Kenza

I have no frame of reference from which to judge this. And yet I love it. It loses an entire star because of Imagine.

wow, this guy managed to inject a bit of life in to imagine. The point of this whole list is to go out of your comfort zone and listen to some stuff you wouldn't choose to and this definitely fits the bill. however weirdly i've probably heard this album more than most as it seems this is a standard issue CD for taxi drivers.

I coudn't figure out any way to listen to this album, so instead, I'm going to leave notes for Want One by Rufus Wainwright. Only because I saw that this list already offered up Want Two and I'm like "Want Two? The fuck is wrong with this list?" Because Want One is every good part of Rufus Wainwright in one album. If you're not won over by the first two tracks of Want One, then... then you probably wouldn't like the rest of it. But it's one the perfect albums and I would give it 5 stars. Maybe Khaled's Kenza is exactly the same way.

Pretty nice album and definitely not something you hear every day. Also, why couldn't the many people complaining about it listen to it on Spotify? I found it immediately and it worked fine.

1001 calls him the "king of Rai", Rai being a genre coming out of Algeria. Distinctly melodic with Arabic influence, Khaled shines when he doesn't sound so goddamn poppy. This is made distinctly worse by a cornball-cover of John Lennon's Imagine, though it'll be hard to top that one cover done by all the celebrities at the start of the pandemic. I do appreciate Khaled's Algerian background, I really do, but this is too commercial, too pop to retain many good qualities. The opening track, Aâlach Tloumouni, is the obvious standout here for being the closest to standard Rai music, but the rest is watered down. It's also a half-hour too long.

Thought this was a fun album and nice change of pace from the other albums we have heard so far. Unfortunately with this album not being on Spotify I listened on YouTube and it became a major distraction - the ads, a playlist with the tracks out of order, and skipping audio (at first I thought this was my wifi but upon further investigation it seemed to be the source files). In any case I enjoyed the singing, including the duets, and the music was lively and exciting. Would listen again if I find another way to listen and enjoy it more.

Cover aus der Reihe „Ein Schöner Mann“. Hab mich auch gefreut, etwas anderes zu hören, aber Arabisch hört sich für mich leider häufig rückwärts gesungen an. Im Vorwärtsgang und auf Deutsch wäre dies schlimmer Schlagerpop. Satter Sympathie Punkt für seine sonst weltoffene Haltung wurde durch gefährliche Homophobie (Ansteckungsgefahr seiner Kids durch Frankreichs Legalisierung der Homo-Ehe) gecancelt. Schwör 0.5

Extremely enjoyable to listen to. Put me in a good mood and got me to listen to Middle Eastern music all day which made me feel good. The version of Imagine was pleasant too. I heard all kinds of influences, French, Caribbean, Latin. Or did those genres pull inspiration from artists like him?

I have no frame of reference or culture context to evaluate this by. However, it is - objectively - an enjoyable album.

Such a diverse album. I had zero expectations, but this album has everything from chanson to disco. Sounds fresh even today.

From the album cover to the production and the 70’s throwback vibes, this definitely feels like 1999.

Tego akurat sie czlowiek nie spodziewal, bo wylosowac arabskie disko polo jest prawdziwa sztuka, Kenza to album z 99 z gatunku muzyki rai, ktory oznacza algierska muzyke folkowa, ale tutaj wysteuje ona w odslonie dosc zmodernizowanej opierajacej swoje brzmienie na roznorakich gatunkach muzyki popularnej, soula, funku, czy nawet reggae, ale gdzies wplata te elementy typowe dla arabskiego folka, wiec tamburynowanie czy charakterystycznie drumowanie, ciezko napisac cos wiecej, bo praktycznie kazdy song ma inny sklad instrumentalny do tego to polaczenie tradycyjnego brzmienia z synthowymi klawiszami, skreczami i innymi nowinkami lat 90 daja czlowiekowi kociokwik, a to wszystko podane w bogatej opcji, bo az 78 minutowej, gdzie zmiescilo sie 15 trakow, ktorych rozszyfrowac nie jestem w stanie, bo oczywiscie po arabsku, prawie, bo pojawiaja sie takze dwa francuzkie utwory, pewnie covery, no i na dobitke czleka zaserwowany zostaje arabsko angielski cover imagine, moze przemawiaja przeze mnie uprzedzenia, ale arabski jedynie do piesni religijno folkowych, w muzyce rozrywkowej budzi jedynie skojarzenia z danzo kuduro czy helikopterowymi songami, wiec na plejke nic sie nie przekradnie tym razem

Allahu akbaaaaar

I was not expecting an Egyptian/Arabic sound but I'm so into this. I never hear this style outside of like, the Prince of Egypt soundtrack (which I do love). The lush strings, cool melodies, and joyful beats make me want to dance.

