At the start of summer 2026, the second season of "Des refrains pour l’Histoire" returns to RFI Musique's airwaves, and the opening episode focuses on "Ya Rayah", the song that has resonated with generations of Algerian exiles in France. This track, born in the narrow streets of the Barbès district, embodies the pain of departure and the hope of return, reminding us that music can become an Ariadne's thread for a wandering community.
We are in Paris, early 1970s, in one of the cafés of the Barbès neighbourhood where Algerian workers gather. They play cards, lottery, exchange news from home. Occasionally a musician appears: Dahmane El Harrachi, mandole in hand, accustomed to writing songs about the everyday lives of these immigrant laborers.
El Harrachi, born in Oran in 1926, drew the material for his melodies from migrants' lives. His deep voice, carried by the mandole, narrates long construction hours, family separations, and dreams of a distant land. "Ya Rayah" stands out with its plaintive refrain, where the traveler addresses death or flight, questioning the meaning of uprooting.
The lyrics, simple yet loaded, speak of departure ("Ya rayah, ya rayah, wla wla…") as a call to freedom and resilience. This duality found an immediate echo among Algerians settled in Paris, turning the song into a collective cry, an identity marker that transcended the neighbourhood's borders to touch the entire North‑African diaspora.
For the Cameroonian reader, the journey of "Ya Rayah" reminds that exile is not an isolated phenomenon. Cameroonian migrants who arrive in European metropolises experience similar realities: precarious work, longing for home, and a need for a song that records their story. The song thus becomes a mirror in which every African diaspora can see itself, strengthening the sense of belonging to a broader community.
This power of music to freeze collective memory is not new. From Congolese rumba to Senegalese griot chants, melodies have always served as living chronicles. "Ya Rayah" fits within this tradition, offering today's young Africans immediate access to a page of history without having to turn to school textbooks.
As digital platforms multiply voices, it is crucial to preserve these refrains that tell migrants' struggles and hopes. RFI Musique, by reviving "Des refrains pour l’Histoire", provides a bridge between past and present, inviting every listener to listen, share, and keep memory alive. The future of African culture depends on recognizing these songs that, like beacons, guide wandering souls.
