Monsif

MONSIF was born in Safi - a city on the Atlantic coast of Morocco.



MONSIF is the fruit of a marriage between a West African roots' mother and a Moroccan father. These mixed origins shaped his artist sensitivity.



When he was a child, he discovered Gnawa music (a mixture between black African and Morocco rhythms). As a teenager, his whole attention was directed to Reggae, a musical style that particularily charmed him.



Jamaican music and its real masters (Bob Marley, Burning Spear, .) as well as mixes from Alpha Blondy touched him and pushed him not only to sing Reggae music, but also to write it.



He formed a Reggae band in the middle of the 90's and began to perform his first concerts. Later on, MONSIF started a solo career.



In 1999, he launched his very first album „Baraka", and he went on with his performances on stage.



In 2001, he plays a series of successful concerts – especially the unforgettable „New Morning".



His latest album „Exode" is a harmonious mixture of rhythms produced with Mad Professor at the Ariwa studios in London. With his modern and original Reggae, MONSIF will certainly keep on attracting fans of mixed music with both Jamaican vibrations and Arab-African melodies.



Driven by her instinct and affinity to this type of music, Nicky Zimmer (ODA Digital Records) discovers Monsif in summer 2009.



It is her heart's desire to release a combination of electronic music and Reggae/Tribal to connect the two worlds in this way.



This production creates a unique friction between the different musical influences from the UK, Germany and France-Afrique. Something special. Something new.



Monsif est né à Safi, une ville de la côte atlantique du Maroc, d'une
mère originaire d'Afrique de l'Ouest et d'un père marocain. Cet environnement métissé va déterminer sa sensibilité d'artiste.



Enfant il découvre la musique Gnawa (mélange de rythmes d'Afrique Noir et du Maghreb).



C'est durant son adolescence qu'il va prendre un virage Reggae : la découverte de la musique jamaïcaine et de ses maîtres (Bob Marley, Burning Spear, ) ainsi que du métissage opéré par Alpha, Blondy vont peu à peu l'inciter à composer.



Après avoir monté, un groupe de reggae au milieu des années 90 et fait ses premiers concerts, il se lance dans une carrière solo.
Il sort en 1999 son premier album : BARAKA.
Il poursuit sur sa lancée avec des prestations scéniques.



2001 apporte une série de concerts dont le mémorable
New Morning.



Son nouvel album intitulé EXODE est une savante mixture concoctée dans les studios Ariwa à Londres (avec un des maïtres incontestés de la dub, Mad Professor).



Avec son reggae moderne et original, Monsif ne va certainement pas cesser de séduire les amateurs des musiques métissées entre vibrations jamaïcaines et mélodies arabo-africaines.