Central High teacher contacts French pop star for Student’s benefits
The American music industry has been infiltrated by many internationally known artists including The Beatles, Shakira, ABBA and many more. To meet any of those artist is rare and many take advantage of the first chance they can get. Scott Donaghe did just that.
French teacher at Central High School, Scott Donaghe and French singer, Kayna Samet came in contact when Donaghe sent her a Facebook message, asking if she would be willing to Skype his students. When they singer accepted, a date was picked and the agenda was planned. The session was held on Dec. 10 with 150 students and seven city officials packed into a classroom. The students connected with the French pop star during one of his classes.
Donaghe’s wife and FC English teacher, Andrea Donaghe, recalls meeting the French singer for the first time in her kitchen.
“He likes her music so he was following her career,” Andrea said. “We had a foreign exchange student stay with us this summer. My husband asked him if she was a legitimate artist or if she was just an underground artist. Felix said she was legit and she was like Beyonce over there.
“So my husband found her on Facebook and asked to friend her,” Andrea continued. “Then he sent her a message asking if she would want to Skype with his students and she agreed. My husband, wanting to make sure it was legitimate asked if they could Skype first. We set up a Skyping session at our home and she Skyped from her home in France. It was really cute. I was in my kitchen talking to French Beyonce.”
Kayna Samet, formally known as Malika, plunged into the music industry at 15, first as a singer than as a rapper. She started as a model and performed as an opening act. In 1999, she came out with her first demo, “Le Parcours d?une Goutte d?Eau.” The tape was sent to several record labels and finally the opportunities she was looking for came. In 2000, she performed the song, “Jeune Fille d?en Bas” on the soundtrack for the movie “La Squale.”
I have never heard a group of that many students in one place so quiet. Don’t get me wrong though, there was a lot of laughter and tender moments of thoughtfulness. She is a very humorous person and very genuine.— Scott Donaghe, Spouse
The decision to change her name from Malika to Kayna Samet honored Kahina, a well-known Berber queen, and her grandmother, of whom she was very close to. A collaborative chance to tour with Matt Houston, established French singer, arrived and she took it. In 2002, Samet came out with the solo song, “Blazee D’la Life.” She signed on with record label “Voix Publik” and released her first album, “Entre Deux Je” in 2005. She has recently released a second album, “Thug Wife.”
Scott Donaghe’s push to contact French singers started with past foreign exchange students. The success he saw through those skypings encouraged him to reach out and try something new.
“I had already had my classes successfully skyped with three French friends in Paris,” Donaghe said. “The result of those Skype sessions were thrilling to see on my students faces. Since our school implemented a new tablet program technology that was not previously available was now ready to use in the classroom and actually worked. I thought what if I push this Skype experience to the next level? So I contacted four famous French singers and Kayna Samet actually responded. I was beyond thrilled!”
During the session, Central students asked her their rehearsed questions in which she answered in French. Then Donaghe would translate for the media’s sake.
“The entire group sat and watched in complete silence,” Donaghe said. “I have never heard a group of that many students in one place so quiet. Don’t get me wrong though, there was a lot of laughter and tender moments of thoughtfulness. She is a very humorous person and very genuine.”
His plan went as organized and the success he felt afterwords could not compare to any other teacher in the country.
“I knew that what had been accomplished was something that no other French teacher in the United States had ever done,” Donaghe said. “It was a proud and exciting moment. I knew that as a teacher I was about to provide to my students a once in a lifetime experience.”
Central student, Jose Serrano, never fully appreciated the honor he felt in Skyping the famous French singer until after the media coverage it was receiving. His taste for her music encouraged him further into the session and he began to admire her loving personality which impacted the whole room.
“I was very excited to know that we would Skype with the famous Kayna Samet,” Serrano said. “Her music is wonderful and sends a positive message. After seeing all the media and how it quickly spread that Kayna would be skyping with us, I realized the enormous honor it was going to be being able to directly observe the session with a superstar. She was very sweet and honest and has a positive vibe whom spread to us as well.”
Imani Johnson appreciated the singer’s time spent on her fans. The experience she received left an impact and she owes all her thanks to her teacher, Scott Donaghe.
“The experience was crazy cool,” Johnson said. “I didn’t expect to be so nervous but I was. It was literally insane and she is just so beautiful and really talented. It’s crazy that we even got to experience this but it’s all because of Mr. {Scott} Donaghe who is a really great teacher. I love her music and just her as a person. She really does care about her fans and you can tell just by how she took the time out to Skype with us. She is amazing and she is going to do big things in America.”
People’s reactions to the Skyping took him by surprise. The amount of notifications were all from people impressed with his work. ABC 30 covered a news story, reporting about the events that went on that day. Many people from the valley and France contacted him and he has been invited to two different conferences, one which at which he will be speaking about his experience.
“The response was overwhelming,” Donaghe said. “The very next day my e-mail, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and cell phone were blowing up. I took the day off from work for a couple of doctor appointments and using my cell phone, tablet and laptop spent my day answering the myriad of questions and congratulatory messages. I literally spent 8 a.m. in the morning the following day after the Skype session until 1:30 a.m. writing responses.”
Kayna Samet plans to make a dent in the American music industry in 2015. The session with these kids was just the start for her.
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Maddie Luginbill • Aug 30, 2014 at 2:36 am
Ummmm excuse me please! Sophomore class should have won the stinking monkey! Amen!