add site
services
publishers
database
health videos
toolbar
stats
live show
health store
more stuff
JOIN/LOGIN
| advertise add site services publishers database health videos
| | about toolbar stats live show health store more stuff JOIN/LOGIN |
Khaled Albasha, MD - Cardiology, Scottsdale, AZ | Powered by DrScore.com drscore.com | Pulssar Technologies, Khaled Abousaleh -- MEDICA Trade Fair medica-tradefair.com | Musicians Directory - My Yoga Online myyogaonline.com | Dave Willocks - musician and teacher davewillocks.com |
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".
[edit] Biography[edit] Early yearsAt 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] [edit] Islamic fundamentalists' threatsAlgerian 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 1994 these threats materialized when another raï artist, Cheb Hasni, was murdered.[4] [edit] International audienceIn 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 .
On 12 July 2008, he 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[citation needed]. [edit] FAO AmbassadorThe 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). [edit] 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:
[edit] DiscographyThis discography does not include a number of albums released on cassette in Algeria early in his career, and several bootleg/unofficial albums. [edit] Studio albums
[edit] Live albums
[edit] Collections
[edit] SinglesFrom 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:
From Indigènes (Days of Glory) - Movie (2006): [edit] Featured in
[edit] Soundtracks
[edit] Filmography
[edit] Biography
[edit] AwardsBelow is a chronological list of awards won by Khaled
[edit] References
[edit] External links
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ↑ top of page ↑ | about thumbshots |
