The Sounds

The Narcicyst

I have officially discovered probably my favorite thing so far in Amman. The coffee is great, the desserts are amazing, the history is remarkable but this past weekend my friends and I stumbled on some incredible music at a cafe. We heard about some DJ playing a show at Taj Mall for free, and anything that says FREE will instantly attract college students. So we went to check it out, and it ended up being a DJ playing beats and a rapper named Fara3 (translation of his name is a little odd, but that's the best I can do). He is a young Egyptian guy, and all of his music has a very strong political message to it. As he was rapping I was trying my hardest to pick out any words I could, and among them were themes of: freedom, Egypt, revolution, Democracy, youth, and Ban Ki Moon (yes, the lovely Secretary General  of the United Nations himself). Basically, anyone who raps with such passion for politics instantly wins my heart.
My friends and I all bought his latest mixtape to share, and I am an absolute fan. If anyone is interested, the link to his facebook page can be found here:
https://www.facebook.com/A5ook.El.Far3i
As well as the link to my favorite song of his so far, this has English too, so don't be scared off by the Arabic!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v9AcCUO4XPI

Following that awesome performance on Friday night, my program hosted a discussion today all about Hip Hop culture in the Middle East. This discussion was moderated by two local DJs, creatively named Arab MC's. One guy was wearing a Chicago Cubs flat-brim hat, and spoke decent English. The other referenced his favorite artists as Wu Tang Clan, Tupac and Immortal Technique (whaaaaat, Immortal Tech is my favorite, so I instantly loved this guy). The fact that they don't even have any local artists to reference is proof of how new this scene is in Amman. They showed a short documentary on what the hip hop scene looks like in the Middle East, and it was really interesting. Essentially the hip hop culture, of course, was imported from America and Europe primarily, and it is solely a youth movement here. The first guy (forgot his name already) said it really picked up within the last decade. Hip hop and rap music, along with break dancing and graffiti are all growing trends here as forms of self-expression for youth.
As the documentary showed a few artists talking about where their inspiration comes from and why they love the music that they do, I was struck by a profound respect for these guys. For most of my life I was turned off by hip hop in America because the 'main stream' of the genre is largely dominated by stuff I am not super fond of, and found really shallow. It was only after I discovered artists with powerful social and political messages that I fell in love with the genre. But here, hip hop is almost entirely an outlet for social and political grievances. It is a representation of the plight of Palestinians whose homes have been stripped from them, or the youth of Cairo who are seeing their country through a tumoultous time and an uncertain future. It is tiny group of young men who just love the beats of American hip hop, and then blend their culture in with it. Their identity is the ultimate basis of their music. One artist is Syrian but raised in American, and his Syrian identity informs his entire musical/lyrical style. Identity is absolutely essential in this music.
I also fell in love with this music so quickly because of the inherent poetic qualities of the Arabic language. Arabic, in general, just seems to flow a lot better, and prettier, than English. It is also a culture that has always been incredibly obsessed with, and appreciative of poetry. Even these young artists reference the lines or themes of old old old poets in their songs, and give nod to the old poetic style. That's something that is obvious in their lyricism (when I can translate it) and the flow of their rhymes.
Along with the growth of this hip hop movement, graffiti is breaking out as a form of political expression as well. I see words spraypainted around Amman, but I have yet to see any elaborate tagging. But it is something I will definitely be keeping my eyes out for.
So while this is only a small niche of Middle Eastern culture, it is something that I am really really interested in. It's also an important part of M.E. culture now because it is made up of the youth! It is something that is picking up steam, gaining credibility and recognition, and making itself known throughout the region, as well as globally.
Along with the first facebook page I posted, I have included a couple more artists:
This fella' is INCREDIBLY intelligent, with a Masters degree. He identifies as a an Arab/Canadian essentially. He also serves as one of the strongest voices of the Arab hip hop movement. He is highly present in the media through both interviews, articles, and has even tought classes about Middle Eastern history and the creation of the hip hop movement there. He does an incredible job of blending his cultures in this video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ISHZQJdeSw

And finally, the FB link to the Arab MC's page:
https://www.facebook.com/arabmcs

Even if you don't really care much for hip hop, I REALLY encourage you to check out any of these guys. They all have very unique but interesting stories, blending their view of their changing culture with an American style.

And because no blog post is complete without pictures, here are a few unrelated to this post, but of my week!

A gate I pass my by house every day, looking out onto the city. 

Can't get enough of this pup