Stromae came to wide public attention in 2009 with his song "Alors on danse" (from the album Cheese), which became a number one in several European countries.

In 2013, his second album Racine carrée was a commercial success, selling two million copies in France and yielding chart-topping singles "Papaoutai" and "Formidable".

To finance his private school education, Van Haver worked part-time in the hospitality industry, but his academic performance was not up to standard.

[citation needed] It was only later, when he registered at the Institut national de radioélectricité et cinématographie, that he released his first EP "Juste un cerveau, un flow, un fond et un mic...".

[citation needed] In 2007, during his studies at the film school of Brussels, Stromae decided to concentrate fully on his musical career.

Vincent Verbelen, Music Manager, was impressed by the talent he perceived in Stromae's first single "Alors on danse" and decided to air it for the first time on NRJ.

[citation needed] By May 2010 the track "Alors on danse" had reached number one in Belgium, France, Sweden, Greece, Germany, Austria, Turkey, Switzerland, Italy, Denmark, Romania and the Czech Republic.

[citation needed] On 2 September, Stromae collaborated with Kanye West and Gilbere Forte in a remix of his hit "Alors on danse".

[citation needed] On 23 May 2011, during the recording of the French TV show Taratata, Stromae did a mashup of "Alors on danse" and "Don't Stop the Party" with the Black Eyed Peas.

Stromae also announced he would perform as the opening support act for the first of two concerts by the band in Paris on 24 and 25 June 2011 at Stade de France.

[16] On 22 May 2013, amateur-looking videos appeared on YouTube showing Stromae, apparently drunk and wandering at the Louise tram station in Brussels at dawn.

This was confirmed during an appearance by Stromae on the French TV show Ce soir ou jamais in which he discussed and also performed his new single "Formidable", which is about the story of a drunk man just separated from his girlfriend.

[20] On 26 July 2013, Stromae announced on his Facebook[21] and Twitter[22] accounts that he had completed his second studio album Racine carrée, and that it would be released on 16 August 2013.

On 25 August 2013, Stromae joined Major Lazer's show at French festival Rock en Seine, where he performed "Papaoutai".

In September 2013, Belgian rock band Mintzkov covered his song "Formidable" for a live session on Studio Brussel, with lyrics in English.

[23][24] In September 2013, the single "Tous les mêmes" accompanied by a spectacular video clip was again a big success (number 1 in France and Belgium).

[26] In June 2014, in support of Racine carrée, Stromae made his US television debut on NBC's Late Night with Seth Meyers.

[30] On 21 October 2014, it was revealed that New Zealand singer Lorde invited Stromae to work on the soundtrack for The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 with artists including Kanye West, Grace Jones, Diplo and The Chemical Brothers.

[42] This was later revealed in 2017 that the cause of Stromae's health issues were an anti-malaria drug called mefloquine, he had used ahead of and during his tour in Africa in 2015.

[52] On 10 November 2020, during his first Live Instagram on the occasion of the tenth anniversary of his clothing brand Mosaert, he mentioned working on new music.

[58] In 2024, Stromae contributed to the soundtrack of Arcane's second season in the track "Ma meilleure ennemie" alongside French singer Pomme.

[62] Stromae collaborated with director Henry Scholfield to produce the music video for English artist Dua Lipa's single "IDGAF".

[66] Stromae collaborated with Pomme for the song "Ma meilleure ennemie" appearing in the seventh episode of the second season of the animated serie Arcane, released on the 23 November 2024.

[72] The new designs are the first to use patterns not previously worn by Stromae, reflecting Mosaert's intention to gradually move into a separate stylistic identity for the clothing line.

On 12 December 2015, Van Haver was secretly married to Coralie Barbier by the Catholic priest Guy Gilbert, in a private ceremony held in Mechelen.