Aezaddy Layli (2024)
During the 17th century, a pirate republic on Morocco's coast inspired fear across the region—and even as far as Europe. It's estimated that Barbary pirates abducted a million white Europeans from coastal regions as well as ships and sold them into slavery in North Africa. One of the rare accounts documenting this obscure period of history is found in the autobiography of Thomas Pellow. Captured from a ship at the tender age of eleven, Pellow endured 23 years of enslavement in Morocco. For the most part, he served under Sultan Mulay Ismail, whose dynasty continues to reign over the country to this day. In today's Morocco, the legacy of the once-renowned pirate republic lives on in the city of Salé, a city neighboring the capital Rabat. While Salé might not have the cachet of the Imperial cities of Morocco—the modern port city of Casablanca, or Tangier, the gateway to Europe—the city remains a source of political and cultural influence. One of its contemporary influencers is Aezaddy, whose Arab dembow pop is gaining momentum across North Africa and beyond. Our fave: "Layli".
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