Music
2025
Roufaida
Rotterdam is looking for community and fully embraces its Moroccan-Arab roots.
Digging in her parents' cassettes, a refresher course in Arabic, the books included. A few years ago, Roufaida decided not to meet the expectations of others anymore, but to be fearlessly herself. And when Roufaida is herself, she is from Rotterdam, an activist, a poet, and a folk musician in two languages – Arabic and English – with a touch of Riffian from old tapes. She draws from existing poetry, the stories of Riffian women, the situation in the Gaza Strip, and her own experiences as a Moroccan-Dutch person. Sometimes you hear a guembri or ney, sometimes beats and cassette samples. But her crisp indie pop rarely needs much to hit hard.
