The recent death of French Algerian superstar Rachid Taha brought to mind the musical genre called raï, so I decided to feature it this week by highlighting a few raï artists.… It’s not hard to ...

What happens when you combine Spanish, French, African and Arabic music? Bedouin shepherds frequenting the Algerian port of Oran first dived into this mixing bowl in the early twentieth century. What ...

Cheb Mami’s name may not be on the tip of your tongue, but odds are his music is. Over the past decade, this Algerian native has skyrocketed to the top of the world’s Arabic rai (pronounced “rye”) ...

Raucous, expressive and revolutionary: Algeria's Rai music took its place on the United Nations' list of intangible cultural heritage on Thursday. "New inscription on the #IntangibleHeritage List: Rai ...

When Algeria made an official application to include rai, a folk music genre, on the UNESCO Intangible Heritage List, it irked its rival across the border, Morocco. Now a soft war looms for the heart ...

Raï music, arguably the most popular music style in the Middle East today, originated in the Algerian port city of Oran. By Billboard Staff RELEASE DATE: Nov. 26 Raï music, arguably the most popular ...

Spawned from the country’s diverse and politically turbulent history, Rai music has transcended national boundaries Abu Dhabi: When the world thinks of Algeria, a few things come to mind: a long and ...

"New inscription on the #IntangibleHeritage List: Rai, popular folk song of #Algeria," UN cultural agency UNESCO announced in a tweet. Rai, whose biggest stars include Cheb Khaled and Cheb Mami, ...

As concert venues go, it's not exactly Carnegie Hall. A few dozen folding chairs are set up in a courtyard, in front of a modest elevated stage. A half-dozen musicians are crowded around a table, ...

Born in southern Tunisia in 1977, MC Rai proved so adept in the native chaabi folk music tradition that he was performing on local radio stations before his eighth birthday. Like most teenagers, his ...