Again, loved the sound and instruments on this but fact it kept me from fully getting into the music. When the English verse of Imagine came on, it really showed the power of his voice and Noa (the female vocalist). The English and my knowledge of the song helped ease me into the rest of the album and I ended up enjoying it a lot. Great use of horns on Trigue Lycee and Ya Aachkou is an absolute bop. Total surprise for me, especially enjoyed the second half of the album. Really a 4.5 for me but going to round up

Super funky and interesting. Already saved it.

kinda cool, never heard of an Algerian artist before. straight ahead pop with a mix of this almost bollywood style vocal sound. But then C'est La Nuit is a totally different vocal texture. Kind of a straight up cover of Imagine, but sure it's nice. Trigue Lycee is a fucking bop. This album goes a lot of places sonically. Goulalah - Dji is a prefect example. Wow what a great listen!

Długo kminiłem co dać. Niesamowicie wciągające rytmy, przyjemne partie instrumentalne, pomaga fakt, że arabski i francuski to ładne języki. No i, co ważne, vibe jest mega przyjemny. Po prostu świetnie się tego słucha. Chętnie wrócę do niektórych kawałków. Kusiło dać 4, ale z drugiej strony, zapewne nie będzie takiego albumu już na liście 1001, więc co mi tam!

I really liked this! Just a lot of cool sounds and rhythms, plus I totally fell for the sapiness of him and an Israeli singer alternating verses of Imagine in Hebrew and Arabic.

very cool

A wonderful surprise, from an artist I had never heard of before, and a genre I had never listened to. Makes me more determined by than ever to visit francophone north Africa - perhaps the only place where Albert Camus and Andy Mcnab both set books!

tri massa o sonzao indiano, instrumentos e melodias agradáveis

I doubt that I ever would have heard this if I hadn’t joined this program. And it’s produced by Don Was, one of my favorite musicians and producers. The one false note was “Imagine,” which has been done so often. But I loved the rest!

In the 70s when belly dancing became a crazy my mother added numerous 1950s-era albums from Mohammed El Bakkar & His Oriental Ensemble to our family collection. I became an instant fan and still enjoy these albums to this day. I very much enjoyed listening to this much more modern Algerian album. Some of the songs hinted back strongly to those 50s albums, while others were entirely modern and enjoyable. My only complaint was that this was not available on Apple Music in the US so I had to get creative to find the songs. It was a surprise to be listening along then come upon a modern dance track like E’dir E’sseba. That had me grooving on personal dance floor! I guess it speaks to the insular nature of living in the United States to discover that since the 80s Khaled has become a world pop phenomenon and I had no inkling of him before now. I love this!

Very enjoyable. Wish the whole thing was available in the US.

This is different, new, and fun. There were a few moments for me when, even though I didn't know what message the lyrics were conveying, the music did have a slight hint of cheese in the delivery. But, I suppose pop music often does.

Not something that I thought I would enjoy but it was really good.

Fun listen! Warmed up to it as the album progressed

This was a ton of fun.

Quintessential Arabian sound. This is basically the soundscape Hollywood uses as shorthand for the middle east and it sounds amazing. Khaled's classically beautiful baritone is absolutely accentuated by the backing instrumentation. I wish I understood the lyrics, but that by no means detracts from the soundscape

Man möchte einfach nur lostanzen und nicht mehr aufhören....

Unfortunately most of the album wasn’t accessible but I really enjoyed what I did hear.

I'm not actually sure I loved this album five stars much, but it's at least a 4 and I'm excited to discover this genre of music! I didn't love the ballads but found it interesting how close to salsa some of them were. Interesting instrumentation and really fun.

I liked this alot more than I thought I would.

A blend of traditional Algerian, 90s pop, rock and blues. This was super fun to discover. Made me dance my pants off :)

The music is gorgeous and his voice is lovely.

