Khaled

Born in Oran in 1960, Khaled started his career at 14, performing at weddings as part of the band Cinq Étoiles. But in 1985, at a singing competition in his native Algeria, Khaled was crowned the king of rai. He soon moved to France, where his solo career started to blossom after signing to Barclay (a Polygram subsidiary) in 1991 and working with American producer Don Was. Taken from his self-titled album, the evergreen hit “Didi” joined the list of African songs that transcend language and culture, reaching all corners of the continent. A blend of dance music, jazz, and rai, the song introduced Khaled’s winning formula of combining his melismatic melodies with western production styles. He’s since dabbled in rock, pop, EDM, and hip-hop as heard on “El Arbi," “Aicha,” “C’est la vie,” and countless other songs.