On Thursday, March 5, MansA welcomes Hadj Sameer—a collector, DJ, and documentary filmmaker—for a sonic exploration of early Algerian raï. A musical journey through 1970s Algeria, uncovering the roots of a genre that has become emblematic of the Maghreb.
MansA invites Hadj Sameer to take us back to 1970s Algeria to discover proto-raï, the foundation of contemporary raï. A deeply nomadic genre, raï has evolved through numerous fusions: first as people moved across western Algeria, then across the Mediterranean, and eventually around the world.
As both the heir to rural areas and the voice of the working-class neighborhoods of the Oran region, raï owes its rise to a group of cities that have shaped its identity. For this session, Hadj Sameer will guide us through four of them: Oran, Sidi Bel Abbès, Aïn Témouchent, and Tlemcen. Each of these journeys will demonstrate how these local scenes laid the groundwork for what is now one of the most iconic musical genres in the Maghreb.
Hadj Sameer, a collector, DJ, and documentary filmmaker, has been traveling the world for the past fifteen years in search of musical archives—cassettes, vinyl records—while meeting artists and labels that are sometimes little known. Driven by a desire to collect testimonies and stories, he pays tribute to the musical heritage of his Algerian parents through the writing and production of his documentary “Raï Is Not Dead” for Arte. The film highlights several generations of artists connected to this musical—and later political—movement, and reveals the close ties between the destinies of Algeria and France.
