Topical Dancer

Belgian-Caribbean singer and storyteller Charlotte Adigéry makes genre-blurring electronic pop that is alternately playful, introspective, and stylish. While her output as WWWater is raw and punkish, releases under her given name, including 2019's Zandoli EP, contain colorful, multilingual dance-pop tunes that celebrate individuality and fantasy. Often working with producer Bolis Pupul, the duo released their full-length debut Topical Dancer in 2022, with the pair's biting lyrics addressing racism, sexism, and xenophobia.

Adigéry was born in France to parents from Martinique and Guadeloupe, and grew up in Ghent, Belgium. She started singing backup for various local bands when she was 18, and began writing tracks herself while taking a music course at a college in Hasselt. Mutual friends introduced Adigéry to Belgian indie dance group Soulwax, who invited her to sing on the soundtrack to the film Belgica, which was released in early 2016. She began working with producer Bolis Pupul on material, and her EP Charlotte Adigéry, co-produced and mixed by David & Stephen Dewaele of Soulwax, was issued on the brothers' Deewee label in 2017. Adigéry also released La Falaise, a five-song EP by her alter ego WWWater, later in the year. She sang on Soulwax's 2018 album Essential, and her second Deewee EP, Zandoli, appeared in 2019, preceding her stint opening for Neneh Cherry during a European tour. Additionally, she released Yin Yang Self-Meditation, a 17-minute spoken word piece over ambient backing, in which she reflects on her insecurities and engages in breathing exercises. Adigéry began releasing singles co-credited to longtime producer Pupul in 2021. Their 2022 full-length, Topical Dancer, was a striking, witty set of electropop tunes tackling subjects like cultural appropriation and political correctness. ~ Paul Simpson

Belgium-based producer Bolis Pupul is a creator of wry, forward-thinking electro-pop and reflective techno. After signing to Soulwax's DeeWee label and releasing a pair of singles, he made his full-length debut alongside Charlotte Adigéry on the acclaimed Topical Dancer (2022). He explored his Chinese roots on 2024's Letter to Yu, his first solo album.

Though Bolis Pupul debuted during the 2010s with the solo singles "Moon Theme/Sun Theme" and "Wèi?/Teknow," much of his output has been in collaboration with fellow Belgium-based vocalist Charlotte Adigéry. After being paired up by Soulwax to produce for the 2016 film Belgica, Pupul and Adigéry built a strong collaborative chemistry, releasing a debut EP, Charlotte Adigéry, under the singer's name. Their style was a blend of dancefloor-ready productions and tongue-in-cheek reflections: Adigéry offered playful commentary and slick one-liners around a variety of social issues, while Pupul built his beats around nostalgic pillars and danceable melodies. The duo began to gain popularity with Adigéry's 2019 single "High Lights," which preceded a second EP, Zandoli.

In 2021, the pair began releasing under both of their names: the groovy "Thank You" was the first to appear under a collaborative moniker, quickly followed by "Blenda" and "HAHA." In 2022, they released their debut studio album, Topical Dancer, a series of tongue-in-cheek anthems underscored by Pupul's slick productions. Pupul released the solo single "Neon Buddha" shortly after the album, and remixed Metronomy's song "Hole Me Tonight." In 2024, Pupul released Letter to Yu, inspired by his late mother (who died in a traffic accident in 2008) and his subsequent trips to Hong Kong to find his roots and learn about his family's history. ~ David Crone