Cologne striker Anthony Modeste gets his own rap song
Anthony Modeste’s goalscoring prowess has inspired many things this season from his club’s unlikely bid for Europe to calls for Didier Deschamps to include the target man in the French national team. Now the Cologne star has his own rap song and music video.
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Taking a break from bullying Bundesliga backlines, Modeste can be seen delivering a different set of moves with teenage French rapper MKN in the video for "Anthony Modeste", which was shot in part on the pitch of RheinEnergie Stadium.
The obvious pun on Modeste’s name – ‘Reste (stay) Modeste comme Anthony’ - plays a central role in MKN’s lyrics.
Watch: MKN's video featuring Cologne striker Anthony Modeste.
“In fact, his wife is also my cousin,” MKN told French football magazine So Foot.
“Since I was small, I’ve been going to Anthony’s house, whether it was at Bordeaux, Bastia, Hoffenheim and then in Cologne.
“I’ve followed his career and his private life. Since I was 12 or 13, I said to him ‘your life deserves a song.' So I promised him then that I would make one, later, when I got into music.”
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MKN, an artist from Marseille, describes Modeste like his “big brother” and it is clear from the lyrics that he is full of admiration for the 28-year-old.
Watch: The first 22 of Anthony Modeste's 23 goals this season!
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The refrain goes:
With number 27 printed, his jersey, I want to see the stadium tremble,
And Anton’ my name that rings out when I enter the field,
Number 1, goalscorer, centre forward...
Number 1, goalscorer, centre forward...
Stay Modeste like Anthony.
MKN says that he wanted his song to convey that Modeste did not always have things easy and has risen to prominence through perseverance and sheer effort.
It is those qualities that have seen Modeste - with 23 goals this season - drive Cologne to seventh in the table. He is also only three strikes behind Robert Lewandowski and two behind Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in the race to be the Bundesliga’s leading goalscorer.
“I know he has worked for everything he has," MKN said of Modeste.
“He’s someone who remains modest despite everything. His name really suits him. He’s not someone who gets worked up over things, contrary to everything you hear about other footballers. Far from it.
“He’s someone like everybody, who watches TV on his sofa and has barbecues on a Saturday. He’s a father. He’s an example who’s ready to help others.”
The video features scenes of Modeste playing with his two children and giving his wife Maeva a cuddle, intercut with clips of MKN delivering lyrics surrounded by a trio of large and presumably pricey automobiles.
At the end, when it’s time for Modeste to leave the scene, he bypasses the more luxurious rides and opts instead for a much smaller Volkswagen.
Watch: Check out Modeste's hat-trick against Hamburg on Matchday 9.
Modeste has told the rapper that he is proud of the song and video, but does MKN believe it can help lift his friend and collaborator to greater heights by season’s end?
“I think it can give him a little boost," MKN said. "If the song works, so much the better. Otherwise, it will at least have pleased Anthony. That's the main thing."