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|Born = {{Birth date and age|1960|2|29|df=y}}
|Born = {{Birth date and age|1960|2|29|df=y}}
|Died =
|Died =
|Origin = Greece
|Origin = [[Oran]], [[Algeria]]
|Instrument = [[guitar]], [[drums]], [[banjo]], [[violin]], [[harmonica]], [[accordion]], [[synth]]
|Instrument = [[guitar]], [[drums]], [[banjo]], [[violin]], [[harmonica]], [[accordion]], [[synth]]
|Genre = [[Raï]], [[Pop music|pop]], [[Blues music|blues]], [[Jazz music|jazz]]
|Genre = [[Raï]], [[Pop music|pop]], [[Blues music|blues]], [[Jazz music|jazz]]

Revision as of 04:11, 26 January 2010

For the American musician, see DJ Khaled.
Khaled

Khaled Hadj Brahim (Arabic: خالد حاج ابراهيم, born 29 February 1960), better known as Khaled, is a raï singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist born in Sidi-El-Houari in Oran Province of Algeria. He began recording in his early teens under the name Cheb Khaled (Arabic for "Young man Khaled") and has become the most internationally famous Algerian singer in the Arab World and across many continents. His popularity has earned him the unofficial title "King of Raï". His most famous songs are "Aicha" and "Didi".

Biography

Early years

At the age of fourteen Khaled formed his first band, Les Cinq Étoiles ("The Five Stars"), and began playing at wedding parties and local cabarets. He recorded his first solo single, "Trigue Lycée" ("Road to High School"), at the same age[1] and soon became involved with the early 1980s changes in the Raï sound, incorporating western instruments and studio techniques.[citation needed]

Islamic fundamentalists' threats

Algerian Islamic fundamentalists were violently opposed to raï because of its sometimes irreverent tone and the fact that raï singers freely addressed issues considered taboo in Islam, like sex, drugs, and alcohol.[2]

Singers like Khaled articulated socially progressive, more modern themes that many younger people identified with, a way of rebelling against the constraints of the older generations and more traditional Islam. As Khaled says himself, "in rai music, people can express themselves. We break taboos".[3] This open embracing of taboo subjects in Islamic culture can be witnessed in the video of Khaled's hit song, "Didi", showing women provocatively dressed and dancing, both taboos in Islamic culture.

However, due the nature of these lyrics, fundamentalists were infuriated when the Algerian government, in the wake of a hugely popular 1985 raï festival in Oran, officially declared it to be one of the country's native music styles. In response, fundamentalists sent death threats to some raï artists. The danger forced Khaled to move to Paris in 1986 (see 1986 in music). In 1991 Khaled was managed by Marc Céda and Djilali Ourak. They asked Jess-Jemel Dif, a drummer with the already popular band led by Rachid Taha and called Carte de Séjour to find them a good record label to sign Khaled. Cheb Khaled was introduced to Universal Music with the song "Didi", which was an old Algerian song. Thus began the international success of Khaled. Sadly, in 1994 the fundamentalist threats materialized when another raï artist, Cheb Hasni, was murdered.[4]

International audience

In 1992 (see 1992 in music), after dropping "Cheb" from his name, he released his self titled album Khaled, which established his reputation as a superstar in France and among maghrebian emigrants around the world and sold over a million copies in European alone, an estimated 7 million worldwide, and he scored an even bigger hit with his love song Aicha in 1996. His audience has continued to expand throughout the 1990s, and he has collaborated with several hip hop artists. Khaled had achieved superstar status in France, his homeland Algeria and the Arab world. His signature song, Didi, became extremely popular in the Arabic-speaking countries and also in several other countries, including India and Pakistan. The song was used also used in a Bollywood film titled Shreeman Aashiq. Khaled and Don Was appeared on the "The Tonight Show" on February 4, 1993.[5] However, his popularity in the US, the UK and other countries has been limited to a small but devoted cult following. In the 1997 film The Fifth Element his song Alech Taadi was used in the car chase with Bruce Willis and Milla Jovovich. His next album N'ssi N'ssi further strengthened his position. Film-maker Bertrand Blier used it as the soundtrack for his film "Un, deux, trois… Soleil".and sold 2 million copies. Three years would pass before the release of his next album "Sahra". During this time Khaled received the 1994 Cesar Award for the best film soundtrack, the 'Victoire de la Musique' for the 1995 artist of the year, and co-organised a huge night at the Zenith (the Paris concert hall) for peace and freedom of expression in Algeria .


