Arabic hip hop
Encyclopedia
Arabic hip hop is hip hop music
and culture originating in the Arabic-speaking world. It is performed in Arabic
, and local Arabic dialects, English
, French
, Berber languages
(Tamazight). Like most artists of the genre, the artists from the Arab world are highly influenced by American
hip hop
.
Also considered part of Arabic hip hop are emcees of Arab origin in the Arab diaspora
including Europe
, North America
, and Australia
.
Arabic hip hop is played on radio stations and shown on TV programs, but live hip hop performances only began in the 1990s
. Many hip hop groups are still underground because their political views could lead to government censure
. Therefore, the Internet
has been a major outlet for most groups.
, based in L.A. and Miami-based DJ Khaled. American hip-hop music began to see popularity in the Arab World
in the early-to-mid 1990s. Northern African Arabs, mostly residing in France, the epi-center of European hip-hop, were the first to begin making the music that constitutes the Arabic hip-hop genre. For example, the Super Saian Crew and IAM
had Arabic members. This music, a product of the French banlieue’s beur and noir communities, was a blend of traditional American hip-hop, the French styles popular at the time, and Raï
, a popular music style from Northern Africa. French hip-hop rose to popularity partly because of Francophone radio broadcasting requirements, begun in 1994, that established quotas for all stations of 40% of daily broadcasts to be in French.
Groups began to emerge in Palestine in the mid-90s, including popular group DAM
. DJ Lethal Skillz was promoting new local groups “such as Aks El Seir” at around the same time. In Egypt, hip-hop was less popular, but a small buzz led to an emergent b-boy population. In 2004, the first hip-hop show took place there when the RZA, member of the Wu-Tang Clan, performed in the Siag Hotel in Cairo alongside Kinetic 9
of Killarmy, a Wu-Tang Clan
affiliate, Cilvarange (a Moroccan-Dutch, and the first Arab to get signed by an American rap group) and Saleh Edin, an Arab Moroccan rapper.
In 2006, Arabic hip-hop solidified its mainstream presence in the Arab World with Hip Hop Na
, a reality TV show on MTV Arabia
hosted by Fredwreck and Qusai, a Saudi Arabian Artist. Hip-hop, both Arabic and American, is followed and created to varying degrees in most of the countries of the Arab world, including where social and political restrictions make this difficult. For example, Saudi Arabia is home to the group Dark2Men, who competed in the HipHopNa reality show mentioned above. In addition, break dancing "has become a popular pastime in the kingdom".
It is difficult to establish numbers for albums sold or listenership by demographic in the Arab world due to the lack of reliable statistics. Furthermore, viewership of satellite TV in the Arab world cannot be accurately quantified. However, we can discern popularity through marketing techniques utilized by satellite television providers. According to a 2007 report, more than 85 percent of urban households in the Arab world have satellite television," a forum that has expanded to include music channels such as MTV Arabia which "[at the time] plan[ned] to offer a hefty dose of [mainly western] hip-hop and much of the same youth-lifestyle programming MTV beams across the U.S."
are the forebearers of the art form. Female hip-hop artists are involved in a number of outreach activities in the Arab World. For example, Malikah has been included in the Egyptian conference "Initiatives in Education, Science and Culture Towards Enhanced US-Muslim Countries Collaborations", where she performed as part of a series of events designed to address that topic. Female Arab Rappers also performed at "Home and Exile in Queer Experience", a conference organized by Aswat, "an organization for Arab lesbians with members in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza Strip".
, Majida al-Roumi, and Julia Boutros
, as well as a number of modern mainstream and underground hip-hop artists, and regional music styles from countries such as Jamaica. Arabic hip hop artists have used full Arabic orchestras in beat-making as well as beats inspired by traditional Arabic music styles.
Certain regional variations of the music, most notably French and Northern African styles, incorporate influences from the musical genre known as Raï
, "a form of folk music that originated in Oran, Algeria from Bedouin shepherds, mixed with Spanish, French, African and Arabic musical forms, which dates back to the 1930s." (Wikipedia, "Rai")
Much of the hip hop generated in the Arab World deals with a mix of social circumstance, such as poverty, violence, and drug-use, as well as political reality, insofar as this is possible given censorship. The hip hop of Palestine in particular has generated much interest in this respect and the music is considered a means of opposition. For example, the song "Meen Erhabe" by DAM aligns itself with opposition to the Israeli occupation, and was referred to critically as a "theme song for Hamas".
