Corsu Mezu Mezu

On Saturday, October 28, 2023, Plenitude Arena took on the colors of the Isle of Beauty for an extraordinary event concert: “Corsu Mezu Mezu, la Corse débarque à Paris.” Around thirty Corsican and mainland artists shared a single stage for a night running more than three hours, built entirely around sharing and emotion.

The Corsu Mezu Mezu collective established itself in just a few years as a genuine cultural and musical phenomenon

A bold bet that came true at the heart of Plenitude Arena

Driven forward by Patrick Fiori over several years, the Corsu Mezu Mezu project had already won over audiences with a first album selling more than 400,000 copies, followed by a second release that topped 600,000 sales. Riding this phenomenal success, the artist set himself a new challenge: filling Plenitude Arena, the largest indoor venue in Europe, to bring the great anthems of Corsica to life for a Paris crowd that showed up in force. A bet he pulled off with flying colors, as around 20,000 spectators gathered at Plenitude Arena that night to share this unique moment. As a visibly moved Patrick Fiori put it, this concert was the culmination of weeks of work, with mainland artists putting in considerable effort to learn to sing in Corsican for the occasion.

© Apolline Cornuet

A stage dressed in white, a full immersion into the soul of the Isle of Beauty

For this exceptional night, the production made it a point of pride to recreate the warm, solemn atmosphere so distinctive of Corsican music. On the Plenitude Arena stage, hundreds of choir singers dressed in white accompanied the artists throughout the show, creating tableaus as striking as they were moving, especially during the great polyphonic songs. Between warm lighting design and staging built to spotlight every duet, trio, and quartet of artists, Plenitude Arena transformed for one night into a true sanctuary dedicated to island culture, pulling the audience into the world of Corsu Mezu Mezu.

A generous setlist blending timeless anthems and unexpected duets

Over more than three hours, the roughly thirty artists on stage took the audience on a journey through the great classics of the Corsican repertoire, punctuated by surprise duets pairing island voices with mainland ones. Among the standout moments of this memorable night at Plenitude Arena:

• “Le Prisonnier,” sung back by the entire crowd
• “Viaghji” and “Mi Ne Vogu,” great classics of Corsican heritage
• “Versu Te,” performed in a particularly hushed, reverent atmosphere
• “Terra Corsa,” performed by Florent Pagny alongside Patrick Bruel and Patrick Fiori, met with a standing ovation
• An unexpected duet between Carla Bruni and Patrick Fiori, blending Corsican and Italian roots
• “Dio Vi Salvi Regina,” Corsica’s national anthem, closing the night with the full lineup of artists and the impressive choir

This generous setlist, blending traditional songs with contemporary arrangements, kept Plenitude Arena buzzing without a single lull all night.

Corsu Mezu Mezu, the project that brought Corsican song into the spotlight

Driven by Patrick Fiori, the Corsu Mezu Mezu collective established itself in just a few years as a genuine cultural and musical phenomenon. Its first album, a No. 1 for four weeks and certified triple platinum with more than 300,000 copies sold paved the way for a second release that surpassed 600,000 combined sales. By bringing together artists as varied as Jenifer, Kendji Girac, Nolwenn Leroy, Maxime Le Forestier, Claudio Capéo, and Slimane around Corsican music, the project let an entire island culture shine well beyond its shores, all the way to filling a venue the size of Plenitude Arena.

A night of chills that will stay etched in Plenitude Arena’s history

Between the moving reunion with an ovation-worthy Florent Pagny, the surprise duets, and the grand finale on “Dio Vi Salvi Regina,” this Corsu Mezu Mezu concert gave Plenitude Arena one of its most touching and unifying nights. A date that will be remembered as the moment Corsican culture won over the heart of Europe’s largest indoor venue, carried by the generosity and emotion of dozens of artists united around a single cause: celebrating the Isle of Beauty.