Videos

We caught up with Nayer Nagui ahead of his first show with Hisham Kharma, to talk about translating electronic compositions for an orchestra, revisiting earlier work, and what can happen when two musicians step into each other’s worlds. Watch the full interview on WaraElMazzika.com (link in bio). 🎥 @WaraElMazzika

Live from @YouTubeArabia’s exclusive event “Big Artist, Small Venue” taking place at Cairo Jazz Club 610, where Lege-Cy gave an intimate performance of fan-favorite track ‘Wala Meen’ featuring Zaid Zaza. 🎥 @waraelmazzika

Live from @YouTubeArabia’s exclusive event “Big Artist, Small Venue”, where Lege-Cy performed his newly released track ‘Amara’ for the very first time at Cairo Jazz Club 610. 🎥 @waraelmazzika

28 years ago, September 26, 1998, Cheb Khaled, Rachid Taha, and Faudel came together at Paris’s Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy for 1, 2, 3 Soleil, a landmark concert celebrating Raï and its place in Algerian musical culture. Bringing three generations of artists onto one stage, the performance paired Khaled and Taha’s established careers with Faudel’s emergence as one of the genre’s next major voices. More than a meeting of three celebrated names, it captured a moment when Algerian music and the diaspora’s cultural presence in France were becoming increasingly visible. Khaled had recently reached a new level of international recognition with ‘Aïcha’, while Taha’s version of ‘Ya Rayah’ had become one of his defining recordings. Faudel, meanwhile, represented a younger generation carrying Raï forward. The timing added another layer: taking place in the year France hosted and won the FIFA World Cup, the concert unfolded amid heightened visibility for the country’s multicultural identity and its North African communities. منذ 28 عامًا، في 26 سبتمبر 1998، اجتمع الشاب خالد، ورشيد طه، وفضيل في قصر أومني سبور دو باريس-بيرسي في باريس، في حفل ‘1، 2، 3 سولاي’، وهو حفل موسيقي بارز احتفى بموسيقى الراي ومكانتها في الثقافة الموسيقية الجزائرية. جمع الحفل ثلاثة أجيال من الفنانين على مسرح واحد، بين المسيرة الراسخة لخالد وطه وصعود فضيل كواحد من أبرز الأصوات الجديدة في هذا النوع الموسيقي. أكثر من مجرد لقاء بين ثلاثة أسماء بارزة، وثّق الحفل لحظة كانت فيها الموسيقى الجزائرية والحضور الثقافي للجالية الجزائرية في فرنسا يكتسبان حضورًا متزايدًا. كان الشاب خالد قد وصل قبلها إلى مستوى جديد من العالمية مع اغنية ‘عائشة’، بينما أصبحت نسخة طه من ‘يا رايح’ واحدة من أبرز تسجيلاته. وفي الوقت نفسه، مثّل فضيل جيلًا أصغر يحمل موسيقى الراي إلى مستوى جديد . وأضاف توقيت الحفل طبقة أخرى على القصة ؛ إذ أقيم في العام الذي استضافت فيه فرنسا كأس العالم لكرة القدم وفازت بها، ليأتي الحفل وسط حضور متعدد للهوية متعددة الثقافات في فرنسا وللجاليات القادمة من شمال أفريقيا. 🎥 @waraelmazzika

Egyptian composer and producer Hisham Kharma and maestro Nayer Nagui are bringing their work together onstage for the first time, the two concerts took place at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina on September 11 and the Cairo Opera House’s Grand Theater on September 18, with Nagui leading the orchestra. We caught up with Kharma and Nagui ahead of their show, to talk about translating electronic compositions for an orchestra, revisiting earlier work, and what can happen when two musicians step into each other’s worlds. 🎥 @waraelmazzika

Live from @KadimAlSahir’s return to Egypt, organized by @venturelifestyle_, where the Iraqi pop star performs his new album for an Egyptian audience for one of the first times since its release. During the intimate performance, Kadim performed the fifth song from his newly released album, ‘Atat’, the song moves through multiple maqamat and tells the story of a complicated and toxic romance, following a man who sees through the woman’s manipulation but continues to fall for her every time she returns though classic poetry. 🎥 @waraelmazzika

The American rapper once again voiced his support for Palestine during his latest appearance, stressing that Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank have not been forgotten and that everyone deserves freedom, safety and peace. Macklemore has been an outspoken supporter of Palestine, previously releasing ‘Hind’s Hall’ in solidarity with Gaza.

