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\u201cIt’s [unusual] to listen to ra\u00ef or go to a cabaret, yet everyone listens to it. It’s not charted. It’s not on the radio. It’s nowhere, but it outcharts everyone on YouTube,\u201d producer-artist Adam Lenox<\/span> aka Zouj<\/span> tells OkayAfrica<\/span>. \u201cBilel Tachini<\/span> will put out a tune on a random Tuesday and make more streams than Drake<\/span>.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n In 2022, Zouj came across a song by Algerian singer Cheba Warda<\/span> on TikTok, which felt simultaneously familiar and completely new. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cI knew it was some kind of ra\u00ef, I understood it was Algerian as well, but I couldn’t pinpoint what it was. Turns out, the street name for it is way-way,\u201d he says. \u201cThis hyper-digital internet version of ra\u00ef awakened curiosity in me.\u201d<\/p>\n Raised in the Moroccan diaspora, Zouj had grown up hearing ra\u00ef: an Algerian folk music genre that arose in the port city of Oran in the 1920s, blending traditional music with rhythmic drums. Ra\u00ef translates to \u201copinion,\u201d because it\u2019s an art form of the working classes that allowed them, especially women, to directly address socio-political issues, injustice, and taboo topics like love and lust.\u00a0<\/p>\n Born out of anti-colonial sentiment under the French occupation, the genre grew and evolved. At times, it took a backseat under conservative governments or during national crises, but it\u2019s always been beloved amongst the majority of Algerians and eventually expanded to integrate new international sounds.\u00a0<\/p>\n In the past two decades, ra\u00ef has inspired artists to play with new sub-genres and fusions, such as\u00a0Ra\u00ef\u2019n\u2019B<\/a>,\u00a0rap ra\u00ef<\/a>, or way-way. When Zouj came across the latter, he knew he wanted to learn more.<\/p>\n
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