Grand Corps Malade was born Fabien Marsaud on July 31, 1977, in sunny Seine-Saint-Denis, France, under the sign of the lion and under the eyes of his mother, who even then gave him a triple-barrelled nickname: Petit Chaton Bleu (“little blue kitten”). Words came easily to him, and he enjoyed singing and telling stories. Fabien was always playing sports, and sometimes he wrote texts that he wasn’t too sure about ... so he didn’t tell anyone. Fabien wanted to be a sports instructor, but instead he ended up taking a helicopter ride to the hospital. So for a while he had a “real job” in an office.

He became Grand Corps Malade in 2003 alongside John Pucc’Chocolat and Collectif 129H, with whom he established himself on the slam scene. For the next three years, he appeared on open stages in small Parisian bars to recite his texts unaccompanied. He won the first big slam tournaments (Bouchazoreill’ at the Boule Noire and then at the Trabendo, Slam United at the Java ...). His album Midi 20, released on March 27, 2006, sold over 600,000 copies. Grand Corps Malade then went on tour, giving more than 120 performances across France and in Belgium, Switzerland and Quebec. In 2007, he received two Victoire de la musique awards (for “Album Discovery” and “Live Discovery” of the year). That same year, he recorded his second album, Enfant de la ville, with Feedback and Jean-Rachid. It was released on March 31, 2008, and was followed in 2010 by his third album, 3ème temps. Patients, his first book of prose, was published on October 18, 2012. He co-directed the film adaptation (2016) with Mehdi Idir.

His fourth album, Funambule, produced and directed by composer and trumpeter Ibrahim Maalouf, was released on October 28, 2013. He released the album Il nous restera ça in 2015 and his sixth album, Plan B, in 2018, followed by the Plan B tour. 2019 saw the release of his second film, La Vie scolaire, again co-directed with Mehdi Idir.

In 2020, he released the album Mesdames, and after months of COVID-induced delays, the tour finally got underway in the summer of 2021, including a major tour of Zénith performance venues throughout France. In 2023, the film M. Aznavour with Tahar Rahim was shot, and the album Reflets was released on October 20, followed in 2024 by a major Zéniths tour. In 2025, Grand Corps Malade will appear at the NAC, just for you!