I really got a kick out of this album, but on my first listen I really struggled with a lack of cultural context. Happy to see more worldly music, but it took me some time to find out more about Khaled. It clearly felt like it had western pop and jazz influences, and I loved listening to it! || I eventually found a write up on Khaled and that really helped me. Learning about the history of Rai music, and persecution in Algeria. || I don't think I'll find myself picking this up a lot, but I do really dig the sound, and would always be happy if some songs came up on shuffle. I think this is a 3 or 3.5 musically for me, but going to rate it a 4 because I love a musician who fights against unjust systems and gets to the heart of the people!!

Música étnica árabe

his imagine version is a banger

I was agreeably surprised to find this here. While I usually prefer other Rai musicians, this is a nice and fun album that I had never listen to in its entirety. Makes you want to dance and puts you in a good mood.

Good music! Never listened to Algerian folk music before, it's fun!

Well I really enjoyed this Arabic language tour through world music. Wonderful percussion sounds and interesting and varied instrumentation. really loved its mix of western style rhythm and ethnic sounds. 4 🌟

Well I really enjoyed this Arabic language tour through world music. Wonderful percussion sounds and interesting and varied instrumentation. really loved its mix of western style rhythm and ethnic sounds. 4 🌟

Lekkere beats ook al versta ik er niets van

Arabic gold

Glad I made the effort to find it.

French-African music - the first non-English-language, non-Western music I've got from this list since starting it nearly 3 months ago. First couple of tracks were a little bit cliche Eastern/Arabic, but the album really opens up with a variety of styles. Definitely listen-to-able.

Hadn't really heard a lot of Rai music and this is the first time of listening to this Album. A mixture of traditional North African/Algerian tunes and western pop/rock this album is definitely of interest. Reading of (Cheb) Khaleb and his approach to his craft it is clear he is both an innovator and a progressive musician. I liked this album and can see, in world music terms, why it is on the list. Loved his interpretation of "Imagine" and also "C'est Le Nuit" An interesting fact that old prog rocker Steve Hillage produced this album, was he jumping on Peter Gabriel's WOMAD bandwagon? I can see it's Value and glad I heard it.

Good album, I really enjoyed listening to it.

This one was wild. It was almost like some Bollywood film sounds but then a definite middle eastern sound. The blended into a pop or more modern sound. Very cool stuff.

Coś zupełnie innego i raczej kojarzy się z muzyką w wschodniej knajpie niż liście top albumów, ale jednocześnie jest ciekawa, bardzo rytmiczna i po prostu fajnie się tego słucha. Cover Imagine jest na tej płycie trochę zbędny.

Utmost surprised, wasn't expecting anything like that. After playing the first song I laughed for a solid minute. After that, I pulled myself together and listened more carefully, which turned out to be a good decision. Kenza is fun, full of Arabic tones and influences, which isn't something I've known before. Fresh and enjoyable, but I'll treat this as a quirky novelty.

Kenza is a fun departure from the more traditional, more obvious albums we've had so far. It's funky, it's fun, and it is repetetive, a fact not helped by me not understanding any of the lyrics. Having listened to it blindly, the random John Lenon in the middle really threw me on a loop too. That said, I cannot deny that it made me pay full attention again, and the remaining songs were good enough to hold it... the vibes were good, at the end of the day, and really does anyone need more?

There are pretty good songs on this. Melha might be my favorite. Sadly, I had to listed to this on YouTube with its stupid ads all the time, in a not-so-great quality. But better than nothing, I guess.

Música étnica árabe.

Really liked this, but could have done without the cover of Imagine.

Well this was unexpectedly good… was hard to find it to listen to but once I did was rewarded with a very eclectic album - and a very odd but pleasant rendition of Lennon’s Imagine.

Good disc.

Khaled s'en sort extrêmement bien, son album d'1h20 représentant un obstacle majeur à l'écoute de Napalm Death. En effet, malgré cela il réussit à obtenir la note de 4/5. Une belle performance pour une telle durée de baragouinage arabe.

Interesting, so yeah, I am of the incorrect culture to know this guy, or anything much about Rai in general. So going in more or less blind, it's a lot of fun, a lot of variety of styles (funk, samba, samba accordian, sir?) so you're never bored. Do skip over the cover of Imagine though as that is an abomination. Track 3, man, really? Do you want people to listen to your long long record, or not? The persevering explorer however will be rewarded with a good time. I could do without a second soft rock version of C'est la nuit though.

