This morning we’re delighted to welcome Swiss-Moroccan musician and singer Sami Galbi who has just released his first EP Dakchi Hani / Rruina to MailTape!

Drawing from raï and chaâbi influences, the music of his childhood he rediscovered in the cabarets of Casablanca, the musician who comes from the alternative scenes in the French-speaking part of Switzerland, is using analog machines, raw synthesizers, and guitar effects to give North African popular and folkloric music a pop texture and a club atmosphere. With his vocals and boundless energy on stage, which borrow from hip-hop and rap, he’s an artist to keep an eye on. Yallah!

Sami Galbi’s selection

Timber Timbre - Black Water

Sami: ” Perfect waking up song, it is to me the reconstruction of a sparkling and lightful world after a destroying storm. I think the song can make anybody feel like flying over any negative thoughts. The song draws a space of softness and positivity, which is often advisable on a Sunday Morning! “

Cheba Fadela & Cheb Sahraoui - Manich Mena

Sami: ” This is a dialogue between two lovers. Both Algerians, they write raï love songs. Fun fact: They’re actually a couple! They had the habit of recording one take at the studio. It is a simple structured but so beautiful piece, simplicity and repetition being the thing I love about the song. “

Mashrou’ Leila - Radio Romance

Sami: ” A love song too. Mashrou’ Leila has been one of the most influent indie rock bands in the Arab world. Beirut-based, they are also representing the gay community, which hasn’t been an advantage to them. Speaking of a love relation with melancholy, the singer is using metaphors between the body and the mind. The bridge’s construction is simply delicious. “

MailTape’s selection

Sami Galbi - Dakchi Hani

Jules: ” Another love song, but more a post-breakup love song, this track is a sort of reconciliation with the past, a celebration of a encounter that lingers nonetheless. ‘Dakchi Hani’, which translates to “It’s not serious” in Moroccan Darija, is Sami Galbi’s first single and it’s already a powerful artistic gesture with an energy that can’t leave you indifferent, we can’t wait to hear the rest! “

Sofiane Saidi & Mazalda - Bourkan

Jules: ” Sofiane Saidi, “the Prince of Raï 2.0” as often presented, needs no introduction. For several decades now, he has been a key figure in the revival of raï and Maghreb music, influenced by electronic sounds, and is equally at home in cabarets, concert halls, clubs and after-parties where he accompanies DJs or pop music festivals. On this album, released in 2018, he has joined forces with Mazalda, a group of 6 musicians with a big rhythm section and brass instruments, to continue to spread the rhythms of raï and Algerian music coupled with bedouin sounds, gasbah gallal, synths psyches, funk and everything that makes people dance. “

Cheb Kader - Reggae Raï

Jules: ” Taken from El Awama, Cheb Kader’s masterpiece which was originally self-produced on cassette in 1986 and a little too avant-garde for its time, this track reveals the fascinating diversity of raï, a subtle compromise between the melodies of Oranese suburbs, the electricity of Casablancan guitars and the roaring layers of reggae. Hypnotic! “

Teno Afrika - Smooth Criminal (Main Mix)

Jules: ” A risky crossover it is, but I’d be mad if I didn’t give it a try. After all, even though I wasn’t born then, the success of amapiano is in a way reminiscent of the success of raï in the 80s, popularized by the Chebs. In the same way that raï has absorbed styles from rock, pop, funk, reggae and disco, amapiano, a style born in the townships of the Gauteng province in South Africa whose first success tracks were concocted on cracked versions of production software and distributed on free exchange platforms, has integrated many styles, from historic South African jazz to Deep and Afro house. Taken from Teno Afrika’s Amapiano Selections, this track is one of the gems on this album, which takes us into a new musical universe.”

That’s it for this morning, thank you for joining us! Much love to Sami Galbi his lovely emotional and trippy selection and to Noémie Dijon for her delightful illustration.