Like any other country in the world, music is a vital component of regular day to day existence. Egypt has its own unique music that differentiates it from other Arab countries. There are pop songs, folk songs, songs that are associated with classes and even underground independent music. Even till now, traditional Bedouin music is still alive with some music and dance groups. Egyptian Music grew and escalated through hundreds of years until the 1950s and 1960s when the legend Umm Kulthum was at her peak. 

One of the most famous Egyptian artists around the world is Amr Diab, who is a multi-award-winning pop singer and songwriter, who has been musically active since 1983. He is the only Egyptian and Arab musician who has received 7 World Music Awards.

Another interesting artist is Mohammed Mounir, with a music career over three decades. He mixes the Egyptian oriental music with different western styles such as Jazz or Blues, such as this song.

He is known to the Egyptian fans as The King from his album ElMalek Howa ElMalek “The King is the King” back in 1988, which is also acclaimed with a play under the same name in which he also performed the soundtracks of the play.

Since the 2000s, underground impendent bands and artists started to rise, two of the most recognized are Wust El-Balad and Cairokee, who officially launched in 2003 but came to prominence with their revolutionary music after the Egyptian revolution in 2011.

Underground music takes a lot of different forms; as previously mentioned, Wust El-Balad and Cairokee play independent music with an Egyptian Rock Twist, other bands play more of an oriental music, such as Black Theama who are highly influenced by Nubian rhythms and mixing them with reggae, hip-hop and other African influence, helping to revive the Nubian music. This is an interesting song back from 2012, named Ensan or Human.

Another interesting trend that has been going on the past ten years, is Techno-Shaa’bi music, first, the word “Shaa’bi” literally translates to traditional music. It’s the music of a specific culture that has deep roots in a specific community and a timeframe, it’s also known as the music of the people that everyone is acquainted with, without knowing the exact composer. Techno-Shaa’bi, which also goes by the name of Marhaganat, (Which literally translated into Festival) is a mix between techno music and auto tuning, with some singing and rapping about various topics that interest the younger generation in Cairo, Egypt.

As defined in an interview, Marhaganat music is a mix between techno music that is made through computer and digital music applications, which also includes some vocals that are usually auto-tuned, and traditional folk music with its oriental beats and common usage of local words and lyrics that is associated with local Egyptian verses and proverbs, as well as combining rap between the verses. It is highly associated with lower-middle classes and could be widely heard in public transportation, weddings in lower classes and so on.

Every few years, different music trends are presented in Egyptian scene, some funk, and some win to the extent of international festivals. What is your favorite Egyptian musician?