Poignardé is the past participle of the verb poignarder, meaning "to stab". It's a powerful and dramatic word you won't find in most songs, immediately conveying a sense of deep betrayal.
In "Brisé", Gims uses this word metaphorically in the line "Tu m'as poignardé dans le noir" (You stabbed me in the dark). This striking image perfectly captures the song's theme of being broken by someone he trusted completely.
Gims takes us on an emotional roller-coaster in Brisé – a track whose very title means “Broken.” The Congolese-French star sings from the raw perspective of someone who has been betrayed by a lover yet still struggles with conflicting feelings of love and hate. Throughout the lyrics he paints vivid images: secret stabs “in the dark,” tears falling on his shoulders, and the haunting smile that gives away a lie. These snapshots show how easily trust can shatter when the heart leads the brain.
Behind the catchy melody lies a powerful message about self-deception and awakening. Gims admits he “veiled his own face,” choosing not to see warning signs, because “the brain follows the heart.” By the end of the song, he is ready to extinguish the flames of pain “by the flames” themselves – hinting at reclaiming strength through the very fire that burned him. Brisé is a bittersweet anthem for anyone who has loved blindly, been hurt deeply, and still hopes to heal.
GIMS, born Gandhi Djuna in 1986 in Kinshasa, is one of the biggest stars in French music. His family left the Democratic Republic of the Congo for Paris when he was just two years old, and he grew up in the French capital.
He first made his name as the masked frontman of the rap collective Sexion d'Assaut, one of the groups behind France's rap revival around 2010. Since going solo in 2013 he has become a chart-topping, stadium-filling artist who blends rap, pop and R&B, and he has worked with international names like Sia, Sting, Maluma and Pitbull.