Jean-Michel Jarre will headline the Closing Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics in Paris this September.
The recent closing ceremony for the Summer Olympics also saw electronic music celebrated in all its glory, with Kavinsky’s performance of Nightcall leading to him break the record for the most Shazam’d song in a single day. The Paralympics Closing Ceremony will take place on Sunday 8 September.
Jarre’s set will take place at the Stade de France, where he will also pass on the baton to other top French electronic music artists and young DJs. As explained in a press release, this pivotal ceremony pays tribute to the history of electronic music in France, symbolised by the invention of the Ondes Martenot a century ago. Used by artists from Ravel to Coldplay, it has helped shape a plethora of today’s music.
Jarre will be collaborating with artistic director, Romain Pissenem, whom “he considers one of the world’s greatest show creators today”. The concert is set to be a visually and musically festive spectacle, with other artists billed for the event including:
- Agoria
- Alan Braxe
- Anetha
- Boston Bun
- Breakbot & Irfane
- Busy P
- Cassis
- Chloe
- Chloé Caillet
- DJ Falcon
- Étienne de Crecy
- GЯEG
- Irène Drésel
- Kavinsky
- Kiddy Smile
- Kittin Kungs
- Martin Solveig
- Nathalie Duchene
- Ofenbach
- Polo & Pan
- Tatyana Jane
- The Avener
At the Olympics Closing Ceremony earlier this August, there was one French electronic duo people were hoping would come out of retirement – Daft Punk. It was rather Phoenix who put on a mighty show, joined by a number of artists including Air, Ezra Koenig, and of course, Kavinsky.
“Air was the first band we thought of,” Phoenix’s Thomas Mars told Vulture of their performance. “When we started playing music outside of France, like at Top of the Pops, we were their backing band. We wanted to share that with them and perform our song Playground Love.
“Kavinsky has a song called Nightcall, which was produced by Daft Punk, and he asked me to sing it at the time. I never do things outside of Phoenix, so I said no and didn’t regret it. I thought the song was perfect and didn’t need my voice.”
Of the reunion hopefuls, Mars added, “Daft Punk doesn’t exist anymore. That was never an option. People expect them to come back to life, but they’re gone.”
