Henri Belolo (; 27 November 1936 – 3 August 2019) was a French music producer and songwriter active during the disco era.
Born in Morocco, he started his career as a club DJ and A&R man. In the 1970s, with his friend, composer Jacques Morali, he worked in the United States, creating The Ritchie Family as well as their most successful group, Village People.
Life and career
Belolo was born to a Moroccan Jewish family in Casablanca, Morocco, and grew up there listening to music introduced by US troops as well as that of African musicians. He studied business in Casablanca, before traveling in 1956 to Paris, France, where he met record company owner and producer Eddie Barclay. Belolo worked with Barclay, importing and promoting records, and started working as a club DJ, work which he continued after returning to Casablanca.
In 1960, he was recruited by Polydor Records in Paris to work in A&R and as a producer, where he worked on albums by Georges Moustaki, Serge Renée, and Jeanne Moreau. He also organized concerts in Paris by James Brown, the Bee Gees and others. He then set up his own record label, Carabine, and music publishing company, Scorpio Music, and in the early 1970s began licensing disco records. however, he visited clubs with Morali and saw the potential of appealing to the gay nightclub scene. In 1977, they created the group Village People, seeing their image of gay stereotypes as a way to embody a certain partying spirit. Belolo and Morali began working with the band and presented their demos to Neil Bogart of Casablanca Records, who agreed to release the band's records.
In the 1980s, Belolo and Morali introduced and produced records by Break Machine. Belolo continued to work in France as a music producer, until his death on 3 August 2019 in Paris, France.
Awards
- Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters (2015)