In 1999, he was joined by Rachid Taha and Faudel in a concert at the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy for a concert known as 1,2,3 Soleils which was subsequently released as a live album and sold more than 5 million copies worldwide.Khaled became very popular in French, Canada , Belgium, Holland, Japan, England ,the Middle East ,India ,Germany ,Spain ,Italy ,Pakistan and Brazil


On 12 July 2008, khaled the legend of rai appeared at the Liverpool Philharmonic Hall to take part in the Liverpool Arabic Arts Festival, part of the "Liverpool: European Capital of Culture 2008" function. Khaled has sold over 46 million albums worldwide.His legacy includes 10 diamond, platinum, and gold albums, as well as the highest-selling Arab album in history.

FAO Ambassador

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations FAO is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger. FAO was founded on October 16, 1945 in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The FAO Goodwill Ambassadors Programme was initiated in 1999. On 16 October 2003, Khaled was nominated Goodwill Ambassador of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).

Lyrical themes and politics

Khaled's songs feature political lyrics in favour of emancipation of women and more democracy. The lyrics to "Aicha", written by the singer songwriter Jean-Jacques Goldman, which was in the charts in many countries of Western Europe and sold over 3 million copies in france alone, are about a man's lament that his love Aïcha does not notice him, even though he offers her everything, even his life. In the end, Aïcha answers he should keep his treasure, that she's worth more and does not want to live in a cage, even a solid gold one, but equal rights and respect which form true love:

Elle a dit, garde tes trésors :She said, keep your treasures
Moi, je vaux mieux que tout ça :I'm worth more than all that
Des barreaux sont des barreaux même en or :Cages remain cages even though made of gold
Je veux les mêmes droits que toi :I want the same rights as you
Et du respect pour chaque jour :And respect for each day
Moi je ne veux que de l'amour :I don't want anything but love

Discography

This discography does not include a number of albums released on cassette in Algeria early in his career, and several bootleg/unofficial albums.

Studio albums

Live albums

Collections

  • 1991 Le Meilleur de Cheb Khaled
  • 1992 Le Meilleur de Cheb Khaled 2
  • 2005 Forever King
  • 2005 Spirit of Rai
  • 2005 Les Annees Rai
  • 2006 Salou Ala Nabi
  • 2006 Maghreb Soul - Cheb Khaled Story 1986-1990
  • 2006 Anajit Anajit
  • 2007 Best of
  • 2009 Khaled: Rebel of Raï - The Early Years

Singles

From Kutché (1988):

From Khaled (1992):

From N'ssi N'ssi (1993):

From Sahra (1996):

From Kenza (1999):

From Ya-Rayi (2004):

Not released in an album:

  • La terre a tremblé (2003)

From Indigènes (Days of Glory) - Movie (2006):

Soundtracks

  • 1997 The Fifth Element
    • Alech Taadi (Note: This song was featured in the film, but did not appear on the official soundtrack)
  • 2006 Indigènes (Days of Glory)
    • Ya Dzayer (2 Versions)
    • Mort De Messaoud
    • Nostalgie
    • Sur la tombe
    • El Babour
  • 2007 Taxi 4
    • Benthi (feat. Melissa Lesite)

Filmography

Biography

  • 1998 Khaled: Derrière le sourire

Awards

Below is a chronological list of awards won by Khaled

References

  1. ^ Denselow, Robin (2004-12-12). ""I was spat at and called a traitor" — Khaled". Pakistan Dawn. Retrieved 26 November 2008. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  2. ^ Lavie, Smadar (1996). Displacement, Diaspora, and Geographies of Identity. Duke University Press. p. 150. ISBN 0822317206. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  3. ^ Gross, Joan, David McMurray, and Ted Swedenburg. "Arab Noise and Ramadan Nights: Rai, Rap, and Franco-Maghrebi Identities." Diaspora 3:1 (1994): 3- 39. [Reprinted in The Anthropology of Globalization: A Reader, ed. by Jonathan Xavier and Renato Rosaldo, p. 16
  4. ^ Lacey, Robert Kevin (2000). The Arab-African and Islamic Worlds: Interdisciplinary Studies. Peter Lang. p. 295. ISBN 0820442992. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  5. ^ "Today's TV Tips". Atlanta Journal-Constitution. 1993-02-04. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)

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