| K2Rhym | |
| Birth Name: | Karim Gharbi |
| Birth Date: | 14 October 1980 |
| Birth Place: | Tunis, Tunisia |
| Years Active: | 2005–2024 |
Karim Gharbi (born 14 October 1980), better known by his stage name K2Rhym, is a Tunisian rapper, producer and politician.
Born on 14 October 1980, Karim Gharbi lived in Tunis, Tunisia until the age of fifteen, before leaving for France and settling in Saint-Denis. There he became a rapper and then a producer. Having become popular, he has 2.4 million subscribers on Facebook, 1.5 million on Instagram and 100,000 on YouTube.[1] Particularly popular in the Middle East, he signed to EMI France and then Virgin Records Middle East.[2] He was named best Middle Eastern artist at the 2012 MTV Video Music Awards and won the award for best Middle Eastern rapper in 2015. He then hosted the show Urban fen on Hannibal TV.
Breaking away from his bad boy image, he gave himself an image of piety, swapped his extravagant clothing for a suit and tie, and entered politics in 2019.[3] From 2020, he engaged in charitable actions such as renovating schools, taking care of children from the association La Voix de l'enfant, donating medical equipment and surgical masks to hospitals, and donating sheep for Eid al-Adha.[4] His actions earned him comparisons to businessman Nabil Karoui who carried out charitable actions before entering politics. In January 2021, he claimed to have reached an agreement with China to supply Tunisia with COVID-19 vaccine, which the Chinese embassy denied.[5]
As he announced his candidacy for the 2024 Tunisian presidential election, he claimed to have been prevented from running because the authorities refused to provide him with a copy of his criminal record.[6] He was then sentenced to one year in prison and declared ineligible for life for buying sponsorships.[7]
He was married to Nesrine Ben Ali, the daughter of former Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, between January and October 2019,[8] after making their relationship official in December 2018.[9]
Studio albums