Good morning Cheb Khaled: Sep 13, 2024

A little about Raï, Khaled, and an update on my art too

I didn’t know too much about Cheb Khaled other than the random French broadcasts on public access television during the weekends of my youth, and some posters of him plastered in family visits to Astoria.

Can’t say when I was glued to Raï music and the French influence, but it’s likely about a decade later when we returned to New York. The family eventually settled in Long Island by the time I was in high school. Though I probably didn’t use it as productively as I’d liked, it did expose me to a world I missed out on.

He’s known mononymously as Khaled in the Arabic-speaking world, primarily in North Africa, as well as France due to the influence of the language and Algerian, Moroccan, and Tunisian communities there. It’s easier to reference him with the initial title of ‘Cheb’, meaning “Young”. There’s a few other Khaled’s out there in the music world. I’d argue none of which reaches the dominance of this man in the regional market.

The origins of Raï starts in the surrounding area of Oran, Algeria, and also the birthplace of Khaled. The song starts off with raï, or the advice/proverb addressed to the audience, and then melodically repeated while examples of said advice is improvised in between. Given the nature of the Arabic language and nearby music, the influence of the Berber culture and Tamazight language, Raï had developed into a very cool genre of its own.

This video is an excerpt from his live performance of “Mauvais Sang”. One of my favorites, and a good example of Raï produced music in the 90s with elements of love, longing for the homeland, partly influenced by Jazz too. Maybe it’s why I was glued to hip-hop of that era too?

There is not too much going on in my part of life. While many witnessed an unsurprisingly wild debate, much of the genocide coverage has kept me away from local politics and focused more on understanding art during my free time.

I’ve been experimenting with ways to manipulate my sneakers for a simpler, almost non-branded look. I’m also learning about oil painting. I really want to get on the ground running, but I understand this particular art form is a bit tedious compared to my experience with watercolors and gouache. I want to achieve that buttery look that is very appealing, and much of my gouache paints are tucked away in my storage unit in the lands of the Bronx. I hope to get cracking soon so I can get back into making some individual cards again.