultural trauma.' After 'The Cosby Show', Warner continued working steadily across television, film and music. He starred in 'Malcolm & Eddie' with Eddie Griffin, played Tracee Ellis Ross's husband in 'Reed Between the Lines', and appeared in more recent dramas such as 'The Resident' and 'American Crime Story'. Tributes on Monday reflected both affection for the man and his long presence on screen. 'Theo was OUR son, OUR brother, OUR friend,' wrote Viola Davis on Instagram. 'He was absolutely so familiar, and we rejoiced at how TV got it right!! But Malcolm got it right ... we reveled in your life and are gutted by this loss.' Also on Instagram, Ross said: 'I love you, Malcolm... What an actor and friend you were: warm, gentle, present, kind, thoughtful, deep, funny, elegant.' Griffin, meanwhile, wrote simply, 'My heart is heavy right now... Rest easy my Brother.' Warner was also known for his music and poetry, earning a Grammy for traditional R&B performance and a nomination for best spoken word poetry album. Behind the camera, he directed episodes of several of the shows he acted in. A post shared by VIOLA DAVIS (@violadavis) Like the rest of the 'Cosby Show' cast, Warner had to navigate the fallout from the sexual assault allegations against Bill Cosby. In 2015, Warner told the Associated Press that the show's legacy had been 'tarnished,' particularly in terms of how it had once stood as a positive example of Black representation on television. 'The fact that we no longer have that, that's the thing that saddens me the most,' he said. 'Because in a few generations the Huxtables will have been just a fairy tale.' Warner largely kept his private life out of the spotlight. He was married and had a young daughter, though their names were never publicly shared. His representatives have not issued a statement regarding his death. He continued acting into his 50s, recently playing a burn survivor in a guest role on '9-1-1'. Jennifer Love Hewitt, a castmate from that show, wrote: 'This hurts my heart. A gentleman, an incredible talent... Heartbroken and sending love to his family.' Others shared similar sentiments. Magic Johnson said he'd had 'deep and fun conversations about basketball, life and business' with Warner. Taraji P. Henson thanked him for 'the art, the wisdom, the grace,' and Questlove recalled someone 'who always took the time out to school me and talk about his experiences... he expressed ZERO cynicism or bitterness.' Warner began acting at age nine, with early credits on 'Matt Houston' and Fame. By the time 'The Cosby Show' premiered, he was part of a cast led by one of the biggest names in American television – but no one could have predicted the scale of the show's impact, or the weight of the legacy that followed.
