by Jason AnkenyMac Kregor emerged from the ranks of Tandem, arguably the most popular French rap act of its generation. Born in 1981 to a Haitian family and raised in Aubervilliers, Kregor (aka Makenzy) teamed with Mac Tyler (alias Socrate) to form Tandem. First documented via myriad mixtape appearances and a 2001 LP, Ceux Qui Savent M'Ecoutent, the duo's brand of street-smart, profoundly autobiographical hardcore rap entered the mainstream when it was hailed as a kind of unofficial soundtrack to the racial unrest that gripped France in late 2005. Around that same time Mac Tyler issued his debut solo LP, Patrimoine du Ghetto; Kregor's own solo bow, Insurrection, followed in the summer of 2006.