Watch French Dance/Choreography Duo Les Twins Launch Music Career in ‘Stranger’ Video

Paris-bred dance artists-turned-musicians Les Twins have put a lot into their recently released single “Stranger.” Shot in Dubai with fast cars, plenty of people and alluring skyscraper views, it certainly makes you forget (momentarily) that there’s a pandemic going on.

For Laurent and Larry Nicolas Bourgeois, the song has given them a sense of ownership. The dancers’ work over the span of 15 years took them from T.V. talent shows to dance competitions (including World of Dance in 2017, which Vasai crew Kings United won in 2019), gaining widespread internet recognition which took them to stages with artists like Beyonce and Jay-Z, plus campaigns for several fashion brands. Larry says over an email interview about their new song, “We’ve done so many beautiful things in life, we’ve done so many shows, so many big, big, big shows, but it was all for other people. I wasn’t the artist, yes. I was sharing the stage with a legend, but it was never just me…But this time, it’s just me. This is just us. That was my favorite part of the whole experience.”

From a hint of humor to plenty of moves with friends in tow, “Stranger” is a new direction from Les Twins. A misconception that Laurent clears up right away is that being a dancer doesn’t mean understanding music just as well. “Dancers work on the music to look good, but we are freestylers, I don’t want to sound rude, but only about 20 percent of dancers truly know how to move to music without being shown choreography,” he says.

Laurent recounts the time super-producer and hip-hop heavyweight Dr. Dre spoke to him: “He said, ‘If you can dance like that, you definitely know how to rap, just add words to the beat your body is already following the rhythm.’ He was right, I tried it and it worked,” Laurent adds.

Watch the music video for “Stranger” below.

As it turns out, even though Les Twins probably have an in with the who’s who of the music world, the duo say they didn’t want to use any connections to their advantage during the making of “Stranger.” Laurent says, we wanted to show and prove that we belong here, not because of who we know, but because we are great at what we do.” Larry adds that they didn’t want nor need help. “I didn’t want help for the first track, especially when this song came from a place where we want to make the world dance,” he says.

In terms of the sonic quality of “Stranger,” Les Twins hone in on a radio-friendly and dancefloor-friendly banger that includes a sly nod to French electronic music stars Daft Punk, but also keeps things fast-paced. The hook is a major part of the song, but the brothers say there’s still a message embedded in there. Laurent says, “It emits happiness and makes you want to move. That was our message – move, dance, be yourself, don’t worry about what anyone thinks, don’t worry about looking stupid… feel the music and move!”

Les Twins’ India connect has been established for a few years now, including a cameo in Bollywood dance film ABCD 2 in 2015, guesting on T.V. show Dance Plus in 2019 and numerous workshops and classes. Laurent notes that there’s even a song coming up specifically made for India. “We love your culture and music, so we had to do something special that reflected all the love we have received from all of you in the past.” When things ease up, the duo plan to shoot the music video for the song in India.

Until they get here, it’s still packed days for the brothers and more so in the coming year, where Laurent says they have no days off. Larry points out that they were working in the studio even when they couldn’t travel and perform around the world. He adds, “We were able to create a lot of music. We have so much more to give and, I’m really happy that everything is opening up again and we can continue right where we left off, but this time we also have our own music to share with the world.”

Listen to “Stranger” below. Stream on more platforms here.