Many people work their whole lives to master a second or even a third language. For young singer Taiyo Marchand, not only has this come naturally, but he is also a masterful performer in many other dialects. Taiyo has risen to fame for his worldly covers, in which he sings each verse of a song in a different language, allowing listeners to feel closer to a song that was not originally in their mother tongue.
Taiyo, who is from Australia, speaks three languages—a result of growing up in a multicultural household with a French father and a Japanese mother. Additionally, this knowledge has given him the confidence to dip into languages he doesn’t speak fluently. One of these languages is Portuguese, which he has incorporated into his multilingual covers—and it has even inspired him to tackle “The Girl from Ipanema.”
Taiyo’s love for music goes way back. “I started to play music when I was less than 1 year old… with chopsticks on kitchen bowls,” he explains in his bio on Triple J, an Australian public radio station. On top of becoming an Internet celebrity, he has been busking at Sydney’s Manly and Circular Quay since he was 6 years old. “For my 10th birthday I got a keyboard. I loved it! I taught myself to play with YouTube tutorials and six months later I started bringing my keyboard to my busking sessions. For some reason I began to sing…. And never stopped.” At age 11, he released a self-written album titled Give it a Shot.
Now 15 years old, Taiyo’s talent has reached new audiences. He was a semifinalist in the French version of The Voice Kids. He has also amassed a large following around the world due to his covers. Despite all these attention, he remains down to Earth; taking requests for covers and acknowledging how moving it can be for someone to hear a song they’ve known and loved for a long time in a language they do speak. “When I get the chance, I write back to people in their native language… It’s just a way to make them feel connected,” Taiyo told musical instrument manufacturer Roland.
To stay up to date with the singer, make sure to follow Taiyo Marchand on Instagram, and check out both is covers and original songs on YouTube. If you’d like him to give a song the multilingual treatment, make sure to request it in his comments.
Young singer Taiyo Marchand has risen to fame for his worldly covers, in which he sings each verse of a song in a different language.
Taiyo, who is from Australia, speaks three languages—a result of growing up in a multicultural household with a French father and a Japanese mother. But he is not afraid to tackle new languages, such as Portuguese.
He happily takes requests for covers, and appreciates how moving it can be for someone to hear a song they’ve known and loved for a long time in a language they do speak.
Taiyo Marchand: Instagram | YouTube
Sources: #2 Taiyo Marchand: Trilingual Australian busker winning hearts in France; Taiyo Marchand profile on Unearthed at Triple J; Listening to Your Heart
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