His real name is Mehdi Favéris-Essadi; he grew up in Gennevilliers and discovered the turntables at a very young age. In the late 1980s, Lionel D and Dee Nasty’s shows on Radio Nova fuelled his passion for hip-hop. Dee Nasty then introduced him to Ideal J, the group led by Kery James. Mehdi was only about fifteen at the time and slipped almost effortlessly into this rap scene, which was in the process of forging its own history.
He quickly became much more than just a DJ backing up rappers. Mehdi creates sound. He produces, searches, samples and mixes. Around Ideal J, the Mafia K’1 Fry formed, and a whole generation emerged: Kery James, Rohff, 113, Manu Key… Mehdi found himself at the heart of this buzz but already retained a key distinction: he refused to confine himself to a single musical niche.
By the late 1990s, his name was behind several major releases. He worked notably with MC Solaar, Ideal J and, above all, 113. On *Les Princes de la ville*, released in 1999, his work helped shape the identity of an album that has become emblematic of French rap. ‘Tonton du bled’ is the most popular example of this: Mehdi knows how to infuse hip-hop with electronic and Middle Eastern influences without dampening its energy.
And this is precisely where his career takes an exceptional turn.
At a time when rappers and clubbers still largely belonged to two distinct worlds, Mehdi realised there was no reason to choose.
He listened to rap, but also to house, funk and electronic music. He hung out with Cassius. He knows Pedro Winter, the future founder of Ed Banger and manager of Daft Punk. He begins to create music in which boundaries become irrelevant.
In 2002, his first proper solo album, (The Story of) Espion, is released. Then comes the pivotal artistic encounter with Ed Banger. Mehdi was involved from the label’s very beginnings and, notably, produced ‘Anything Is Possible’ in 2003, the B-side to Justice’s ‘Never Be Alone’. A few years later, he fully joined the venture, which was then transforming Paris into one of the world capitals of new electronic music.
In 2006, *Lucky Boy* was released.
The album encapsulates almost everything about DJ Mehdi: the rap beatmaker is still there, but the machines, house music and club culture have taken centre stage. ‘I Am Somebody’, ‘Lucky Boy’, ‘Pocket Piano’ and, above all, ‘Signatune’ firmly established Mehdi on the electronic music scene. The track ‘Signatune’ took on a whole new dimension thanks to the edit by Thomas Bangalter, one half of Daft Punk.
Mehdi thus became one of the leading figures of this extraordinary Ed Banger era. Justice took the world by storm, Daft Punk reigned supreme over the electronic music scene, Pedro Winter brought together a new French scene, and Mehdi began travelling between Paris and clubs all over the world.
But contrary to the sometimes brutal or provocative image of this new French Touch, those who knew him regularly describe a warm, curious man who was deeply devoted to others. Above all, he remained that bridge-builder, capable of chatting with a rapper from Vitry one moment and then, a few hours later, taking to the stage alongside the leading figures of the Parisian electro scene.
In 2009, he took this approach a step further with Carte Blanche, a duo he formed with the British DJ Riton. House music then took centre stage. A new chapter seemed to be beginning.
And then it all came to an end.
On the night of 12–13 September 2011, DJ Mehdi was with friends in his Parisian loft. Several people were standing on a glass section of the roof when it gave way. Mehdi fell. Others were injured. He was taken to hospital, where he died aged just 34.
The violence of the accident was matched only by its absurdity.
Just moments earlier, the friends had been laughing together. Years later, Riton would recount that evening and the sudden collapse of the structure. For Pedro Winter, who had shared more than a decade of music and friendship with Mehdi, his death was a traumatic blow.
Perhaps the most mind-boggling thing is to look back at what DJ Mehdi had achieved before he had even turned 35.
He had been part of the golden age of French rap. He had produced 113 and worked with artists such as Kery James, Rohff, MC Solaar and Akhenaton. He had then been part of the rise of Ed Banger, worked within the Justice circle and rubbed shoulders with Daft Punk and Cassius. Finally, with Carte Blanche, he had embarked on a new international venture.
This journey might give the impression of several successive careers.
Yet there was only one.
Mehdi hadn’t abandoned hip-hop to become an electro DJ. He had realised, before many others, that these categories were essentially boundaries invented by the industry, the media and, at times, the public.
His music told a completely different story.
A beat could originate in rap and end up in a club. A drum machine could get a techno crowd dancing whilst retaining something of hip-hop. A producer from the French rap scene could find himself at the heart of the international French Touch movement without erasing his history.
Perhaps that is why DJ Mehdi remains such a unique figure.
He wasn’t simply caught between two worlds.
He’d realised that they could form a single whole.
Fifteen years after his death, his story continues to be told. The documentary series *DJ Mehdi: Made in France, directed by Thibaut de Longeville and broadcast in 2024, brought his journey to the attention of a new generation and highlighted the immense influence he had on those who knew him.
DJ Mehdi died aged 34.
At that age, many artists are only just beginning to understand what sort of music they want to make.
He had already helped to write two major chapters in the history of French music.
And perhaps begun to write a third.
