Belkacem Bouteldja
| Bouteldja Belkacem | |
|---|---|
| Born | 5 April 1947 Oran, Algeria |
| Died | 1 September 2015 (aged 68) |
| Genres | Raï |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, musician |
| Years active | 1964–2015 |
Bouteldja Belkacem (5 April 1947 – 1 September 2015 in Oran) was an Algerian raï songwriter, lyricist and composer.
Bouteldja Belkacem grew up in the El Hamri neighborhood of Oran in Algeria. He is considered a pillar of modern raï. One of those who modernized the raï with Messaoud Bellemou, in the 1960s, introducing for the first time, accordion and synthesizer instead of guellal (drums) and gasba (flute). On 9 December 1965, he recorded at Brahim El Feth's, his first tape followed by a disk with two hits. In 1968, his editor leaves for Paris and Belkacem Bouteldja to honor his contract is an obligation to do back and forth to record three discs. In late 1969 his encounter with Messaoud Bellemou will upset the traditional rai and the collaboration will endure until the end of 1979. Bouteldja withdrew for a while returning in 1985, for the first held Rai Festival in Oran, with representatives of the new wave with Cheb Khaled, Hamid and many others. In 1993, summarizing the history of rai belkacem Bouteldja would say: "Life is like that. To each his own time: Cheikh Hamada in the 30s, Rimitti in the 50s, Bouteldja in the 60s, Bellemou in the 70s, Khaled in the 80s, Hasni and Nasro in the 90s."
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