For those of us who enjoy flicking through the gossip rags, Matt Pokora is best known as Christina Milian’s other-half and, as of January 2020, new baby daddy. In France, it’s a different story entirely. Since finding fame on the talent show Popstars in 2003, Pokora has become one of his home country’s best-loved stars and an almost permanent fixture in the charts. If you want to find out more, keep reading.
1. He’s the son of André Tota
Pokora is far from the first famous name in the family. His dad is the professional footballer André Tota, a legendary figure in France. Although his parents divorced when Pokora was 13, Tota remained a big influence on his son, to the degree that his primary ambition growing up was to be a soccer player. After realizing his skills might not be in quite the same league as his father’s, he switched tactics and began planning on a career as an attorney… only for music to come along and change the direction of his life for good.
2. His name has humble origins
Pokora was born Matthieu Tota but changed his name before embarking on his career. During an interview for the documentary Mise à jour, he revealed how he’d chosen his new name. While speaking to his grandmother (who’s of Polish origin), the subject of humility came up. Tota asked her how to say humility in Polish, to which she answered “pokora”. It doesn’t take a genius to work out what happened next…
3. He rose to fame on Popstars
In 2003, Pokora decided to take his musical ambitions to the next level by signing up for the third season of the French talent reality television show, Popstars. The basic premise of the show revolved around the concept of auditioning singers as individuals, before creating a boy band or girl group out of the most successful. After winning over both the audience and the judging panel, Pokora was teamed up with the other male winners, Lionel and Otis, to create Linkup. After enjoying success with their first album and single, the fortunes of the band took a dive, and by 2004, they’d disbanded.
4. He was involved in a lawsuit
After Linkup disbanded, Pokora embarked on a solo career. Despite only having decided on his stage name a couple of years beforehand, he was forced to switch names again after the release of his eponymous solo career triggered a lawsuit from French R&B singer Matt Houston. Not wanting to abandon his moniker completely, he re-emerged as M. Pokora, releasing his album shortly after under his new title.
5. He’s collaborated with Ricky Martin
Following the success of his first two solo albums, Pokora was invited to appear at a concert organized by NRJ Radio in France. At the concert, he ran into Latin superstar, Ricky Martin. The two struck up a friendship, and shortly afterwards, Martin invited the French singer to collaborate with him on a bilingual French/ English version of his hit “It’s Alright”. The single was a huge hit, selling over 100,000 copies worldwide.
6. He’s dabbled in acting
After making his name in music, 2011 was the year Pokora decided the time was ripe to try his hand at acting. His first move in that direction involved lending his voice to the main character of Duncan Rosenblatt in the French dub version of Cartoon Network’s Firebreather. Two years later, he took his talents to the stage when he landed the lead role of Robin Hood in Robin des Bois: Ne renoncez jamais, a French comedy based on the legend of Robin Hood. After premiering on 26 September 2013 in Palais des congrès de Paris, the show (and Pokora with it) embarked on a sellout nationwide tour around France.
7. He has a tattoo in tribute to Djibril Cissé
Pokora, a lifelong football fanatic, is close friends with French footballing sensation Djibril Cissé. As well as being godfather to one of the footballer’s sons, he’s got a tattoo of the letter X in tribute to the celebratory X sign Cissé makes every time he scores a goal. As a mark of their friendship, Cissé has the exact same tattoo.
8. He’s a major philanthropist
Ever since the very start of his career, Pokora has been a huge advocate of various charities, particularly those involved in HIV/Aids awareness and research and children’s rights. As a show of his support, he’s released several charity singles, including 2004’s “Chanter qu’on les aime”, in support of Association Mondiale des Amis de l’Enfance (AMADE), 2005’s “Protège-toi” for Collectif Protection Rapprochée and 2006’s “L’Or de nos vies” for Fight Aids. In 2010, meanwhile, he performed a cover version of Tracy Chapman’s “Talking About a Revolution” for the charity album Message (AIDES)”. Since 2012, he’s also been an active member of the Les Enfoirés charity ensemble.
9. He’s got a huge collection of tattoos
Pokora’s “X” tattoo tribute to Djibril Cissé is far from his only tattoo. Over the years, his tattoo collection has grown to be almost as big as his name, with some of his most noteworthy inking’s including “POKORA” inscribed on his right arm in capital letters, the phrase “Only God Can Judge Me” on his right arm, the words “Creativity”, “Peace” and “Patience” drawn in Chinese calligraphy on his left shoulder, and the word Ambition, again drawn in Chinese calligraphy, on his lower back.
10. He won season 1 of Danse avec les stars
In 2011, Pokora showed off his dancing skills when he participated in the first series of Danse avec les stars (France’s take on Dancing with the Stars). Despite some stiff competition from rivals David Ginola and Sofia Essaïdi, Pokora and his partner Katrina Patchett danced to victory after winning 62% of the votes in the season finale.
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