Idir
Encyclopedia
Hamid Cheriet better known by his stage name
Idir (in Kabyle language
Yidir) (b. 1949 in Aït Lahcène, Algeria) is an Algeria
n musician
of Berber
origin.
, a Berber
village in Haute-Kabylie
. This farmer's son started studying Geology and was destined for a career in the petroleum industry before his rise to stardom. Idir has been the ambassador of the Kabyle
culture, especially the Kabyle music, with only his vocals and acoustic guitar. Idir has always used his status to claim his Berber (Amazigh) identity. His first album A Vava Inouva
came out in 1976, and the song "A Vava Inouva
" was translated into seven languages. After notable success, Idir wrote and recorded his second album Ay Arrac Negh (meaning To our children) in 1979.
Idir restarted his career again with the release of a compilation in 1991 of seventeen songs from his first two albums "A Vava Inouva" and "Ay Arrac Negh".
In 1993, a new album Les Chasseurs de lumières (meaning the hunters of lights) appeared on the Blue Silver label. "Les Chasseurs de lumières" is about (his) predilection, love, freedom and exile (which he had known since he moved to the Paris region in 1975). The acoustic guitar gives to the songs of this album a touch of modernism. We can also hear the voice of the Breton singer Alan Stivell in the duo "Isaltiyen".
Idir restarted his career once again with Identités in 1999, a tribute album which joined numerous artists together including Manu Chao
, Dan Ar Braz
, Maxime Le Forestier
, and Karen Matheson
for a "A Vava Inouva 2". Also included were Gnawa Diffusion
, Zebda
, Gilles Servat
, Geoffrey Oryema
and the Orchestre National de Barbès.
In 2008, he had a single with "Tout ce temps" written by Zaho
. He insisted that she joins in for the release of the single as a duo.
Idir is also the author of "A tulawin", a music that has been made famous by Manu Chao
's version named "Denia" (Poor Algeria), in his album Próxima Estación: Esperanza.
Idir has participated in many concerts supporting different causes. For example, on June 22, 1995, more than 6,000 people attended a concert for peace, freedom and tolerance performed by the singer and his friend Khaled
, initiators of the association "l'Algérie la vie" (Algeria the life). Idir also took part in the concert in memory of Matoub Lounes, the Kabyle singer who was assassinated in 1998.
Idir defended his national identity once again at "Le Zénith" in Paris in the spring of 2001 at the "21st Berber Spring", a celebration of Berber culture. And on July 8, he organised a special fund-raising concert to support the population in Kabylia when anti-government riots rocked the cradle of Berber culture in the summer of 2001. Idir was joined by a number of stars and thousands of Algerian and French fans who turned out to "Le Zénith" to support the population in Kabylia.
Stage name
A stage name, also called a showbiz name or screen name, is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers such as actors, wrestlers, comedians, and musicians.-Motivation to use a stage name:...
Idir (in Kabyle language
Kabyle language
Kabyle or Kabylian is a Berber language spoken by the Kabyle people north and northeast of Algeria. Estimates about the number of speakers range from 5 million to about 7 million speakers worldwide, the majority in Algeria.-Classification:The classification of Kabyle is Afro-Asiatic, Berber and...
Yidir) (b. 1949 in Aït Lahcène, Algeria) is an Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
n musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
of Berber
Berber people
Berbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. They are continuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa oasis, in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. Historically they spoke the Berber language or varieties of it, which together form a branch...
origin.
Biography
Idir was born in Aït LahcèneBeni-yenni
Beni Yenni is a town and commune in Tizi Ouzou Province in northern Algeria....
, a Berber
Berber people
Berbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. They are continuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa oasis, in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. Historically they spoke the Berber language or varieties of it, which together form a branch...
village in Haute-Kabylie
Kabylie
Kabylie or Kabylia , is a region in the north of Algeria.It is part of the Tell Atlas and is located at the edge of the Mediterranean Sea. Kabylia covers several provinces of Algeria: the whole of Tizi Ouzou and Bejaia , most of Bouira and parts of the wilayas of Bordj Bou Arreridj, Jijel,...
. This farmer's son started studying Geology and was destined for a career in the petroleum industry before his rise to stardom. Idir has been the ambassador of the Kabyle
Kabyle people
The Kabyle people are the largest homogeneous Algerian ethno-cultural and linguistical community and the largest nation in North Africa to be considered exclusively Berber. Their traditional homeland is Kabylie in the north of Algeria, one hundred miles east of Algiers...
culture, especially the Kabyle music, with only his vocals and acoustic guitar. Idir has always used his status to claim his Berber (Amazigh) identity. His first album A Vava Inouva
A Vava Inouva (album)
A Vava Inouva is the successful 1976 debut album by Idir, the Algerian singer of Kabyle music. It contains the big international hit of the same title "A Vava Inouva", also his debut single...
came out in 1976, and the song "A Vava Inouva
A Vava Inouva
"A Vava Inouva" is the title of the debut single of Idir, the Algerian singer of Kabyle music...
