In the early days of his career, French rapper Jul was often the sole vocalist and producer credited for his string of viral singles and hit albums. But following the blockbuster success of his 2015 breakthrough, My World, and collaborative efforts like 2020 collective record 13 Organisé–conceived alongside a plethora of MCs from his native Marseille–Jul's proverbial corner became stacked with a fleet of skilled peers and strategic allies. Nowhere is his intent to build community as clear as on Indépendance, an epic collection of dance-rap bangers, cinematic hip-hop visions, and loving flashes of his North African heritage. Released at the end of 2021, Indépendance arrived as an exuberant return from post-pandemic confinement, filled with cheeky thumpers such as album bookends “Aghju capitu” and “Ma Casio”, which were designed for crowding dance floors once more. The record's prismatic sonic palette bounces between French house on “Beuh à la framboise” and shimmering kuduro on “Love de moi”, leaving enough room for the sensual Mediterranean meditations of “Que ça se mêle” and “La miss” to float on delicate oud strums. Jul puts his Algerian roots front and centre on “La frappe de Tanger” (“The Tangier Strike”), convening rappers Gips, Moubarak and Houari for an anthemic ode to their ancestral motherland and the hustle of immigrants and their children thriving in an adopted country. Perhaps his most fruitful collaboration comes from Spanish-Moroccan rapper Morad, who drops in on throbbing, electrified singles “Toda la noche” and “La street”, which became viral smashes and polyglot nightclub favourites. Never forgetting his beginnings as a street poet, Jul fills the album’s final act with his skillful rhymes, while embracing cinematic hip-hop and gauzy R&B beats in the process. The introspective “Boulevard des problèmes” unspools a tale of working-class hardship and life's hard knocks, while the stream of consciousness of “Dans la cour” is an emotional airing of grievances that touches upon discrimination and bitter betrayals. Across the album's 23 tracks, Jul dances, flexes, romances and self-examines, delving into the complexities of an artist at his peak and concluding that true independence means doing whatever he wants.