She arrived a little out of breath, throwing: “Have you been waiting for me for a long time?” » The voice, higher than on the airwaves, betrayed a slight concern. And then Cécile, the owner of the Cent Quatre, welcomed her with a “Hi Rebecca”. Rebecca Manzoni smiled and put her stress on the zinc for a moment. In this bistro in Saint-Ouen (Seine-Saint-Denis), a bit outdated with its moldings on the ceiling, its earthenware tiles, there is a reassuring impression of suspended time. “I like the atmosphere, this mix of people who have lived there for a long time, others who have recently arrived, young people, old people”says the one who settled here eight years ago in this suburb of “9-3”.
It is over an espresso that the journalist settles into a velvet sofa, at the back of the café. The day is going to be long, and she has “afraid of being a little broken”, she apologizes. At the end of spring, she still hosts her weekly musical patch, “Tubes N’ Co”, in the morning show of France Inter, every Friday at 7:20 a.m. And her program “Pop N’ Co” on Saturday mornings, on the same antenna.
Barely a month later, Friday 1is July, while France Inter is slowly switching to its summer schedule, Rebecca Manzoni sends us an evening SMS: “This day was a turn of events but there, it is decided: I will present the cultural magazine at the start of the school year. » No more rock and song, the forties will take over from Augustin Trapenard and his “Boomerang” in September, on the morning segment from 9:30 to 10 a.m. “I’m very excited but still leave the creation of “Pop N’ Co” with a twinge in my heart”she writes.
For nine years, every Friday, Rebecca Manzoni inoculated into the minds of listeners a song that did not let go of the day, after its “Smile, it’s Friday”. Was she aware of it? She denies. His laugh sounds like bells. “The power of a tube is that it infusesshe says. It gives me great pleasure to get into people’s heads: having a tune that stays, that you hum in spite of yourself, it’s rather good. »
Listening to an elsewhere
With these two musical presences on the air, the girl from Lorraine challenged herself to talk about popular music at prime time: « Passer Spacer, by Sheila, or a title by Nougaro on a news channel like France Inter at 7:20 a.m., is to celebrate so-called modest pieces. » Exploring the repertoire of the last fifty years was also, for her, encountering the soundtrack of an era. The journalist likes this romantic, political and playful side at the same time. However, she claims to have invented nothing: the magazine Rolling Stone It was already doing so in the 1960s. She did it “in her own way” and the listeners followed: 1.8 million on Saturday morning.
You have 63.59% of this article left to read. The following is for subscribers only.