Outside of the Arab World, artists focus on many of the same types of issues, but there is a stronger focus on issues associated with immigration and living as ethnic minorities. In France, for example, much of the "socially critical" music focuses on "migration related problems such as discrimination, xenophobia, and the problematic identities of young people of foreign descent." Furthermore, these artists deal with the government enforced impetus for assimilation "coupled with the age-old stereotypes rooted in colonial references and the stigma of the marginalized banlieue
."
Arabic hip hop artists in the west, particularly Great Britain and North America, who also deal with racism and marginalization in their content, specifically mention an experience of "doubleness" - internal conflict between traditional and modern culture. For some rap and spoken word artists, hip hop is seen as being true to both, due both to the rich Arabic poetic history and to the utility of hip hop as a form of expression for marginalized or demonized communities. The poet Lawrence Joseph addresses the conflict explicitly in his poem "Sand Nigger". From British-Iraqi rapper Lowkey, who views his situation as further complicated by his dual eastern and western heritage (a conflict which plays heavily in his music):
The view of mainstream America towards the Arab population, domestically and worldwide, and military intervention in the MENA region factor prominently in Arab-American hip hop and other western forms. Certain artists from the Arab world approach the western viewpoint similarly, such as the Emirati group Desert Heat who rap in English specifically for the purpose of "educating" westerners on a realistic view of Arabic culture and history.
On the other extreme, Mohammed Kamel Mostafa, whose father Abu Hamza al-Masri is in prison on terrorism charges, uses hip-hop to express solidarity with groups such as Hizbollah and Hamas, as well as to glorify violent Jihad. His message is different from other opposition rappers who have gained popularity in the genre insofar as he explicitly establishes his credentials by referencing his military skill and ability to cause violence.
In religiously conservative Arab states, such as Saudi Arabia, "singing and dancing can be viewed as shameful," therefore enforcing somewhat of a social censorship (enforced as a "taboo") on hip-hop and other art forms. As of 2008, concerts and nightclubs were non-existent in the Kingdom, and local radio and TV played mainly Arabic pop music (all state enforced policies). Tamer Farhan, a member of the Saudi rap group Dark2Men that appeared on HipHopNa, said that rappers in Saudi Arabia are forced "underground because of the wrong impression people have of them". Even socially cautious acts are subject to censorship. This phenomenon is not restricted to Saudi Arabia however, as relatively liberal Kuwait joined them in banning the group Desert Heat's first album despite their "pro-Muslim" message and "cautious approach to religion, politics, and society".
However, hip-hop music, both Arabic and American, has managed to circumnavigate some of these restrictions. In addition to subversion via the internet or bootleg record sales, it seems that censorship inconsistencies and/or linguistic difficulty associated with translating hip-hop from English may account for some English language records making their way to cities where they would otherwise be banned. Abdullah Dahman of Desert Heat offers an example of west coast rapper Snoop Dogg
, whose records are available for purchase in Jiddah in Saudi Arabia. Another example, 2 Live Crew
's album "As Nasty as They Wanna Be
", released in 1989, made it by censors due to translational difficulty.
n hip hop has roots that lie in French hip hop
. Many French emcees originated from Africa
, and of those, most from Algeria
.
and Arabic Hip Hop
. Hip-hop artists in Egypt tried to gain national recognition in the late 1990s, but rap was not yet accepted as a viable form of music. Rappers built an underground hip-hop scene, which grew over time. The pioneering Egyptian rap crew was MTM formed in 1999 the first rap group to actually rap in Arabic. Egyptian rap has more recently become more heavily promoted in Egypt and The Middle East. Princess Emmanuelle a.k.a. EmpresS *1 in 2001 appeared in the Egyptian Hip-Hop scene, where there were no other females. She gained the title of "First Female Egyptian Rapper" in Egypt. Egyptian Underground rap is now growing rapidly, due to the feeling of injustice that mainly affects youths in the country.
The most famous groups were MTM
, MTM emerged with a music video called "Omy Mesafra", which some hip-hop elements but was still accepted by people as an Egyptian song and became quite popular. Other popular solo artists were Omar Boflot, MC Amin. Other famous rap bands or families is the Cairo City G'zz, members of this family only sing Gangsta Rap or Chicano Rap, it is a family based on the street life style that combines Latin, English, Arabic and even French in their tracks.
, mostly known for competing on MBC 4
's Arabs Got Talent.
Dutch
and Moroccan
artist Salah Edin
who performs his music in the Moroccan dialect Darija
.
