Khaled

▪ 1996

      Beyond the borders of its Algerian birthplace, the exotic sounds of rai music continued to attract listeners in 1995, primarily through the rich, passionate voice of the "king of rai," Khaled. The Algerian singer was not only one of the best-known voices of rai but an embodiment of its spirit of youth, pleasure, and sexual freedom. His celebration of this lifestyle, however, put him at risk. Islamic extremists viewed this music as a corrupting influence on the young and issued a fatwa, or death sentence, against those espousing this message. As a result, Khaled moved to France and had not returned to Algeria since 1990.

      Nevertheless, Khaled was a man who exuded happiness, especially when performing. Khaled Hadj Brahim was born on Feb. 29, 1960, in the western Algerian city of Oran. By the age of 10 he was playing a variety of instruments, including the accordion, guitar, and harmonica, and at 14 he recorded his first single, "La Route de lycée" ("The Road to School").

      Rai—from the Arabic word meaning "opinion" or "advice"—blossomed in Oran in the 1920s. The port city, known as "little Paris," was a melting pot of various cultures, full of nightclubs and bordellos, the place to go for a bawdy good time. Out of this milieu, female Muslim singers called cheikhas emerged. They stood the poetic and classical lyrics of traditional Algerian music on its head, singing instead about the real conditions of urban life in a raw and gritty language reminiscent of American blues.

      Modern rai built on the music of these women, retaining the plain speaking and the flaunting of accepted mores while incorporating the sounds of Western rock, Jamaican reggae, Egyptian and Moroccan pop, and other innovative styles that made their way into Algeria. In the 1980s Khaled and other singers added drum machines, synthesizers, and electric guitars to the mix. By the time the first international rai festival was held in Algeria in 1985, Khaled was the central figure; his name had become virtually synonymous with rai.

      In the 1990s his music evolved beyond the synthesized sounds of his earlier period. His most recent recording, "N'ssi N'ssi," included pedal steel guitars and Asian string arrangements. Although extremely popular in North Africa, the Middle East, India, and Europe, Khaled was not as well known in the United States. With the inclusion of his music on the sound track of the 1994 film Killing Zoe, however, and the production of an upcoming album by U.S. producer Don Was, he could yet capture an American audience.

      (MARY JANE FRIEDRICH)

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