What is Raï ?

Raï is a style of music that originated in the coastal city of Oran in Algeria, North Africa. The style of music is a type of folk music that has gained popularity in Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, France and India and a number of other countries which have communities of people from North African countries.

While Raï originates in North Africa, it mixes a number of African and Middle Eastern styles along with some European influences. Much of the European influence comes the French and Spanish. The French influence comes from Algeria being ruled by the French in the past and in part due to many Algerian musicians living in France. The Spanish influence comes from Spain being quite close to North Africa and many years ago, the Moors from North Africa took over much of Spain.