Cilvaringz
is the most successful Moroccan rapper and an affiliate of the Wu-Tang Clan
. He performed in 46 countries alongside the Wu-Tang Clan and successfully sold his debut album I all over the world. He who speaks out against anti-Islamic sentiment along with fellow Dutch Moroccan rappers Salah Edin
, Appa
, and Sjaak.
. The group, based in Israel
was founded in 1998, and is made up of three Palestinian
men: Tamer Nafar
, his brother Suhell Nafar, and Mahmoud Jrere. They blend Arabic melodies and hip hop beats in their music. The group's name is the Arabic verb meaning "to last forever" (دام), and is similar to the Arabic word for "blood" (دم), but can also be an acronym for "Da Arabic MCs.".
's TV show Ahmar Bel Khat Al Areed as referencing homosexuality between teenagers in on of his records.
Saudi rapper Qusai
, who began his music career in the United States before returning to Saudi Arabia, has become a well-known performer in the Middle East.
is a hip hop duo based in Dubai
. Formed in late 2002, Desert Heat consists of two Emirati brothers ‘Illmiyah’ (eel-mee-yah) & ‘Arableak’. Desert Heat primarily rap in English, but the majority of their songs contain some Arabic literature. They speak about their own struggles, what it’s like being a Muslim Arab in the Middle East and what all 'normal' things they do. Desert Heat had high exposure when they were surprisingly auditioned for Akon
in Dubai. After impressing Akon, Desert Heat were pushed to open up the launch of MTV Arabia
alongside Akon and Ludacris
. Shortly after Desert Heat released their first video "Desert Heat - Keep It Desert"
, Aden
. Several teenagers have started to perform on local stages and make video clips; most of the homegrown rappers are still underground because there still no support from the Ministry of Culture for improved production and legal distribution of their work.
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
and culture originating in the Arabic-speaking world. It is performed in Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
, and local Arabic dialects, English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, Berber languages
Berber languages
The Berber languages are a family of languages indigenous to North Africa, spoken from Siwa Oasis in Egypt to Morocco , and south to the countries of the Sahara Desert...
(Tamazight). Like most artists of the genre, the artists from the Arab world are highly influenced by American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
hip hop
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
.
Also considered part of Arabic hip hop are emcees of Arab origin in the Arab diaspora
Arab diaspora
Arab diaspora refers to Arab immigrants, and their descendants who, voluntarily or as refugees, emigrated from their native lands and now reside in non-Arab countries, primarily in Latin America, and Europe, as well as North America and South Asia, parts of Southeast Asia, the Caribbean, and West...
including Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
Arabic hip hop is played on radio stations and shown on TV programs, but live hip hop performances only began in the 1990s
1990s
File:1990s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: The Hubble Space Telescope floats in space after it was taken up in 1990; American F-16s and F-15s fly over burning oil fields and the USA Lexie in Operation Desert Storm, also known as the 1991 Gulf War; The signing of the Oslo Accords on...
. Many hip hop groups are still underground because their political views could lead to government censure
Censure
A censure is an expression of strong disapproval or harsh criticism. Among the forms that it can take are a stern rebuke by a legislature, a spiritual penalty imposed by a church, and a negative judgment pronounced on a theological proposition.-Politics:...
. Therefore, the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
has been a major outlet for most groups.
History
Before Arabic hip-hop emerged as a separate genre, Arab-Americans were regularly involved in hip-hop in the United States, notably producer FredwreckFredwreck
Farid Karam Nassar, better known as Fredwreck is a record producer from Los Angeles, California. He got his big break when he became a producer for Dr. Dre's newly founded Aftermath Records label, and went on to work with Snoop Dogg's record label Dogghouse Records and became a known producer on...
, based in L.A. and Miami-based DJ Khaled. American hip-hop music began to see popularity in the Arab World
Arab world
The Arab world refers to Arabic-speaking states, territories and populations in North Africa, Western Asia and elsewhere.The standard definition of the Arab world comprises the 22 states and territories of the Arab League stretching from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Arabian Sea in the...
in the early-to-mid 1990s. Northern African Arabs, mostly residing in France, the epi-center of European hip-hop, were the first to begin making the music that constitutes the Arabic hip-hop genre. For example, the Super Saian Crew and IAM
IAM
- Concepts :* Identity and Access Management, a concept that combines business processes, policies and technologies.* Innovation Access Method, a high-performance indexed access-method for IBM's z/OS and OS/390 operating systems that provides a transparent alternative to IBM's VSAM* Indo-Aryan...
had Arabic members. This music, a product of the French banlieue’s beur and noir communities, was a blend of traditional American hip-hop, the French styles popular at the time, and Raï
Raï
Raï is a form of folk music that originated in Oran, Algeria from Bedouin shepherds, mixed with Spanish, French, African and Arabic musical forms, which dates back to the 1930s....
