DUBAI: Nine of the most-acclaimed Arab rappers in the business have joined forces for a new release in praise of hip-hop. “Anghami Cypher,” so called because the track is funded and distributed by the eponymous regional music-streaming platform, is scheduled for release next week, along with a video featuring each of the featured artists, edited by visual artist Raed Al-Murish.
The featured rappers are Saudi Arabian MC Shiboba, Syrian-American rapper Omar Offendum, Syrian artist Bu Kolthoum, Algerian-Canadian singer-songwriter Meryem Saci, Iraqi-Canadian multimedia artist Narcy, Iraqi-British hip-hop legend Lowkey, Lebanese rapper Edd Abbass, Egyptian hip-hop artist Deeb, and Palestinian rap pioneer Muqata’a. The track was produced by Nawar “Sandhill” Al-Rufaie and also features scratching from Lebanon’s DJ Lethal Skillz.
It’s the first time so many of Arab hip-hop’s big names have collaborated on a track, and, according to Anghami’s press release, is “an effort to highlight the important role of hip-hop in the music scene in the Middle East.”
Hassane “Big Hass” Dennaoui, Anghami’s hip-hop editor, who curated the track, told Arab News that the only request made of the featured MCs was that they rap about what hip-hop means to them personally.
“It’s not cheesy though,” he added. “Everyone put their own spin on it. Each one’s verse is different. It’s not political at all, but it’s very powerful lyrically. These guys might not be super-famous in terms of their numbers on social media, but lyrically they’re amazing.”
Sandhill challenged the rappers to bring their A-game by producing an up-tempo beat that is notably quicker than the majority of hip-hop tracks. “A lot of rappers wouldn’t be able to do this,” Dennaoui said. “It’s at 105 beats-per-minute. I love that he’s challenging them.”
The feel of the track is, deliberately, old-school. “It’s a simple beat. It has that, underground, b-boy feel because I want dancers to get into the vibe of Arabic hip-hop,” Dennaoui said.
Dennaoui singles out Saci, as the only female MC on the track, for her contribution. “The eight other rappers, when they heard her verse, were super-impressed. She went in hard. I had to have a female on there, because, to me, a community without a female in it is not a community.”
The track demonstrates the depth of talent at work in the Arab hip-hop community, and just how wide its net has spread. “They’re all Arabs, but you’ve got rappers from the region and from the diaspora. And they all hold their own. Just saying their names in the same sentence gives me goose bumps. It was beautiful to get them all together.”
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