TIF: The new voice of Algerian rap in France

Toufik Bouhraoua, better known by his stage name TIF, is an artist who embodies the bridge between two worlds: the Algeria of his childhood and the France of his musical ambitions. Born on May 23, 1996 in El Hammamet, in the northwest suburbs of Algiers, TIF grew up in social housing in Bab El Oued, surrounded by his two brothers, with a father who was an architect for an oil company and a mother who was a primary school teacher.

Very early on, TIF was nicknamed “Tifou” by those close to him, an affectionate diminutive which would become his stage name. He discovered rap at the age of 14 and quickly became passionate about this form of expression. After obtaining his baccalaureate, he left Algeria at the age of 18 to settle in Lyon, France. Officially, he is there to pursue studies at EM Lyon Business School, but his real goal is to break into music.

In 2012, still under the pseudonym Mister Tif, he shared a first mixtape of nine tracks on SoundCloud. He also participates in various competitions, including that of La Fouine, where he remixes the song "Paname Boss" into "Alger Boss". His beginnings were marked by numerous singles and freestyles on YouTube, where he began to make a place for himself in the rap scene.

The Ascension with "3iniya"

After spending five years in Lyon, TIF moved to Paris in 2019, determined to give new impetus to his career. He works at Chanel to finance his musical projects. That same year, he released the song "3iniya" (meaning "my eyes" in French), a song that marked a turning point in his career. The clip, shot in Algiers, exceeded 700,000 views in a few months and reached one million in December 2023. It was a real renewal for TIF, which then decided to start from scratch on YouTube.

In 2021, Younès Boucif, actor and rapper, discovered “3iniya” and was impressed by TIF’s talent. With his brother, he became the manager of TIF and together they founded the label Houma Sweet Houma (HSH). This label, whose name means “my sweet neighborhood” in Arabic, becomes the creative home of TIF.

After a break of more than 30 months, TIF returns to the forefront in February 2022 with the song “Emoji DZ”. In March, he was elected “rapper of the week” by Raplume. His first EP, entitled "Houma Sweet Houma", will be released in May 2022. This eight-track project explores themes dear to TIF: nostalgia for Algeria, his journey in France, and the feeling of exile. The criticism is unanimous: TIF has managed to create a rich and authentic musical panorama.

The First Album: "1.6"

In March 2023, TIF unveils its first album, “1.6”. The title refers to version 1.6 of the game Counter-Strike, a childhood memory, but also to the telephone code of the wilaya of Algiers. This ten-track project accumulates nearly 1.6 million streams in one month, placing TIF as a rising figure in French-speaking rap. Mehdi Maïzi describes TIF as a “superstar in the making”.

In May 2024, TIF is committed to Palestine by organizing a solidarity concert at the Zénith in Paris, raising more than 100,000 euros for the NGO Medical Aid for Palestinians. Also in May, he recorded the song "Nothing Personal" for Colors, dedicated to his "brothers and sisters in Palestine". This performance has 1.6 million views on Instagram in less than 48 hours.