IAM may refer to:
IAM (pronounced as English "I am") is a French hip hop band from Marseille, created in 1989, and composed of Akhenaton (Philippe Fragione), Shurik'n (Geoffroy Mussard), Khéops (Eric Mazel), Imhotep (Pascal Perez), and Kephren (François Mendy). 'IAM' has several meanings, including 'Invasion Arrivée de Mars' ('Invasion from Mars', 'Mars' is frequently used as a metaphor for Marseille in IAM's songs). Another meaning is Imperial Asiatic Man, while AKH often refers to L'homme Impérial Asiatique.
One of IAM’s central themes in its songs is Africa. The group is one of the pioneer French rap groups and draws heavily on allusions to Africa, and particularly to ancient Egypt, in its music. Their 1991 song "Les tam-tam de l'Afrique" was one of the first French rap hits and the first song to deal expressly with the issue of slavery [needs citation]. Using a sample of a Stevie Wonder song, "Les tam-tam de l'Afrique" focuses on the “abduction of its inhabitants, the Middle Passage, and the plantation system in the Americas.”
It's so damn easy to say that life's so hard
Everybody's got their share of battle scars
As for me, I'd like to thank my lucky stars
That I'm alive and well
And it'd be easy to add up all the pain
And all the dreams you sat and watched go up in flames
You were on, on the wreckage as it smolders in the rain
But not me, I'm alive
And today you know that's good enough for me
Breathing in and out's a blessing, can't you see?
Today is the first day of the rest of my life
And I'm alive and well, God, I'm alive and well
Stars are dancing on the water here tonight
It's good for the soul when there's not a soul in sight
This boat has caught it's wind and brought me back to life
Now I'm alive and well
And today you know that's good enough for me
Breathing in and out's a blessing, can't you see?
Today is the first day of the rest of my life