An illustrious figure in Algerian chaâbi, Amar Aït Zaï, also known as Amar Ezzahi, was born in a village near Aïn El Hammam, in the Tizi-Ouzou region, on January 1, 1941. Author, composer and performer, he began his career as a self-taught musician in the early 1960s, under the encouragement of Cheikh Lahlou and Cheikh Kebaïli. Accompanied by Cheikh Kaddour Bachtobdji for almost two decades, he began recording a multitude of songs in 1968, released on 45s, albums and cassettes. The first of these were covered by Lili Boniche and Enrico Macias. He shot to fame in the 1970s, on radio and television, with songs such as "Sali Trache Qelbi" and "Mahajti B'dhya Chemaâ", the latter considered a chaâbi anthem. The following decade saw Amar Ezzahi continue to record festive refrains that spread across the country, such as "Ya Dif Allah", "Zennouba" and "Youm El Khmis". Although his output gradually declined, his popularity continued unabated. After a few years' absence, this discreet singer returned to the front of the stage in 1987, for a concert in Algiers. He returned to the stage only intermittently in the late 1990s, before disappearing for good. On November 30, 2016, he died in a hospital in Algiers, following a heart attack, at the age of 75. A tribute was paid to him in Algeria and with a concert at the Arab World Institute in Paris.
