A mentally and physically weaker person would already collapse from overload, trying to meet expectations, radically moving between countries and juggling nationalities. But Stefan Leger, a musician with a career abroad who has already started and received a summary of the first part this weekend in the form of a new album of his songs, is not thrilled. Perhaps because he decided that after maintaining a multitude of identities, the next step was to unite them all into one multinational entity called Stefan.
"The truth is that I went through an identity crisis recently," he says a few hours after warming up American rapper NLE Chopa at a concert in Israel, and just a day before the release of Nouvel Air, his first international album. "After I participated in Dancing with the Stars in France, everyone thought I had moved to Paris regularly. Even when I returned to Israel, they said, 'He's in France now, he's left.' When I'm in France, I dream and think in French, and then I go back to Israel and I'm the most Israeli. Suddenly I started to feel this tension in the smallest things."
Stefan Leger. "I would like to participate in Eurovision",
On the gap between identities, he says: "With the partner I danced with on the show, I had a very big connection. And then I would go back to Israel and feel disconnected, as if my French side loves this girl. And then it started to get expressed in music as well. Suddenly I began to confuse myself: Am I Israeli? French? I don't understand where I am.
"You kind of have to please everyone, because suddenly it feels like there are different camps and audiences. Lately, we've been refreshing and connecting everything together. To return to Stefan who is everything. I realized during this period that my strength is in everything I represent."
The album, which includes all the singles he has released so far in France plus new songs, can also be called a co-production. A combination of Israeli and French producers created the Stefan brand, which has now decided to take all its identities and express them all. French will merge with Hebrew, Congolese roots will also star. Sure after visiting there recently and realizing that it sells there too.
"I arrived on the set of a music video we shot with the greatest artist in Africa. And all of a sudden people outside the set are shouting at me, 'Stefan Leger! Izrael!"
It's surprising that it got this far.
"Actually, yes, I didn't know. In Africa there is such a segment that they are online, but you will not be able to understand from afar whether they know you or not. Only when you get there do you understand what's going on."
Your colleague, Noa Kirel, will perform at Eurovision this week. What place will you predict for her?
"Voila, she can come first. Noa is a very hardworking girl, and I'm glad to see her there. I look from afar, and I'm proud of what she and her entire team are doing there. The song, the video, the PR. It's all bingo. I think she will reach a high place, but no matter what happens, she will return to Israel and be applauded."
Would you like to participate in the competition yourself? On behalf of which country?
"Actually, yes. Eurovision is an event of representation and I would feel really good there, with my style and thing. Of course I would like to represent Israel, but if France does, we will have to make a decision at that moment."
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