Born in Batna (Algeria) to a Nigerian family, Guem has been playing traditional and trance music since his early childhood. When he was 16, he left Algeria for Paris, intending to become a professional football player. At that time, he was used to playing percussions in the cafés and other musical places in order to earn his living, but without thinking seriously he would become a professional musician.
On July the 14th 1966, he played with the band Le Moulin Rose for the national festival. That was his first stage experience. He was on stage with the band every weekend for a year. But his music/dance career really started in 1968 when he was taken on by the American Cultural Centre. There, he gave courses in percussion and dance - two inseparable arts. He also continued to seek out new percussion techniques from  everywhere around the world, particularly by learning the rhythms of the artists he admired by playing them on his knees during their shows! "One becomes a musician when one goes beyond his technique. But technique is essential."
   At this stage of his career, Guem played frequently with the great names of Jazz (Michel Portal, Steve Lacy) and of light music (Colette Magny, who introduced him to the label Chant du Monde in 1972).
    In 1973, he recorded his first album: ' Percussions Africaines '; and wider recognition came in 1978 with the album ' Guem & Zaka ', recorded with his students of the American Cultural Centre. From that period, one particular piece - Le Serpent - is remembered well, thanks to its re-recording in 1996 for the credits of the French TV show Ça se discute.
In 1999, ' Royal Dance ' was released by Le Chant du Monde. Today, Guem is asked to play everywhere in the world, and his percussion and dance courses are still highly popular.
   Guem brought back a lot of new rousing rhythms from his trips around the world. He is the sole percussionist in the world to master such a wide range of different rhythms, which makes him a unique musician.

   His music knows no frontier, no colour : "It belongs to everybody. Some people say rhythm is Black. I don’t agree. Each being has something to offer, and my aim is to awaken it".

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