, a popular music style from Northern Africa. French hip-hop rose to popularity partly because of Francophone radio broadcasting requirements, begun in 1994, that established quotas for all stations of 40% of daily broadcasts to be in French.
Groups began to emerge in Palestine in the mid-90s, including popular group DAM
Dam
A dam is a barrier that impounds water or underground streams. Dams generally serve the primary purpose of retaining water, while other structures such as floodgates or levees are used to manage or prevent water flow into specific land regions. Hydropower and pumped-storage hydroelectricity are...
. DJ Lethal Skillz was promoting new local groups “such as Aks El Seir” at around the same time. In Egypt, hip-hop was less popular, but a small buzz led to an emergent b-boy population. In 2004, the first hip-hop show took place there when the RZA, member of the Wu-Tang Clan, performed in the Siag Hotel in Cairo alongside Kinetic 9
Kinetic 9
Kinetic 9 or Beretta 9 is a member of the hip-hop group Killarmy, an affiliation of the group Wu-Tang Clan. He is a originally from Steubenville, Ohio. 4th Disciple, another Ohio native & the group producer of Killarmy introduced Kinetic 9 along with ShoGun Assasson to the group...
of Killarmy, a Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
The Wu-Tang Clan is a hip-hop group from Staten Island that consists of RZA, GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Masta Killa, and the late Ol' Dirty Bastard. They are frequently joined by fellow childhood friend Cappadonna, a quasi member of the group...
affiliate, Cilvarange (a Moroccan-Dutch, and the first Arab to get signed by an American rap group) and Saleh Edin, an Arab Moroccan rapper.
In 2006, Arabic hip-hop solidified its mainstream presence in the Arab World with Hip Hop Na
Hip Hop Na
Hip Hop Na, literally meaning "Our Hip Hop" in Arabic, is a popular hip hop talent-huting programme that aired on MTV Arabia in 2007. It was hosted by ‘Fredwreck’ Nassar & Qusai Kheder. The show,held auditions in various countries in the Middle East with the grand finale held in Dubai.MTV Hip HopNa...
, a reality TV show on MTV Arabia
MTV Arabia
MTV Middle East, formerly MTV Arabia, is a free-to-air music television channel, and the Middle Eastern incarnation of MTV. As an addition to the MTV network, it is a joint venture between MTV Networks International and Arabian Television Network, a subsidiary of Arabian Broadcasting Network, and...
hosted by Fredwreck and Qusai, a Saudi Arabian Artist. Hip-hop, both Arabic and American, is followed and created to varying degrees in most of the countries of the Arab world, including where social and political restrictions make this difficult. For example, Saudi Arabia is home to the group Dark2Men, who competed in the HipHopNa reality show mentioned above. In addition, break dancing "has become a popular pastime in the kingdom".
It is difficult to establish numbers for albums sold or listenership by demographic in the Arab world due to the lack of reliable statistics. Furthermore, viewership of satellite TV in the Arab world cannot be accurately quantified. However, we can discern popularity through marketing techniques utilized by satellite television providers. According to a 2007 report, more than 85 percent of urban households in the Arab world have satellite television," a forum that has expanded to include music channels such as MTV Arabia which "[at the time] plan[ned] to offer a hefty dose of [mainly western] hip-hop and much of the same youth-lifestyle programming MTV beams across the U.S."
Female hip-hop
Although it is unclear whether or not there is a separate and distinct female Arabic hip-hop genre, artists such as Malikah, from Lebanon, and Shadia MansourShadia Mansour
Shadia Mansour, also known as "the first lady of Arabic hip hop is a Palestinian singer and MC. Much of her music focuses on Middle East politics. Her first language is Arabic and she raps in Arabic. Mansour has recorded music with producer Johnny Juice of Public Enemy. Her first single,...
are the forebearers of the art form. Female hip-hop artists are involved in a number of outreach activities in the Arab World. For example, Malikah has been included in the Egyptian conference "Initiatives in Education, Science and Culture Towards Enhanced US-Muslim Countries Collaborations", where she performed as part of a series of events designed to address that topic. Female Arab Rappers also performed at "Home and Exile in Queer Experience", a conference organized by Aswat, "an organization for Arab lesbians with members in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza Strip".