This album was a bit difficult to find, and even when I found it on Youtube, the track listing did not match the European or American releases. Nevertheless, I believe I got enough of the album to give it a rating. I am not familiar at all with Raï music, but after some reading, it seems as though it has a social justice element to it and addresses themes of colonization and disease. The music itself takes a western song structure form, but the vocal delivery is very unique and one I really like. The use of western instruments such as the sweeping punctuated strings along with Algerian instruments is really interesting and makes for listening that sounds familiar and new at the same time. It's always good to challenge your assumptions about what music should be and this album certainly does that for me.

Rating: 7/10

Some bangers on here. But too long for me

Cool stuff, Algerian singer with a great voice.

Pour etre franc, je trouve ca juste trop bon. Jj goldman a la realisation. 4.85

Beautiful

Pretty damn fun.

Finding Kenza on streaming services proved elusive, so I listened to Khaled's self titled album from 1991. It's around fifty minutes of hip-hop and dance infused Arabian music that leaves no stone unturned in regards to listenable grooves that are provided. Favorite songs include Didi, Ragda, El Ghathi, Braya and Ne m'en voulez pas.

Árabe. Pop

I really didn’t know what to expect with this, as I’ve never listened to raï music before and almost exclusively listen to music in English, but this was really fun! Such an enjoyable vibe, and put me in a great mood.

Mizmar meets accordion. An upbeat mix of Arabic, French and all sorts of other influences. It has enough 'western' elements to be instantly catchy and accessible, but still sounds unfamiliar and interesting. Above all it sounds joyful. It brightened up my drive to work. Rating: 3.5/5 Playlist track: Aâlach Tloumouni Date listened: 26/01/23

Pleasant music, didn't need 80 minutes of it

I was surprised by the creative mix of Jazz and Funk he used with the northern African elements. Especially the second half of the album got me. Unexpected!

Nicely done once again, 1001 Albums Project: introducing me to yet another artist, album, and style I probably would not otherwise encounter. I really like this album. So many of the elements are different from what my ear typically hears musically, particularly the main components like harmony, rhythm, and melody, so it's wonderful to enjoy the way it contrasts with most music I've heard. There is also a solid sense of soul and emotion in the performance of each track. Khaled is so good! Thank you, 1001 Albums, for opening my mind and listening ears so beautifully.

My co-judge & went through a Rai phase in the 90s and, with JG and his sleeping wife, saw Khaled live at the Danforth Music Hall. Since then he keeps popping up. I’ve watched him sing "Didi" the at the World Cup opening ceremonies in South Africa and I listened many times to his song "C'est La Vie", which seems to have replaced “Hands Up” as the Club Med anthem. It didn’t take Khaled long to incorporate funk & soul and every other world music style into the mix, which was disappointing, but that’s what you need to do to sell 80 million albums, I guess. This album gets off to a shaky start. I’m not against the idea of a duet with a Bhangra singer, but the contrast of vocal styles is jarring, especially so early in the album. "C'est la nuit" is a stinker, and then (yikes) he does a version of “Imagine”! But the schlock is front-end loaded. The most played track, “Trigue Lycee” is more classic Rai, as is “Mele H’Biti”, and though it would have been nice if a few of his signature tunes were on the album, but you must be careful of what you wish for. Between a 3 and 4 for me.

The first two songs sizzle and the second song is one of his best. These are followed by a simple ballad that is hard to really get onto when you don't understand the language. Khald's version of Imagine doesn't add much to the excellent song - except of course for Arabic lyrics. I guess songs like this need to form part of the playlist for pop stars from any country. With Trigue Lycee they return to form. It's good to see some Arabic artists making the cut on the 1001

Bonus points for representing North Africa! This was a quite enjoyable blend of a variety of styles.

I enjoyed this one quite a bit despite the language barrier. The music was engaging and easy to listen to. I don’t think I’d listen to this regularly , but it was a unique experience that I wont forget.

