His 1988 Kutché album did the most to popularize him and the whole genre of Raï.
Cheb Khaled was the first international superstar. In 1986, the first state-sanctioned Raï festival was held in Algeria, and a festival was also held in Bobigny, France. In the 1980s, Raï began its period of greatest popularity. International success had begun as early as 1976 with the success of Rachid Baba Ahmed, Raï music's most important producer. Chaba Fadela's 1979 "Ana ma h'lali ennoum" is considered the beginning of modern pop Raï the song was a hit across Algeria, and set the stage for Raï's domination of national listeners. Chaba Fadela and Cheb Khaled began their careers mid seventies, growing Raï's popularity across Algeria. Raï singers (pronunciation: /ˈraɪ/ Arabic: راي) are called cheb (young) as opposed to sheikh (old) the name given to Chaabi music singers the tradition arose in cities like Oran, primarily among the poor. He is also known as the "King Of Raï" and is the internationally best known rai singer. 29, 1960) is an Algerian rai singer from Oran. الشاب خالد / Cheb Khaled or just Khaled (born Febr. This discography does not include a number of albums released on cassette in Algeria early in his career, and several bootleg/unofficial albums.A.k.a.
Cest La Vie is Khaleds first album after a five year break from recording during presidential elections in France and the Arab spring. Khaled tried to convey what Algerian and Moroccan immigrants suffer in Europe through the album, and thinks that this is the reason behind the albums huge commercial success. The album contains a message of tolerance, love and peace, staying away from the themes of conflict that many other artists in the Arab world explore. The latter track, which saw heavy rotation on MTV Europe and climbed to fourth on the charts in Germany, The Legendary King of Rai, Cheb Khaled is a winner of many prestigious awards, and has sold over 46 million albums worldwide including 10 diamond, platinum, and gold albums,in 2010 he performed Didi at the opening ceremony of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.Ĭhab Khaleds new album Cest La Vie has sold a million copies in the European market after only two months. Khaled and Don Was appeared on the The Tonight Show on February 4, 1993. The song was also used in a Bollywood film titled Shreeman Aashiq. His most famous songs are "Didi", "Aïcha" and "C'est la vie".Ĭheb Khaled's signature song, "Didi", became extremely popular in the Arabic-speaking countries and also in several other continents, including Europe, where it entered top charts in France, Belgium and Spain, and in Asia, including India and Pakistan. His popularity has earned him the unofficial title "King of Raï". He began recording in his early teens under the name Cheb Khaled (Arabic for "Young Man" Khaled, as opposed to the traditionalist Sheikh elders) and has become the most internationally famous Algerian singer in the Arab world and across many continents. Khaled Hadj Ibrahim (Arabic:, born 29 February 1960), better known as Khaled, is a raï singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist born in Oran in the square of Eckmühl in Algeria.