Musical Influence
Arabic hip-hop artists, commensurate with those of the overall genre, engage in the process of sampling. According to Jannis Androutsopoulos, sampling is "a process of cultural literacy and intertextual reference... taken from various domains, such as traditional folk music, contemporary popular music, mass media samples, and even poetry." Artists in the genre cite musical references, influences, and sampling material from a number of contemporary and classical sources, including 20th century Lebanese singers FairuzFairuz
Nouhad Wadi Haddad , famously known as Fairuz is a Lebanese singer who is widely considered to be the most famous living singer in the Arab world and one of the best known of all time...
, Majida al-Roumi, and Julia Boutros
Julia Boutros
Julia Boutros is a Lebanese singer that rose to stardom in the 1980s with a series of nationalistic songs like "Ghabet Shams El Haq" and "Wen el malaieen". She is also the sister of Lebanese songwriter Ziad Boutros.-Biography:...
, as well as a number of modern mainstream and underground hip-hop artists, and regional music styles from countries such as Jamaica. Arabic hip hop artists have used full Arabic orchestras in beat-making as well as beats inspired by traditional Arabic music styles.
Certain regional variations of the music, most notably French and Northern African styles, incorporate influences from the musical genre known as Raï
Raï
Raï is a form of folk music that originated in Oran, Algeria from Bedouin shepherds, mixed with Spanish, French, African and Arabic musical forms, which dates back to the 1930s....
, "a form of folk music that originated in Oran, Algeria from Bedouin shepherds, mixed with Spanish, French, African and Arabic musical forms, which dates back to the 1930s." (Wikipedia, "Rai")
Political and Social Influence
While some Arabic hip hop artists focus on the topics most closely associated with mainstream American hip hop, many choose a topical focus influenced by and addressing a number of social and political circumstances and situations. The topics approached depend largely on region, and there is a particular divide between Arab emcees who live and work in the Arab World and outside.Much of the hip hop generated in the Arab World deals with a mix of social circumstance, such as poverty, violence, and drug-use, as well as political reality, insofar as this is possible given censorship. The hip hop of Palestine in particular has generated much interest in this respect and the music is considered a means of opposition. For example, the song "Meen Erhabe" by DAM aligns itself with opposition to the Israeli occupation, and was referred to critically as a "theme song for Hamas".
Outside of the Arab World, artists focus on many of the same types of issues, but there is a stronger focus on issues associated with immigration and living as ethnic minorities. In France, for example, much of the "socially critical" music focuses on "migration related problems such as discrimination, xenophobia, and the problematic identities of young people of foreign descent." Furthermore, these artists deal with the government enforced impetus for assimilation "coupled with the age-old stereotypes rooted in colonial references and the stigma of the marginalized banlieue
Banlieue
In francophone areas, banlieues are the "outskirts" of a city: the zone around a city that is under the city's rule.Banlieues are translated as "suburbs", as these are also residential areas on the outer edge of a city, but the connotations of the term "banlieue" in France can be different from...
."
Arabic hip hop artists in the west, particularly Great Britain and North America, who also deal with racism and marginalization in their content, specifically mention an experience of "doubleness" - internal conflict between traditional and modern culture. For some rap and spoken word artists, hip hop is seen as being true to both, due both to the rich Arabic poetic history and to the utility of hip hop as a form of expression for marginalized or demonized communities. The poet Lawrence Joseph addresses the conflict explicitly in his poem "Sand Nigger". From British-Iraqi rapper Lowkey, who views his situation as further complicated by his dual eastern and western heritage (a conflict which plays heavily in his music):
The view of mainstream America towards the Arab population, domestically and worldwide, and military intervention in the MENA region factor prominently in Arab-American hip hop and other western forms. Certain artists from the Arab world approach the western viewpoint similarly, such as the Emirati group Desert Heat who rap in English specifically for the purpose of "educating" westerners on a realistic view of Arabic culture and history.
On the other extreme, Mohammed Kamel Mostafa, whose father Abu Hamza al-Masri is in prison on terrorism charges, uses hip-hop to express solidarity with groups such as Hizbollah and Hamas, as well as to glorify violent Jihad. His message is different from other opposition rappers who have gained popularity in the genre insofar as he explicitly establishes his credentials by referencing his military skill and ability to cause violence.
