Suprême NTM

Suprême NTM is a French hip-hop duo formed by JoeyStarr and Kool Shen in Saint-Denis, a working-class suburb north of Paris, in the late 1980s. The group's name — an abbreviation of a notoriously blunt French phrase — signaled from the start their confrontational, streetwise approach, and they quickly became one of the founding acts of French rap alongside groups like Assassin, with whom they shared early stages. Their music fused aggressive, fast-paced flows with beats rooted in American hip-hop and funk, and their lyrics captured the frustration and pride of banlieue youth.

Over the course of the 1990s, NTM released a string of albums that became touchstones of the genre, built on tracks like «Laisse pas traîner ton fils», «Police», and «Seine-Saint-Denis Style», the latter an anthem for their home department. They were known for provocative, socially charged lyrics that addressed police violence, inequality, and marginalization, which repeatedly put them at odds with French authorities and the media, cementing their reputation as rebels.

JoeyStarr and Kool Shen also pursued solo careers and acting work while remaining closely tied to NTM's legacy. The group is widely credited, alongside a handful of contemporaries, with legitimizing rap as a major force in French popular music and paving the way for the generations of French rappers that followed.