Souad MassiSouad Massi

This concert, which took place a few months before the release of her latest album, "Oumniya" (Naïve) in 2019, shows Souad Massi exactly as we imagine her: humble, reserved, powerful and gentle. She is accompanied here by her sidekick Mehdi Dalil and his mandolin, along with a special guest, Rabah Khalfa and his derbouka in hand. The Algiers-born artist studied urban planning and became an engineer before having to leave the city, which was threatened by civil war in the '90s. From that point, she gave up her past career and devoted herself to singing. In time, it proved to be a brilliant decision - she made a name for herself at the Femmes d'Alger Festival at the Cabaret Sauvage in France, 1999. Rewarded at the Victoires de la musique in 2006 and winner of the Sacem World Music Grand Prix in 2011, Souad Massi honours us with her presence here on the stage of the Zurich Moods Club in 2018. Between Algerian folk and chaâbi, she tells us her stories, plunging us into deep sadness and then into ardent joy. With her powerful voice, Souad Massi has a simplicity that comforts the heart and soothes all ailments. --Anaïs Christidis Guillemard.