DJ Arafat

DJ Arafat along with Debordo Likufa at a stage show in Abidjan

DJ Arafat and his mother

Arafat was born as Ange Didier Houon on 26 January 1986.[3] He was the son of Tina Glamour, a popular singer, and the deceased musician and sound engineer Houon Pierre.[4][3] He started his music career in the early 2000s when he was a DJ in Yopougon, a night-life district in Abidjan.[3] He left for France to improve his career and even overstayed his visa. In 2005, he spent a month in detention as an undocumented migrant.[5]

The stage name Arafat refers to Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat; he stated that Lebanese friends in the Ivory Coast gave him the nickname because he was “hardcore”.[6]

He was considered one of the most popular African artists in Francophone countries around the world.[3] He became a star of his genre around 2009.[5]

He released 11 music albums primarily in the popular "Coupé-Décalé" dance music style,[3] in his career that spanned fifteen years.[5] BBC described him as the "king" of Coupé-Décalé, which means "cut and run", in Ivorian slang it means "to cheat someone and run away" and it began in the early 2000s during Ivory Coast's civil war.[7] The music incorporates fast percussion, deep bass and hip-hop-style vocals. Arafat became the symbol of the flashy well-dressed lifestyle which is associated with the music. His song Dosabado is one of his most popular hits. He liked motorcycles and also featured them in his recent hit 'Moto Moto' released in May.[7] He had multiple motorcycle accidents, one of which in 2009, was serious.[5] Ten years later in 2019 Arafat had a fatal motorcycle accident.[5]

Arafat later became popular in the Europe and the United States when some of the sports personalities popularized the dance steps of coupé-décalé genre.[3] "Dosabado", "Kpangor", "Zoropoto", "Enfant Beni" and "Moto, Moto" were some of his major hits.[8]

On 12 August 2019, Arafat died in hospital after a motorcycle accident in Abidjan, Ivory Coast.[9] His motorcycle was said to have collided with a car in the Angre neighborhood on Sunday, 11 August 2019. He was subsequently admitted to a hospital in Abidjan for a skull fracture before eventually dying at around 8:00 a.m. UTC on 12 August 2019.[7][10][11]

After the news of his death spread, on 12 August 2019 around 1,000 of his fans assembled in Cocody suburb near the hospital where he died and mourned his death chanting "Arafat cannot die". After his burial some fans exhumed his grave after a rumor sufficed that his body was given to cult members.[3][12] Police struggled to manage the crowd gathered in the area.[13] A crowd of his fans also gathered around his house singing some of his hits.[8] Maurice Kouakou Bandaman, the Ivorian Culture Minister condoled his death and a tribute was held in his honour.[3]

He was awarded the "best artist of the year" at the Coupé-Decalé Awards in 2016 and 2017.[7] He also won two WatsUp TV Africa Music Video Awards in 2016.[14]

• Official website