U.S. Regional and Local Music Scenes
Local Cairo, Egypt Music Scene
A lot of cultural activity in Cairo happens along the Nile River.
In recent years Egypt has experienced political uprising and those artists expressing
their views about it have found it necessary to stay out of the public eye as far
as live shows. One artist who has not been afraid to speak out is Noor Noor, who was
interviewed by NPR in June 2012. Some of the top artists in Cairo listed on
ReverbNation include JannaT, Sarah El Gohary, Vandetta-Band, Yasser Farouk and Remon Fayek.
The 80s took disco duplication to a more pronounced level of soundalike music that
fused into electronic dance music. Today much of the music played on English speaking
station NileFM has an American commercial dance/pop element. As electronic drums started to become more prominent in pop music and a defining
factor, other genres moved to a return of the unique expression ethic. But now that
Egypt has experienced revolution, the underground sound with political messages
is starting to surface in artists such as Cairokee. Other bands go against the grain
by mixing Arabic traditions with American sounds, such as Wust El Balad.
An emerging
underground electronic dance music of working class communities is known as electro-sha'bi.
This fast tempo chanting music has actually been around for awhile, but was mostly played at weddings
and private parties. Sha'bi, which combines electronic music with hip hop and
dub step with social messages, is finally getting played on the radio.
Assembly line pop music throughout history has mainly been contrived by a few corporations
who get to control the global music scene. That's why it's important for the indie
music revolution of Cairo to be nurtured by people who care about the future of music. The
result has been an explosion of online music that provides a wide selection of
alternatives to the cookie cutter sound on the charts. No longer does a person have
to sit through 15 terrible songs to hear one good song. You still need to create
your own playlists in iTunes or some other platform that gives you musical
control, but that's a good thing.
Songwriters, thanks to sites like ReverbNation, can now craft songs for their
region and the world at the same time. Organic development of Cairo music is
preserved and maximized when artists stay true to their roots. The idea that a
homegrown sound can have international appeal is new to the human experience. The
internet is the vehicle to give any type of new music authenticity and permission
to reach a global audience. It's up to artists to create new sounds and get the
word out about their music through social media and other interactive channels.
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