Censorship
Associative life and media are restricted to varying degrees throughout the Arab world. Reasons for censorship, whether state enforced or community enforced, generally fall under two categories - political or religious. Vis-a-vis state control, satellite TV has done much to restrict the state monopoly on television programming. This has directly impacted the space allowed for hip-hop music and culture.In religiously conservative Arab states, such as Saudi Arabia, "singing and dancing can be viewed as shameful," therefore enforcing somewhat of a social censorship (enforced as a "taboo") on hip-hop and other art forms. As of 2008, concerts and nightclubs were non-existent in the Kingdom, and local radio and TV played mainly Arabic pop music (all state enforced policies). Tamer Farhan, a member of the Saudi rap group Dark2Men that appeared on HipHopNa, said that rappers in Saudi Arabia are forced "underground because of the wrong impression people have of them". Even socially cautious acts are subject to censorship. This phenomenon is not restricted to Saudi Arabia however, as relatively liberal Kuwait joined them in banning the group Desert Heat's first album despite their "pro-Muslim" message and "cautious approach to religion, politics, and society".
However, hip-hop music, both Arabic and American, has managed to circumnavigate some of these restrictions. In addition to subversion via the internet or bootleg record sales, it seems that censorship inconsistencies and/or linguistic difficulty associated with translating hip-hop from English may account for some English language records making their way to cities where they would otherwise be banned. Abdullah Dahman of Desert Heat offers an example of west coast rapper Snoop Dogg
Snoop Dogg
Calvin Cordozar Broadus, Jr. , better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg, is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Snoop is best known as a rapper in the West Coast hip hop scene, and for being one of Dr. Dre's most notable protégés. Snoop Dogg was a Crip gang member while in high school...
, whose records are available for purchase in Jiddah in Saudi Arabia. Another example, 2 Live Crew
2 Live Crew
2 Live Crew was a hip hop group from Miami, Florida. They caused considerable controversy with the sexual themes in their work, particularly on their 1989 album As Nasty As They Wanna Be.- Early career :...
's album "As Nasty as They Wanna Be
As Nasty As They Wanna Be
As Nasty As They Wanna Be is the third album by Miami rap group 2 Live Crew. It was released in 1989, and became their largest seller, going 2x Platinum. In 1990, United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida ruled that the album was legally obscene; this ruling was later...
", released in 1989, made it by censors due to translational difficulty.
Algeria
AlgeriaAlgeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
n hip hop has roots that lie in French hip hop
French hip hop
French hip hop is the hip hop music style which was developed in France, and is considered the second worldwide hip hop scene after the U.S....
. Many French emcees originated from Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, and of those, most from Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
.
Egypt
Egypytian rap is unique in the fact that it is included in both African Hip HopAfrican hip hop
Hip hop music has been popular in Africa since the early 1980s due to widespread American influence. In 1985 hip hop reached Senegal, a French-speaking country in West Africa. Some of the first Senegalese rappers were M.C. Lida, M.C. Solaar, and Positive Black Soul, who mixed rap with Mbalax, a...
and Arabic Hip Hop
Arabic hip hop
Arabic hip hop is hip hop music and culture originating in the Arabic-speaking world. It is performed in Arabic, and local Arabic dialects, English, French, Berber languages...
. Hip-hop artists in Egypt tried to gain national recognition in the late 1990s, but rap was not yet accepted as a viable form of music. Rappers built an underground hip-hop scene, which grew over time. The pioneering Egyptian rap crew was MTM formed in 1999 the first rap group to actually rap in Arabic. Egyptian rap has more recently become more heavily promoted in Egypt and The Middle East. Princess Emmanuelle a.k.a. EmpresS *1 in 2001 appeared in the Egyptian Hip-Hop scene, where there were no other females. She gained the title of "First Female Egyptian Rapper" in Egypt. Egyptian Underground rap is now growing rapidly, due to the feeling of injustice that mainly affects youths in the country.
The most famous groups were MTM
MTM (Rap Group)
MTM,is an Egyptian hip-hop band. They are considered the pioneering Egyptian rap crew, as they put Egyptian rap into the spotlight releasing two albums: Omy Mesafra in 2003, and Telephony Beyren in 2004....
, MTM emerged with a music video called "Omy Mesafra", which some hip-hop elements but was still accepted by people as an Egyptian song and became quite popular. Other popular solo artists were Omar Boflot, MC Amin. Other famous rap bands or families is the Cairo City G'zz, members of this family only sing Gangsta Rap or Chicano Rap, it is a family based on the street life style that combines Latin, English, Arabic and even French in their tracks.
Jordan
One of the most successful rappers from Jordan is Ostaz SammOstaz Samm
Samer Zaki Shaqfeh is a hip-hop artist from Amman, Jordan, better known by his stage names Samm and Ostaz Samm, most known for begin on MBC 4's Arabs Got Talent.-Biography:...
