Chico Bouchikhi

Jalloul "Chico" Bouchikhi (Arabic: جلول البوشيخي; born 1954 in Arles) is a musician and a co-founder of the Gipsy Kings. He later left the Gipsy Kings and founded Chico & the Gypsies.[1]

Bouchikhi in 2012

Early life

Bouchikhi was born in Arles, France to a Moroccan father and an Algerian mother. He was married to Marthe Reyes, the daughter of José Reyes, the father of the Reyes sons, members of the group Gipsy Kings.

Personal life

His brother, Ahmed Bouchiki, was assassinated by Mossad agents in the Norwegian town of Lillehammer in July 1973 in the Lillehammer affair. Bouchikhi, a waiter, had been mistaken for Ali Hassan Salameh.[2]

He is also UNESCO's special envoy for peace,[3] and has held a major concert in Israel with his band. He has also played before Shimon Peres and Yasser Arafat during the Oslo Accords peace negotiations.[2]

In 2014 Bouchikhi visited Israel. When asked in an interview with The Independent about his decision to refuse to participate in a boycott of the country, he insisted that reconciliation was more important than holding grudges.[4]

Discography

As part of the Gipsy Kings

References
  1. "CHICO and The GYPSIES". esbb Agency. Archived from the original on 2011-07-23. Retrieved 2010-08-30.
  2. "Chico Bouchikhi, le king des gypsies". Maroc-hebdo.press.ma. Retrieved 2010-08-30.
  3. "UNESCO Celebrity Advocates congratulate the Director-General on his re-election". Retrieved 2010-08-30.
  4. "Gypsy Kings star Chico defies Israel boycott despite Mossad". The Independent. 2014-10-09. Retrieved 2022-04-07.
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