" was translated into seven languages. After notable success, Idir wrote and recorded his second album Ay Arrac Negh (meaning To our children) in 1979.
Idir restarted his career again with the release of a compilation in 1991 of seventeen songs from his first two albums "A Vava Inouva" and "Ay Arrac Negh".
In 1993, a new album Les Chasseurs de lumières (meaning the hunters of lights) appeared on the Blue Silver label. "Les Chasseurs de lumières" is about (his) predilection, love, freedom and exile (which he had known since he moved to the Paris region in 1975). The acoustic guitar gives to the songs of this album a touch of modernism. We can also hear the voice of the Breton singer Alan Stivell in the duo "Isaltiyen".
Idir restarted his career once again with Identités in 1999, a tribute album which joined numerous artists together including Manu Chao
Manu Chao
Manu Chao , is a French singer of Spanish roots . He sings in French, Spanish, English, Italian, Galician, Arabic and Portuguese and occasionally in other languages...
, Dan Ar Braz
Dan Ar Braz
Dan Ar Braz, born Daniel Le Bras , is a French guitarist and the founder of Héritage des Celtes.- The apprenticeship years :...
, Maxime Le Forestier
Maxime Le Forestier
Maxime Le Forestier is a French singer.He was born in Paris to an English father and a French mother who had lived in England. He had two older sisters, Anne and Catherine....
, and Karen Matheson
Karen Matheson
Karen Matheson OBE is a Scottish folk singer, who frequently sings in Scottish Gaelic. She is lead singer of the group Capercaillie and was a member of Dan Ar Braz's group L'Heritage des Celtes, with whom she often sang lead vocals, either alone or jointly with Elaine Morgan...
for a "A Vava Inouva 2". Also included were Gnawa Diffusion
Gnawa Diffusion
Gnawa Diffusion is a French and Algerian Gnawa music band based in Paris, France. The group's lead singer, Amazigh , is the son of the Algerian writer and poet Kateb Yacine. Although there is a strong Gnawa influence, the band is noted for its mix of reggae and roots music...
, Zebda
Zebda
Zebda is a French music group from Toulouse known for its political activism and its wide variety of musical styles. The group, which was formed in 1985, consisted of seven musicians of diverse nationalities, and the themes of much of their music involved political and social justice, the status...
, Gilles Servat
Gilles Servat
Gilles Servat is a French singer, born in Tarbes in southern France in 1945, into a family whose roots lay in the Nantes region of Brittany.He spent his early childhood around Nantes and Cholet. His music evoques the Isle of Groix, off the coast of Morbihan.His music was originally inspired by the...
, Geoffrey Oryema
Geoffrey Oryema
Geoffrey Oryema is an internationally renowned Ugandan musician. In 1977, at the age of 24 and at the height of Idi Amin's power, Oryema was smuggled across the Ugandan border in the trunk of a car, after the death of his father, Erinayo Wilson Oryema, who was a cabinet minister, beginning a life...
and the Orchestre National de Barbès.
In 2008, he had a single with "Tout ce temps" written by Zaho
Zaho
Zehira known by her artistic name Zaho is an Algerian R&B singer living in Montréal, Canada.-Biography:...
. He insisted that she joins in for the release of the single as a duo.
Idir is also the author of "A tulawin", a music that has been made famous by Manu Chao
Manu Chao
Manu Chao , is a French singer of Spanish roots . He sings in French, Spanish, English, Italian, Galician, Arabic and Portuguese and occasionally in other languages...
's version named "Denia" (Poor Algeria), in his album Próxima Estación: Esperanza.
Identity and Activism
Khaled (musician)
Khaled Hadj Ibrahim , better known as Khaled, is a raï singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist born in Sidi El Houari in Oran Province of Algeria...
, initiators of the association "l'Algérie la vie" (Algeria the life). Idir also took part in the concert in memory of Matoub Lounes, the Kabyle singer who was assassinated in 1998.
Idir defended his national identity once again at "Le Zénith" in Paris in the spring of 2001 at the "21st Berber Spring", a celebration of Berber culture. And on July 8, he organised a special fund-raising concert to support the population in Kabylia when anti-government riots rocked the cradle of Berber culture in the summer of 2001. Idir was joined by a number of stars and thousands of Algerian and French fans who turned out to "Le Zénith" to support the population in Kabylia.
Discography
- A Vava InouvaA Vava Inouva (album)A Vava Inouva is the successful 1976 debut album by Idir, the Algerian singer of Kabyle music. It contains the big international hit of the same title "A Vava Inouva", also his debut single...
(1976) - Ay Arrac Negh (1979)
- Les chasseurs de lumières (1993)
- Identités (1999)
- Deux Rives, un Rêve (2002)
- Entre scènes et terres (2005)
- La France des couleurs (2007)
Sources
- Idir – Interview & Concert, Al Hoceima 2010
- Idir Concert in Festival Twiza, tanger
- Idir Discography
- Idir Ssendu
- Idir Rif Cultural day ni ifrane, By Agraw
- Idir’s Rainbow Nation: Album of rap and R&B duets (New Album)