, mostly known for competing on MBC 4
MBC 4
MBC 4 is the first free-to-air national television channel in the Middle East aired specifically for American programs. The downside of this all is that MBC 2, MBC 3, MBC 4, MBC Action, MBC Max,and MBC Drama all show movies and TV programs that are edited: taking out all drug use, sexual content,...
's Arabs Got Talent.
Lebanon
Lebanese hip hop is a pioneering movement in Arabic hip hop as Lebanese youth were among of the first to be affected by hip hop culture. Also considered Lebanese hip hop is the output of Palestinians living in refugee camps in Lebanon, who add to the Lebanese hip hop culture. There is also great hip hop scene in the Lebanese diaspora in USA, Canada, Australia and Europe which is considered Lebanese rap as well.Morocco
Arabic Hip Hop artists enjoy regular Festival performances, TV/Radio appearances and commercial endorsements.Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
and Moroccan
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
artist Salah Edin
Salah Edin
Abid Tounssi, also known as Salah Edin , is a Dutch rapper. He was raised in Alphen aan den Rijn, the Netherlands. He lived in Morocco for about 2 years...
who performs his music in the Moroccan dialect Darija
Moroccan Arabic
Moroccan Arabic is the variety of Arabic spoken in the Arabic-speaking areas of Morocco. For official communications, the government and other public bodies use Modern Standard Arabic, as is the case in most Arabic-speaking countries. A mixture of French and Moroccan Arabic is used in business...
.
Cilvaringz
Cilvaringz
Tarik Azzougarh, better known as Cilvaringz, is a rapper, manager and hip hop producer associated with the Wu-Tang Clan.- Personal :Lives in Marrakech, Morocco...
is the most successful Moroccan rapper and an affiliate of the Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
The Wu-Tang Clan is a hip-hop group from Staten Island that consists of RZA, GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Masta Killa, and the late Ol' Dirty Bastard. They are frequently joined by fellow childhood friend Cappadonna, a quasi member of the group...
. He performed in 46 countries alongside the Wu-Tang Clan and successfully sold his debut album I all over the world. He who speaks out against anti-Islamic sentiment along with fellow Dutch Moroccan rappers Salah Edin
Salah Edin
Abid Tounssi, also known as Salah Edin , is a Dutch rapper. He was raised in Alphen aan den Rijn, the Netherlands. He lived in Morocco for about 2 years...
, Appa
Appa (rapper)
Rachid El Ghazoui a.k.a Appa is a Dutch rapper whose roots lie in the mountainous regions of North-Morocco. In 2002, he joined rap formation Tuindorp Hustler Click , but decided to go solo. He is known for the political content of his lyrics and criticism of nationalist MP Geert Wilders...
, and Sjaak.
Palestine
Palestinian hip hop supposedly started in 1998 with Tamer Nafar's group DAMDAM (band)
DAM is a Palestinian hip-hop group. Based in Lod, Israel, DAM was founded in 1999 by brothers Tamar and Suhell Nafar and their friend Mahmoud Jreri, and their songs are largely about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and poverty...
. The group, based in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
was founded in 1998, and is made up of three Palestinian
Palestinian people
The Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
men: Tamer Nafar
Tamer Nafar
Tamer Nafar , is a Palestinian and Arab-Israeli rap artist.Tamer was born on June 6, 1979 in the city of Lod, Israel. He began writing and making rap music in 1998 and in 2000 his brother Suhell and their friend Mahmoud Jrere joined him to start the first Palestinian-Arab or Arab Israeli rap group,...
, his brother Suhell Nafar, and Mahmoud Jrere. They blend Arabic melodies and hip hop beats in their music. The group's name is the Arabic verb meaning "to last forever" (دام), and is similar to the Arabic word for "blood" (دم), but can also be an acronym for "Da Arabic MCs.".
- Ramallah UndergroundRamallah UndergroundRamallah Underground, based in Ramallah, Palestine, is a musical collective born from the desire to give voice to a generation of Palestinians and Arabs, in a situation of great economic, artistic, and political difficulty...
including boikutt, stormtrap, and aswatt is a hip-hop group based in RamallahRamallahRamallah is a Palestinian city in the central West Bank located 10 kilometers north of Jerusalem, adjacent to al-Bireh. It currently serves as the de facto administrative capital of the Palestinian National Authority...
, West BankWest BankThe West Bank ) of the Jordan River is the landlocked geographical eastern part of the Palestinian territories located in Western Asia. To the west, north, and south, the West Bank shares borders with the state of Israel. To the east, across the Jordan River, lies the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan...
