![]() ![]() "They were very impressed because they never heard this music before."Ĭan anyone – British, French or even second- or third-generation Algerians – with completely different, much improved living conditions relate to the specific expression of Raï music? After all, Raï initially had a purpose similar to that of the early Blues for the Afro-American community, a common music for underdogs. People where curious and showed interest in the music, he explains. ![]() He was finishing his Arts degree and started doing Fine Arts exhibitions in collaboration with a few other artists when at one point they started playing Raï music just for enjoyment. It was by mistake that he came to live in England, he jokes, explaining that in 1988 he was just doing a bit of travelling, passing by the UK on his way to Canada. Born in the Algerian town of Khemis Miliana, the singer, percussionist and oud player Saadoun was already a well-known Raï musician in his homeland before forming a Raï band in London in 1992. The members of his truly multinational and technically brilliant band take turns in brief solos, each at the signal of Saddoun's hand. While the audience is emerging in the music, Abdelkader clearly takes the centre of attention on stage, overlooking everyone in terms of both his tall physical appearance and a musical leadership that he exerts via a sort of conducting reminiscent of the "Godfather of Soul", James Brown. This is not simply a concert, it's a celebration. Immediately, people start to dance, clap their hands and sing along with joy. The very moment Abdelkader's band kicks off the set with its eclectic mix of traditional Raï, jazz, rock, funk and dance music, one phenomenon is very striking: there is an instant passionate response by the audience. Among the audience is a clear majority of expatriates from Maghrib countries. Tonight, Abdelkader Saddoun resides at the Cargo club in London's vain and trendy quarter Shoreditch. Its capital London harbours Abdelkader Saadoun, self-proclaimed King of Raï in the UK.Īn eclectic mix of Raï, jazz, rock, funk, dance music Still the Maghribian culture seems to have sloshed over to the United Kingdom. Great Britain on the other hand is rather an odd choice in this respect. Taking into account its colonial past, France – despite being a European country – is a natural breeding ground for sprouts of a Maghribian culture. These artists have by now established a widespread mainstream pop culture of Raï, initially nurtured on the comparatively small immigrant community of their respective country of origin. It so happened in France where musicians like Khaled, Cheb Mami or Rachid Taha took on the traditional Algerian Raï music to play it to their fellow countrymen in the nightclubs of Paris and Marseille. Thus, some among the Maghribian migrants who came to Europe in the late twentieth century began to build cultural bridges for their compatriots. Although they can't or even may not be willing to return to that place, a vital memory of it remains and with it often a lifelong longing. It is where their ancestors come from, the cradle of their culture. People may relocate to a foreign country, but there's always one place they call home in their heart. In the 1980s, Maghribian emigrants took it to France, gave it a modern coating and made it hugely popular. ![]() It kept its tradition of rendering the living conditions of the deprived from postcolonial Algeria to the unemployed and homeless youth of Algeria in the decades to follow. Raï in Algeria was traditionally the music of the social outcasts. Abdelkader Saadoun is an up-and-coming world music artist - and not just because he is a regular at the same London restaurant as Madonna ![]()
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