He blew out his candles… and made sparks with his relaxed style and his fabulous look. The American actor offered himself a stopover at the César, the Parisian address prized by the glories of football and by American stars. During the evening organized by his friend and adviser, the French businessman Taylor Chiche, the great lord of Hollywood lent himself to the game of selfies.
What if Jamie Foxx was the coolest star in Hollywood? The question arises in one of the American magazines at the release of each new film by the Oscar-winning actor in 2005 for his role in “Ray”, the biopic devoted to Ray Charles. Athletic silhouette, draws with a nonchalant elegance, lit eye, devastating smile, Jamie Foxx (born Eric Marlon Bishop) walks the red carpets with his swaying gait. It is obvious that Inspector Ricardo Tubbs, Sonny Crockett’s partner in Michael Mann’s “Miami Vice”, or Django Freeman, the hero of Quentin Tarantino’s “Django Unchained”, have made cool his trademark.
Trained in the harsh school of stand-up, this complete artist, who has several rap albums to his name, knows music perfectly. He knows that a career is forged with a lot of work, conviction and talent, of course, and with a bit of luck… without forgetting the attitude! Jamie Foxx has this particular form of elegance that comes from hip-hop culture. Fashion critics say he’s “stylish”, he’s got the “swag”, he’s mastered the codes of undermining down to the smallest detail. For example, he knows how to match the color of the band on his trainers to the edge of his pork pie hat, the favorite bitos of jazz saxophonist Lester Young. This same hat he wears in the film “Ali”, where he plays the friend of this boxing legend played by Will Smith.
A detour to a Saint Laurent boutique
On December 17, with Mehdi Abdelhedi, the owner of the restaurant (on the right of the wedding cake) and Taylor Chiche (on the left, with the glasses). Pastry chef Jeffrey Cagnes, author of the show is on the left.
© Joseph Degbadjo
Last Saturday, before going to the Italian restaurant César, avenue de Wagram, in Paris, to celebrate his 55th birthday, the star made a detour to a Saint Laurent boutique to treat himself, as a nod to his reputation. , a Playboy sweater that he was going to wear the same evening. Superstars, Mehdi, the boss of the César, sees them parading every fashion week, after major premieres or sporting events. The place, close to the Place de l’Étoile, has become the favorite canteen of the tenors of the football world: Neymar, Mbappé, and even, ironically, Angel Di Maria and Leo Messi. Become in a few years “the place to be”, the César Paris (the group has two other addresses in Paris) saw parade Rihanna, Cardi B, Lewis Hamilton, and the tops Bella and Gigi Hadid or Emily Ratajkowski, with their processions of limousines received by beefy bouncers. In short, the ultimate in “instagramable”. These beautiful people do not forget to pay homage to the establishment by drawing two Cs with their fingers on the photos they post. Translate: a crush…
The Prince of Cool
On the decks, the actor and musician provided the show with Californian hip-hop hits.
© Joseph Degbadjo
Burning evenings, Mehdi Abdelhedi has known some memorable ones, but the climax will remain this birthday of the prince of cool. For Jamie “Playboy” Foxx, there is no question of privatizing the premises or of demanding that he be isolated behind the heavy purple curtain. After an obligatory stint on the piano, where he played the melody of “What’d I Say”, Ray Charles’ totemic anthem, the crazy ambiancer took the place of the DJ, choosing West Coast rap standards. Between countless selfie sessions, he goes to the kitchen to sign his plate, the culinary equivalent of the rock’n’roll Hall of Fame. Next to the showpiece, Foxx seems to take up all the space with his impressive stature. He tells me that he continues to do a lot of cardio and weight training for the needs of “Back in Action”, the film he is shooting for Netflix with Cameron Diaz. Without forgetting this role, always for Netflix, which will make him embody the boxer Mike Tyson. He briefly mentions the brand of sunglasses (Privé Revaux) that he launched.
55 years old… I didn’t see anything. The best is yet to come
Jamie Foxx
On the decks, the actor and musician provided the show with Californian hip-hop hits.
© Joseph Degbadjo
How does it feel to have 55 brooms? Jamie Foxx laughs: “I didn’t see anything go by. Time flies but I still believe that the best is yet to come. It may sound pretentious, but I’m in great shape with a host of projects: producing films and musicians, and why not getting behind the camera. In short: working while having fun and having fun while working. By the way… is the cake good?” I tell him that if he weren’t so strong, I would gladly have stolen his sweater. Jamie Foxx pretends to take it off to give it to me. Always cool, past midnight… He’s going to prolong the night with his friends at the Arc, a hotspot for Parisian parties, with a Californian hip-hop recital. In the early morning, the master of ceremonies and his barnum will pile into a Eurostar car, heading for London and the filming of the film with Cameron Diaz.
In the early morning, heading to London
At the helm of this backfiring anniversary was hiding a “Frenchie”, a man in the shadows and a friend of the star for years. Their meeting dates back to 2009, when Taylor Chiche was still running La Parizienne, place du Marché-Saint-Honoré, an address renowned for its cuisine, its attractive location and its attractive female clientele. Between the filming of “Justice Be Done” and “Valentine’s Day”, Jamie Foxx was seduced by the energy and the networks of this Frenchman who dreams of America and organizes private parties where influential figures from Paris meet. After several trips to Los Angeles, Taylor Chiche returned to business as a tech entrepreneur and specialist in alternative management. He and the star have become like brothers.
It was back in London that they experienced the Hitchcockian final of the 2022 World Cup between the Blues and Argentina on a giant screen. Young, ultra-sporty, Jamie played as a quarterback in a local American football team, dreaming of joining the ranks of the Dallas Cowboys. This does not prevent him from appreciating the subtleties of the round ball and the incredible liveliness of Kylian Mbappé. “We haven’t missed a single Blues game,” Taylor said. The last game, with its unbearable suspense, Jamie called it a “sublime defeat”…”