Photo by seenbymohcine
Emphasising her Moroccan identity and mirroring the cosmopolitanism of North Africa, self-taught singer, songwriter and producer Rita L’Oujdia has been creating soft and groovy beats since the release of her first EP ‘INK’ about seven years ago.
L’Oujdia’s new track ‘Parara’, produced by herself and Moroccan engineer Zak Loow, is a bouncy and jubilant expression of connection to and nostalgia for the homeland. The sound fuses a delicate and warm piano background with North African percussion in the style of Moroccan bendir, and a summery house rhythm that binds the whole track together.
The newly-released video for ‘Parara’ opens with the soothing ripples of the Atlantic Ocean kissing the shores, before cutting to a family sitting in their salon. Directed by L’Oujdia herself, the video features the singer and her actual friends, parents and brother. The tempo progresses as the group proceeds to sway in time, dancing the traditional Reggada, which originates from Oujda.
Born in Oujda, Morocco and raised between her birthplace and France, L’Oujda graduated at the age of 18 from the Conservatoire de Lyon. The 21-year-old’s repertoire is an eclectic mix of breezy Lo-Fi in releases such as ‘LFM’ and upbeat reggaeton like in ‘Trop Tard’, which have been sung in a wealth of languages including Moroccan Darija, French, Spanish, English and Portuguese - all of which this rising artist speaks.
