OMMA in its Fourth Edition: The Support for Young Talents

The Oulad Mogador Music Action (OMMA) project is back for its fourth edition. Born in 2015, OMMA is aimed at young musical groups in the Essaouira region. Under this project, they benefit from training in music professions in the framework of workshops supervised by professionals, the recording of a song as well as the opportunity to perform in concerts. The objectives are to stimulate the creativity of young talents, give them more visibility and help them to improve their musical skills.

National commitment Launched in November 2019, the call for applications has attracted the interest of dozens of groups and musical formations from Essaouira, Agadir, Khemisset, Casablanca and Marrakech.

These entries were then submitted to the appreciation of a jury of music professionals. To elect this year’s prize-winning bands, the jury based itself on various criteria, including the originality of the compositions, the quality of the production, the artistic level and the stage performance.

At the end of the jury’s discussions, two “Gnaoua fusion” style groups were finally selected: Meriem & Band and Khmissa.

Originally from Essaouira, the group Meriem & Band is inspired by the culture and musical heritage of its hometown to mix them with more modern rhythms and tones.

The Khmissa group comes from Khemisset. It is composed of 7 musicians who are fans of fusion between several styles: reggae, rock, jazz, etc… The group has already performed on a few stages including those of the Jawhara and Khatwa festivals.

For a week, from February 19 to 26, ten music professionals will lead workshops for the benefit of the two selected bands. They will benefit from advice and guidance in the fields of composition, writing, scenography, recording, communication, copyright, technical aspects (balance, technical data sheet, etc.), pre-production, etc.

At the end of this artistic residency, Meriem & Band and Khmissa will each record a track to then perform in Casablanca and Rabat in the first part of concerts of great Gnaoua maâlems according to the following program:

– Abdelkbir Merchane, February 27th at the Renaissance in Rabat – Smaël Rahil, February 28th at the Boultek in Casablanca – Omar Hayat, February 29th at the Backstage in Casablanca.

The committed ecosystem “Ouled Mogador Music Action” (OMMA) is an initiative of the Gnaoua and World Music Festival, produced and organized by A3 Communication. Aware of the importance of a general mobilization to reveal and support the talents of tomorrow, the OMMA project has forged several partnerships with leading cultural actors and professionals of the stage and music. These include the AEC L’Boulvart (Boultek), the Abdelaziz and Touria Tazi Foundation (L’Uzine), and the Hiba Foundation. The partners share their expertise, infrastructure, teams and professionalism. They share their knowledge and experience to best support young national talents. The OMMA project is also supported by the Yerma Gnaoua Association, co-organizer of the Gnaoua and World Music Festival of Essaouira, which has been campaigning since its creation for the recognition of the art of the Gnaoua and has worked for the inscription of the Art of the Gnaoua in UNESCO’s intangible cultural heritage.