‘The Voice’ Alum Returns After Shooting Self to ‘Scare’ Girlfriend

Kendji Girac recently broke his silence after three months recovering from a shooting he claimed was an accident at first, and later revealed to be intentional. According to France’s Public, The Voice alum says he’s ready to get back to work, ready to finish his recovery and ready to hopefully win back those he’s lost with his decision.

“As you know, I almost lost my life, the love of my family, my audience, my friends. My daughter almost lost her father. I don’t know what happened,” Public translates from an Instagram video posted by Girac. “I want to ask for forgiveness, apologise to those I’ve hurt, I’ve never wanted that to. My goal is to make people happy (…) God gave me this second chance, it’s not for nothing.”

“It is now up to me to show you who I am, to regain your trust. We need action and I will do everything to rise to the occasion now. I can’t wait to see you again, very soon,” his message concludes.

Some in the comments of the post were quick to stress Girac should take it slow given how grave his initial injuries were from the shooting.

The 27-year-old former The Voice champion Kendj Girac was rushed to the hospital in April with a bullet wound after shooting himself. According to Le Monde, the singer sustained a bullet wound to his chest, and claimed at first that the shooting was an accident. This changes quickly when reality kicks in. 

Girac, the stage name of Kendji Maile and winner of The Voice in France in 2014, told authorities that he accidentally shot himself while tinkering with a Colt 45 automatic pistol her claimed to have gotten from a junk shop.

“This isn’t a gangland shooting. It’s an accident. He was playing with the thing and ‘bam’,” a witness told AFP after the shooting. “We were quietly playing the guitar… An accident can happen at any time.”

However, the story changed later in the week. On April 25, Girac and prosecutors confirmed what really happened. “He was very frightened when he heard [his girlfriend] talking about leaving, he panicked and wanted to scare her,” prosecutor Olivier Janson said in a press conference. “In a way, he simulated suicide. He said he took responsibility for what he did while regretting it very much.”

There were also heavy levels of alcohol in his bloodstream and traces of cocaine after partying. Janson told those at the press conference that Girac’s drinking was a stress point in his relationship.

Girac is lucky and will require several months to recover from the gunshot wound. The homicide probe into the shooting will be dropped and no one else was involved with the incident.