Karim Kharbouch (Arabic: كريم خربوش [kæɾiːm χɑɾbuːʃ]; born November 9, 1984), better known by his stage name French Montana, is a Moroccan-American rapper.[1] Born and raised in Morocco, he immigrated to the United States with his family at the age of 13. Kharbouch released his debut mixtape in 2007 and had his first breakthrough with the single “Choppa Choppa Down” in 2010. He released his debut studio album Excuse My French in May 2013, which was met with generally mixed reviews despite commercial success from its lead single, “Pop That” (featuring Rick Ross, Drake, and Lil Wayne).[4] In July 2017, he released his second studio album Jungle Rules, which peaked at number three on the Billboard 200. The album was preceded by the hit single “Unforgettable” (featuring Swae Lee), which became Montana’s first song as lead artist to reach the top 10 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, also becoming diamond certified by the RIAA. His third and fourth studio albums, Montana (2019) and They Got Amnesia (2021) were released to lukewarm commercial and critical response. French Montana has founded the record label Coke Boys Records (previously known as Cocaine City Records) in 2008, and has signed Chicago rapper Lil Durk, fellow New York artists including Velous, the late Chinx, and record producer Harry Fraud.[6] He is the most streamed African-born musical artist, and is the first African-born artist to have a RIAA certified diamond song. Outside of music, French Montana has been prolific in charitable and philanthropic endeavors. Karim Kharbouch was born on November 9, 1984, in Casablanca, Morocco.[2] He grew up at the family estate outside Casablanca where he lived for the first 13 years of his life.[2] Growing up, he was consumed with soccer and rap, describing them as his two favorite childhood hobbies,[3] before getting into basketball in his later teens. In the mid-1990s, Kharbouch left Morocco with his parents and younger brother for New York City, where they settled in the South Bronx.[2] Kharbouch spoke only his native languages of Moroccan Darija Arabic and French when he first arrived, and learned English in the streets and in the Bronx high schools of Roosevelt and Lehman.[2] After struggling for two years, his father decided they would move back to Casablanca, but his mother opted to stay back with their children citing lack of opportunities back home.[2] His mother was pregnant with his youngest brother at the time, who was born in the United States shortly after his father departed for Morocco. With three children, his mother was dependent on welfare for financial support. Kharbouch eventually found himself the primary breadwinner for the family. French Montana began his career as a battle rapper in his teens under the name Young French. In 2002, French and close friend Cams created a series of street DVDs called Cocaine City, drawing inspiration from the Smack DVD series popular at the time.[15][16] The series featured interviews with major and upcoming rappers, personalities, and a focus on street music and hip hop beefs.[2][15][17] Initially as Young French, he used the DVDs as a means of showcasing his talent as an underground artist, including in it his own original music, freestyles, and collaborations with other artists. The first volume in the series featured Pee Wee Kirkland and Remy Ma among others.[15][14] What started out as a medium for developing an audience, quickly grew into one of the top-selling street DVDs.[16] The series ran for eight years between 2002 and 2010, totaling 14 volumes, and multiple spinoff films. Based out of the Bronx, French ran the series with the help of childhood friends including Brock, Droop Pop and Cheeze, who went on to become the first rappers that formed the Coke Boys. In 2003, French suffered a gunshot to the head when he was confronted by two armed gunmen as he was leaving a recording studio in the Bronx.[20][21][15] The incident resulted in one of the gunmen dead, in what is believed to be a case of “friendly fire” by one assailant against the other.[20][22] French was then hospitalized for several weeks.[15][22] Upon discharge, he discovered that he was set up by someone close to him and his circle. In 2007, French Montana released his debut mixtape French Revolution Vol. 1, which included collaborations with Uncle Murda, Jae Millz, Mazaradi Fox and Tony Yayo. The track “Quarter to Eight” was the first of many collaborations with Rick Ross. The J.Cardim-produced “Straight Cash” was French’s first underground hit. In 2008, he released his second mixtape, Live From Africa.[23] The song “Waavvy” was the first collaboration with rapper Max B. French Montana and Max B released their debut collaborative mixtape Coke Wave on February 6, 2009. A few weeks later, on February 23, Max B’s mixtape Quarantine was released, while French released his The Laundry Man on February 24, 2009.[24] The two artists resumed concentrating on their solo records, until the release of their second collaborative mixtape Coke Wave 2 in November that year. French was included in XXL’s Freshman Class of 2012. At that time he had already been signed to Bad Boy Records following the success of his single “Shot Caller”, and had just signed a joint-venture between Bad Boy and Maybach Music Group.
