The Moroccan singer Jaylann has stirred deep emotions in Morocco with her song and video “Ha Wlidi.” The song is a reworked version of a 1972 hit by the legendary Moroccan roots-pop band Lamchahab. The title translates “My Son,” and the original version was interpreted as a lament about the state of the Arab world in the early ‘70s, with a sense that history had passed it by. The gist was: “What has happened to us. What was lost along the way?”
No such downbeat messenging in Jaylann’s 2025 version. She dedicates the YouTube video as follows: THIS ONE IS FOR MY COUNTRY MOROCCO, AND FOR ALL MY MOROCCANS BROTHERS AND SISTERS ALL OVER THE WORLD.
The song’s imagery blooms with national pride for all things Moroccan. What was once a reflective brood, is now as boisterous, nationalistic rallying cry. And is it working? Well, it’s hard to argue with 32-million-plus YouTube plays since June of this year. And reportedly, this song is now played on radio stations, football stadiums and at virtually every wedding in the country.
What a difference half-a-century makes!
Here’s a TikTok post on the Lemchahab original.
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