. Their lyrics represent a powerful response to the occupation of land they claim as their country. They have benefited from a global media coverage adopting hip-hop as a subculture and as a form of expression of protest, ultimately giving voice to a whole generation of Palestinians and Arabs.
Saudi Arabia
Hip-hop in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia began emerging around 2003. Among the earliest Saudi rappers is Klash who began his career in 2004. He was a famous rapper in Saudi Arabia later becoming a well-known rapper in the Middle East. In 2007 he was arrested by the Saudi Arabian government for what he claimed on LBCLebanese Broadcasting Corporation
The Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation , widely known as LBC, is the first private television station in Lebanon. It went global in 1996 when it launched its satellite channel LBC Al-Fadha'iya Al-Lubnaniya covering the Arab World. It now has several channels covering Europe, America, Australia, and...
's TV show Ahmar Bel Khat Al Areed as referencing homosexuality between teenagers in on of his records.
Saudi rapper Qusai
Qusai (musician)
Qusai Kheder , known by the stage names Qusai and Qusai aka Don Legend the Kamelion, is a Saudi Arabian rapper, singer/songwriter, record producer, television personality, and DJ...
, who began his music career in the United States before returning to Saudi Arabia, has become a well-known performer in the Middle East.
Syria
The Murder Eyez from Aleppo city, was the first-ever rap band in Syria made of brothers Abdul Rahman (The Don Mega), Talal (Rebel) and Houseen (DJ Spider). Sham MCs is a collective of rappers, who have released a debut album Crossword. Another well-known name is the Syrian-Lebanese MC Eslam Jawaad, ILLZ, a Dominican/Syrian rapper and Syrian-American Omar Offendum are making their names in the States.United Arab Emirates
Desert HeatDesert Heat (hip hop)
Desert Heat is an Arab hip hop group originating from the UAE . Formed in late 2002, Desert Heat consists of two Emirati brothers Salim Dahman known as ‘Illmiyah’ and Abdullah Dahman known as ‘Arableak’....
is a hip hop duo based in Dubai
Dubai
Dubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...
. Formed in late 2002, Desert Heat consists of two Emirati brothers ‘Illmiyah’ (eel-mee-yah) & ‘Arableak’. Desert Heat primarily rap in English, but the majority of their songs contain some Arabic literature. They speak about their own struggles, what it’s like being a Muslim Arab in the Middle East and what all 'normal' things they do. Desert Heat had high exposure when they were surprisingly auditioned for Akon
Akon
Aliaune Damala Badara Thiam, better known as simply Akon , is a Senegalese American R&B recording artist and songwriter.According to Forbes, Akon grossed $21 million in 2010, $20 million in 2009 and $12 million in 2008. He rose to prominence in 2004 following the release of "Locked Up", the first...
in Dubai. After impressing Akon, Desert Heat were pushed to open up the launch of MTV Arabia
MTV Arabia
MTV Middle East, formerly MTV Arabia, is a free-to-air music television channel, and the Middle Eastern incarnation of MTV. As an addition to the MTV network, it is a joint venture between MTV Networks International and Arabian Television Network, a subsidiary of Arabian Broadcasting Network, and...
alongside Akon and Ludacris
Ludacris
Christopher Brian Bridges , better known by his stage name Ludacris, is an American rapper and actor. Along with his manager, Chaka Zulu, Ludacris is the co-founder of Disturbing tha Peace, an imprint distributed by Def Jam Recordings...
. Shortly after Desert Heat released their first video "Desert Heat - Keep It Desert"
Yemen
Rap and Hip-hop Culture existed as early as 2005 but it only achieved widespread popularity 2008 when the Hip-hop in Yemen took a leap forward and began to spread around the youth of Yemen, especially in Sana'aSana'a
-Districts:*Al Wahdah District*As Sabain District*Assafi'yah District*At Tahrir District*Ath'thaorah District*Az'zal District*Bani Al Harith District*Ma'ain District*Old City District*Shu'aub District-Old City:...
, Aden
Aden
Aden is a seaport city in Yemen, located by the eastern approach to the Red Sea , some 170 kilometres east of Bab-el-Mandeb. Its population is approximately 800,000. Aden's ancient, natural harbour lies in the crater of an extinct volcano which now forms a peninsula, joined to the mainland by a...
. Several teenagers have started to perform on local stages and make video clips; most of the homegrown rappers are still underground because there still no support from the Ministry of Culture for improved production and legal distribution of their work.