El rei de la música raï imposant la seva vigència a finals dels 90, després que altres estrelles del moviment com Rachid Taha fessin seva la década. Sense ser un aficionat al génere, intueixo que ho aconsegueix, perquè 'Kenza' és un disc monumental, amb grans cançons que parteixen del raï per incorporar altres sons, i que demostren que Khaled és un personatge únic, molt vàlid per arribar a gustos més occidentals. El gran tema se suposa que és 'Trigue Lyceé', però per mi 'C'Est La Nuit' i la increïble versió d''Imagine' s'emporten el premi. Un pél massa llarg però una porta d'entrada immillorable al món del raï pop de Khaled

Did not expect this from this list 3 2 And did not expect to like it as much as I did. 4

It's hard to rate what's hard to find, but having tracked it down that one can say, definitively, that it's both enjoyable and just exotic enough to suit what one wants from what we used to call world music. One can't say whether or not this is a meaningful updating of Rai, though one feels super The "Imagine" cover is, let's be honest, pretty unfortunate, but bonus points for having his heart in the right place, considering his audience and what was going on in the world at the time. The balance swings and sidles likably. Rounding up perhaps for reasons of lifetime achievement, but also for reasons of international relations (because one of course considers oneself a citizen of the world) and it is worth hearing more musics from more cultures and languages.

3.5

My first introduction to an Algerian artist, this sounds like a great sample of pop influences into this music. The Imagine cover borders on cringe and delight. Quine El Harba sounds so happy. Ya Aachkou is a good one. E'dir E'sseba has a solid, disco influenced beat. Great album.

I remember nothing from it

A solid album from Algeria, featuring melodies (and instrumentation) of North Africa and the middle East fused with modern production, giving it a vibrant pop sheen. The cover of Imagine is a bit out of place, mind you.

Oh man. I had no idea what to expect. It was lovely. You can feel Khaled's passion in every song. Beautiful instrumentation with both eastern and western influence. Lyrics in 3 different languages makes it fresh and insightful. Very much enjoyed this.

This is definitely not something I hear every day: Algerian Raï with Western pop and electronic elements. I quite liked it though. It's approachable and familiar enough to appeal to a Western audience - I liked the almost DnB-esque beat on Mele H'Bibti. However I feel it does suffer from some of the usual cheesiness of 90's pop music at points. Despite that it was a fun listen, even if it's another album I don't understand a word of. Also I thought the Imagine cover was pretty nice. Fight me. Favourite: Trigue Lycee

According to the 1001 song generator, my highest rated genre is “world”. Despite that seeming a bit broad, I do seem to enjoy the mystery that comes with not understanding the lyrics. I’ve had a few Indian albums so far and enjoyed them all, so I’m optimistic about this one today. Songs I already knew: none Favourites: El Harba Wine, Raba-Raba That album was banging! El Harba Wine genuinely had me bopping away while driving to an appointment and I loved it. I couldn’t tell you what it’s about, but it was such a fun and upbeat song. There are also slower songs such as the cover of John Lennon’s imagine which shows a softer side of Khaled’s voice. Genuinely, I had such a fun time listening to this. It has to be high rated if it makes me feel good.

Not on Spotify

7/10. I think I'd have liked this if it wasn't such rough production quality and having to track it down on youtube

Delightful! I enjoyed most of the tracks on this album. I don't understand the lyrics, but the language of the music shines through. It's a neat combination of what in my Westerner ears hear as a traditional Middle-Eastern sound with a modern hip-hop track laid down to accompany it. I look forward to coming back to this album again!

NGL, first song intro slaps. Imagine cover in there too is clearly recognizable. Better than expected!

De va swäg

En Youtube.com

Aside from the Imagine cover, this is a really solid and fun listen

Yeah, I quite enjoyed this. Some songs I could do without, but on the whole, this was a mood booster. I don't think I'd listen to this kind of music all the time, but it's good to try new things sometimes.

Mildly obsessed with this now that I tracked it down on a youtube playlist. El Bab is a banger of a tune.

Quite listenable with some interesting rhythms.

Best ok, niet helemaal mijn ding, maar toch wat goede momenten.

Kenza -Khaled 1. Aâlach Tloumouni ❌ 2. El Harba Wine✅ 3. C'est la nuit ❌ 4. Imagine✅ 5. Trigue Lycee✅ 6. E'dir E'sseba✅ 7. Ya Aâchkou ✅ 8. Melha✅ 9. Raba-Raba✅ 10. El Bab ✅ 11. El Aâdyene" – 5:37 ✅ 12. Gouloulha-Dji" – 5:37 ✅ 13. Mele H'bibti" – 6:29 ✅ 14. Derwiche Tourneur" – 6:00 ✅ 15. Leïli C’Est La Nuit/Version Arabe ✅ Top 3 (N/A)