Taha Fahssi (Arabic: طه فحصي, born 3 August 1996), known by his stage name ElGrandeToto or Toto, is an Moroccan rapper, performing in Darija, French and English (usually mixing between them). Having started his career in 2016, ElGrandeToto quickly enjoyed great success, especially with his song Pablo (2017), which managed to propel him to the forefront of the Moroccan scene. In 2018, he released his first project, an EP entitled Illicit. In 2020, Fahssi lost his mother and released the song Mghayer in her tribute on 5 January 2021, which is now the most viewed music video on his YouTube channel with over 83 million views. In March 2021, Toto’s debut album “Caméléon” was ranked among the top 6 global album debuts worldwide by Spotify, an unprecedented achievement for any Arab singer. In the same year, the artist entered the Forbes list of music stars in the Arab world, which includes the 50 most successful singers and bands of 2021. As Morocco’s main sport is football, Toto has found a liking to it, being a supporter of Wydad AC (revealed in Salade Coco). On 12 May 2022 while performing at the Megarama Casablanca, ElGrandeToto received his first music recording certification from his collaboration with the Nigerian Afrobeats singer CKay on the remix of his 2021 hit song Love Nwantiti. It was certified diamond in France by the SNEP[8] with more than 15 million streams from premium accounts, making ElGrandeToto the first Moroccan artist performing in Darija to achieve a diamond certification in France. ElGrandeToto is currently under an exclusive license agreement with RCA Records, a division of Sony Music France. Toto’s management team includes Anissa Jalab, former manager of Damso, manager of Manal and head of Wagram Belgium. In October 2022, Taha Fahssi publicly apologized after sparking a controversy about cannabis consumption during a festival’s press conference in September 2022, where he defended his recreational use of the drug as following : “I smoke hash — so what? […] It does not mean I set a bad example”. Following these events, The rapper was taken into custody after complaints were filed by “three artists, a journalist, and a policeman”. An investigation is yet to be made by the authorities focusing on all his publications, digital content and statements “likely to contain elements punishable by law”.[14] Taha’s lawyer stated that his client should not be used as a tool to “settle political scores”. Later, most complaints were withdrawn, and the public prosecution office in Casablanca decided to release the rapper with a 20,000 MAD bail. Taha is yet to appear before the Ain Sebaa Court.[16] On 18 January 2023, A court in Casablanca sentenced Toto to serve an 8 month suspended prison sentence, in addition to paying a fine of MAD10,000. On July 20, 2023, a concert in Madrid turned controversial when El Grande Toto had a strong negative reaction to a fan’s act of cultural appreciation. According to a tradition in Morocco, fans typically express admiration for ‘Shickats,’ traditional dancers and performers, by tucking currency notes onto their clothing. However, when a fan performed this gesture by placing 20 euro notes onto El Grande Toto’s shirt, the rapper interpreted it as a humiliating act. In response, he launched into a tirade of vulgar language directed at the audience.
