Amazigh singer from the middle atlas Mountains, Omar Boutmazought is appealing for help as he continues treatment for throat cancer, a health crisis that he says has kept him away from work and the stage for about eighteen months.
The 62-year-old artist said the disease was not detected at an early stage. He has already undergone chemotherapy and still needs additional radiotherapy, scans, medication and medical tests. The illness has also affected his voice, making the appeal especially painful for an artist whose public life has been built around song.
Boutmazought, who lives in Khemisset, reportedly travels to the Moulay Abdallah hospital in Sale for treatment. Those trips have brought added transport costs at the same time that illness has cut into his income. He said help from friends has offered temporary relief, but is no longer enough to cover the burden of care and daily expenses.
The singer is asking Morocco’s Ministry of Culture to step in and support his treatment. Bladi noted that the ministry has previously assisted artists facing serious illness, including Amazigh singer Rais Ahmad Bizmaoun and Moroccan singer Khadija El Bidaouia.
Born in Khemisset in 1964, Boutmazought is associated with the Middle Atlas Amazigh song tradition and the loutar-based repertoire carried by artists such as Mohamed Rouicha, Mohamed Maghni and Hammou Oulyazid. Music-platform listings show that his recordings remain available to listeners, including recent releases distributed in 2025 and 2026.
His appeal points to a wider weakness in the cultural field. Many regional and Amazigh artists preserve living musical memory without the kind of security that can protect them when illness interrupts performance, travel and recording work. Boutmazought’s case is therefore both a personal medical appeal and a reminder that cultural heritage also depends on caring for the people who carry it.