Ahmed Soultan (, ; born June 17, 1978) is a Moroccan singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the leaders of the "Nayda" (new urban Moroccan scene). Ahmed Soultan is an Afro-Arabian soul artist whose music embodies cultural universality, blending languages and traditions in his work. His discography reflects this fusion: "Tolerance" (2005), is debut album, featuring the breakout single ''"Ya Salam"'' (sung in Arabic and English); "Code" (2009), is sophomore release, led by the multilingual track ''"Achkide"'' (combining

Berber Berber or Berbers may refer to: Ethnic group * Berbers, an ethnic group native to Northern Africa * Berber languages, a family of Afro-Asiatic languages Places * Berber, Sudan, a town on the Nile People with the surname * Ady Berber (1913–196 ...

and French). Through his music, Soultan bridges linguistic and cultural divides, making him a distinctive voice in contemporary Afro-Arabian soul.

Biography

With the success of his first single "Ya Salam", Ahmed Soultan reveals himself as the precursor of a new style he likes to name: the Afrobian Soul, for Afro-Arabian. His album ''Tolerance'' was given wide media coverage, so Ahmed Soultan soon became one of the figureheads of the "Nayda", the new Moroccan scene. After a second album, released in 2009, in which he asserts himself, his popularity in and over the Maghreb was confirmed. Singing in four languages (Amazigh, Arabic, English and French), he took part in many international musical events, including the Kora Awards in South Africa, the opening of a Tiken Jah Fakoli concert in Dakar, his contribution to the People Power song (beside Talib Kweli, Angelique Kidjo or Zap Mama ), Fez's Sacred Musics Festival, Marrakech's Moonfest, Casablanca Music Festival and many other European scenes (Barcelona, Amsterdam, Paris) He became involved in various projects : he wrote the original soundtrack of Rhimou, a successful sitcom broadcast in Morocco and more; he collaborated with the famous American singer Ne-Yo, on a song called "Amazing You"; in 2011, his song "Jokko" was nominated as best North African song and best African reggae song of the year. Still largely supported by the media, in Africa and the Arab World, his singles "Ya Salam " and "Koula Lila" accompanied the opening of MTV Arabia and were regularly played on Maghreb channels.

Early life

Soultan was born in Taroudant in the region of Souss-Massa-Drâa.

Career

In 2005, Soultan was invited to take part in the

Dakar Dakar ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Senegal, largest city of Senegal. The Departments of Senegal, department of Dakar has a population of 1,278,469, and the population of the Dakar metropolitan area was at 4.0 mill ...

International Festival of Film and was a supporting artist in a concert by Tiken Jah Fakoly. Also in 2005, Ahmed Soultan was invited to perform at the

Kora Awards The KORA All Africa Music Awards are music awards given annually for musical achievement in sub-Saharan Africa. The awards were founded in 1994 by Benin born businessman, Ernest Adjovi, after a discussion in Namibia with the country's President H ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

, to represent North Africa. The same year, he opened one of Tiken Jah Fakoly's concerts in Dakar. In 2007, Ahmed Soultan produced the soundtrack of a successful series broadcast in Morocco and the

Arab world The Arab world ( '), formally the Arab homeland ( '), also known as the Arab nation ( '), the Arabsphere, or the Arab states, comprises a large group of countries, mainly located in West Asia and North Africa. While the majority of people in ...

. In 2010, Ahmed Soultan appeared on "Amazing You" from

Ne-Yo Shaffer Chimere Smith (born October 18, 1979), known professionally as Ne-Yo ( ), is an American singer and songwriter. Regarded as a leading figure of Contemporary R&B#2000s, 2000s R&B music, he is the recipient of numerous accolades, includi ...

's album ''The Apprenticeship of Mr. Smith (The Birth of Ne-Yo)''. In 2011, his song "Jokko" ("The Link" in Wolof) was nominee for Best North African Song and Best African Reggae song of the year. In 2011, for the "Radiowaves Project" he was featured on "People Power" a song produced by Anthony Tidd ( The Roots, Talib Kweli) alongside Talib Kweli, Angélique Kidjo, Zap Mama, and Freshlyground to fight climate change in Africa and the world in general. He has performed at the "Casablanca Music Festival", the "Sacred Musics Festival" of Fes, the "Moonfest" of

Marrakech Marrakesh or Marrakech (; , ) is the fourth-largest city in Morocco. It is one of the four imperial cities of Morocco and is the capital of the Marrakesh–Safi Regions of Morocco, region. The city lies west of the foothills of the Atlas Mounta ...

, and at European venues in

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

and

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

. In 2012 he was nominee on the

2012 MTV Europe Music Awards The 2012 MTV EMAs (also known as the MTV Europe Music Awards) were held in Frankfurt, Germany, on 11 November 2012. This was the fifth time the awards had been held in Germany, and the second time Frankfurt had been the host city. On 17 August th ...

Frankfurt Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...

, on the category "Best Middle East Act" on "Best Middle East, Africa, India" on then "Best WorldWide Act".Ahmed Soultan
/ref> In 2013 he won "Best Pop Act" at the "Meditel Morocco Music Awards." At the 2013 MTV Europe Music Awards, he was MTV Best North Africa & Middle East (Won), MTV Best Africa/Middle East/India (Won) and MTV Worldwide Act (Nominee). Legendary George Clinton,

Femi Kuti Olufela Olufemi Anikulapo Kuti (born 16 June 1962), popularly known as Femi Kuti, is a Nigerian musician born in London and raised in Lagos. He is the eldest son of Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti and a grandchild of political campaigner, women's r ...

, Fred Wesley, Pee Wee Ellis and RZA are collaborating on MHNB (Music Has No Boundaries), his third album that was due be released in Spring 2014. The album was officially released on 23 January 2016 in Virgin Megastore and Carrefour Markets throughout Morocco, as well as international digital platforms

iTunes iTunes is a media player, media library, and mobile device management (MDM) utility developed by Apple. It is used to purchase, play, download and organize digital multimedia on personal computers running the macOS and Windows operating s ...

and

Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon (company), an American multinational technology company * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek myth ...

Discography

References

External links