Imarhan are Iyad Moussa Ben Abderahmane aka Sadam, Tahar Khaldi, Abdelkader Ourzig, Hicham Bouhasse and Haiballah Akhamouk. All born in Tamanrasset, Southern Algeria, a city where the Tuareg community of Northern Mali, Kel Tamashek people, ended their exile in the early 1990s, following the multiple struggles they have been experiencing since the 1960s.

Imarhan, meaning ʻthe ones I care aboutʼ, began to play together in around 2008. They have a sound that reflect their cultural and generational background; dry guitar riffs, pop melodies and panafrican rhythms which draw upon traditional Tuareg music, African ballads and modern pop and rock they have heard while growing up.

The voice of a new generation, Imarhan create a rare symbiosis of the ancient and modern and channeling a rich and varied wave of musical influences from Algeria, Sub Saharan Africa and the West, celebrating Tamashek stories of today.

Among the projects of Fondazione Fabbrica Europa developed within the Estate Fiorentina and consolidated over time since 2010, starting from the relationship with the Festival au Désert of Essakane (Timbuktu), the Festival au Désert Firenze involves some of the most interesting musicians and groups on the international scene, great masters and young musicians who have established themselves thanks to an energy that dialogues with the mastery of sounds and rhythms of the traditions of origin.

foto: Drabber Ouladheddar