Hamid El Kasri

His charisma, powerful voice and mastery of the Guembri instrument make him his trademark, recognized and respected by all his contemporary fellow musicians. Maâlem Hamid El Kasri is one of the best Gnawa artist when it comes to combining genres. He can effortlessly improvise with his guembri on jazz, afro-beat, reggae, rock, qawali and other music styles.

Hamid El Kasri was born in Ksar El Kebir, after which his last name - a stage name - is named: it simply means ‘from Ksar El Kebir’. Gnawa was not in the family, but Hamid grew up surrounded by the Gnawa culture. He looked up to his grandmother’s husband, an old slave of Sudanese origin, who taught him much about the magical instrument that only true grandmasters are allowed to touch: the guembri.