Grand Corps Malade

Grand Corps Malade, often abbreviated GCM, is the alias of slam poet Fabien Marsaud, born on July 31, 1977 in Le Blanc-Mesnil, Seine-Saint-Denis, France.

On July 31, 1997, after a bad dive in a pool in Saint-Denis, Marsaud displaced his spine and was told he would never walk again. However, in 1999 after a year of treatment, he was able to walk again. The alias Grand Corps Malade (meaning «Tall Sick Body» in French) is a reference to his condition as well as his height (nearly 6’5»).

He made his first appearance in a bar in Paris on October 23, 2003, after which he started workshops to introduce youngsters in his community to slam poetry. Soon afterwards a friend of his (S Petit Nico) offered to make a musical track to accompany Marsaud’s poetry. His first album, Midi 20, was out on March 26, 2006. He later appeared in Edouard Baer’s Grand Cabaret. He also made a few appearances on television.

On March 10, 2007, Marsaud won two Victoires de la Musique.

He appears on two tracks (which he wrote) of the 2007 album La mécanique du cœur by Dionysos, playing the role of Joe.

In 2009, he appears in duet with Calogero, on the Calogero’s track 2 of L’Embellie album, «L’ombre et la lumière».