“La Banlieue” are the low-income housing projects surrounding Paris. While the term Banlieue technically refers to any suburb of a city, in French discourse it is associated with densely populated high-rise housing projects marked by economic deprivation, with some of the neighborhoods infamously labeled as “no-go zones”. While often portrayed negatively by political figures as breeding grounds for drug trafficking, organized crime and hooliganism, the suburbs of Paris are diverse, with some areas being more affluent, like western Paris suburbs, compared to notoriously poor ones like those in the Seine-Saint-Denis, “the 93”.

Despite challenges, Banlieues are vibrant centers of French identity. Through elite football and pioneering hip-hop, these neighborhoods have produced world-renowned athletes and artists, cultivating resilient, diverse communities that shape the nation from the margins inward. They have been central to France’s football legacy, with players from these areas contributing to World Cup victories and embodying a multicultural France. At the same time, the Banlieues remain the heart of French hip-hop and R&B, giving rise to artists whose work carries the lived experience of these territories into the mainstream.

All photographs by Yanis Dadoum. 

“Banlieue: Suburbs of Paris”, a book by Living Proof. Now available on the Living Proof Patreon.