Live from Abyusif and Shehab’s show in Alexandria, where Abyusif brought Ahmed Santa on stage for a special duet of their hit ‘Ostaz Mahmoud Bezzawy’, followed by a special announcement about Santa’s next release, coming next week. Abyusif also addressed the rumors that Santa never left the “Mexic” crew.

During Abyusif and Shehab’s live show in Alexandria, Shehab was delivering a high-energy performance of the fan favorite “KKK” when a fan went on stage and sang along before trying to snatch the mic from Shehab.

From Cairo-based Sudanese artist Kordofani’s showcase at RAAD Records, where an intimate, invite-only circle caught him running through his latest releases and road-testing some unreleased material, before Moose closes out the night. 🎥 @waraelmazzika

From Egypt’s first music summit, @ch4plus , where Cairo-based alt-rock six-piece Bedaya kicked off @waraelmazzika’s stage with a bass-driven sunset set of their upcoming debut project.

Wegz celebrates his brother Khaled Ali’s birthday during the ‘CHALET 5’ listening party, hosted by RAAD Records, with Yonyo and TAG joining him on stage. Khaled performed tracks from his new EP, as well as unreleased material.

From Egypt’s first music summit, @Ch4plus, party series head and DJ Deso took over @Waraelmazzika’s stage for a 15-minute mini set, moving through pop edits, bass music and club mutations that blur the lines between familiarity and the experimental. Working with pop’s immediacy as raw material, Deso breaks down recognizable tracks and reassembles them around heavier low-end, warped rhythms and percussive pressure, turning familiar hooks into something closer to club tools. His selections find that “ahaaa” moment where recognizable sounds starts revealing its stranger relationship to the underground, pulling sounds that might otherwise feel removed from that world into a setting built around bass and physicality.

Egyptian-Moroccan producer and DJ Ouella has been steadily building a sound around the meeting point of Amazigh and Moroccan musical traditions with UK bass, dubstep and garage, while releasing new material almost every other week, moving between original tracks, EPs and remixes and reshaping these influences through his own production language. In this roughly 30-minute mini set, Ouella previews unreleased material alongside Moroccan source music, bringing the two together through his bass-heavy, rhythm-driven approach. Raised between Casablanca and Giza, Ouella draws from both sides of his background, but the music is less interested in explaining that identity than reconstructing it through rhythm. His productions lean on heavy kicks, syncopated percussion, polyrhythms and traditional textures, with elements like krakeb and darbuka finding their way into club-focused arrangements.

Moments from @Cairokee’s show at D-Bay on Egypt’s North Coast, following the release of the band’s ninth studio album, presented by @rmcworldwide.

Sherine Abdel Wahab brought out Egyptian shaabi singer Mahmoud El Leithy during her North Coast show at Porto Golf Alamein on August 7, in her first major concert back on the Egyptian stage after a period away. The two performed a duet of ‘Om El Magal Kollo’. El Leithy had also been around during the rehearsals and preparations for the show, showing his support for Sherine’s return.

At Egypt’s first music summit, @ch4plus , underground artist @heshamhub premiered his newly released track ‘Dabsh’. The track explores a kind of stubborn, defensive bravado and acting on intrusive thoughts when facing someone with more power or leverage. Sampling a scene from the 2008 Palestinian film “Pomegranates and Myrrh,” the track moves through distorted bass, fragmented neuro-influenced drums, industrial textures, and dark ambient layers. It was performed as part of a short set built around imbalance, frustration, and the uncertainty of the unknown, opening Warra El Mazzika’s stage on the summit’s second day through an artist open call showcasing different sounds from across the region.

Sherine was spotted rehearsing with Aziz El Shafie, sharing a behind-the-scenes snippet ahead of her North Coast concert at Porto Golf next Friday. The two were seen performing ‘Elly Y2abel Habiby’, from Sherine’s latest album, ‘Batmana Ansak.’

⁨ صوت وأداء وشخصية مفيش زيهم عزيز عثمان، واحد من أبرز نجوم الفن الشعبي الساخر في السينما المصرية⁩

From Egypt’s first music summit, @Ch4plus, where producer Dallo samples Tarab Shafika’s ‘Rage3 Tany’. Drawing inspiration from Cairo and the Sinai Peninsula, his work moves through heavy ambient soundscapes, post-shaabi textures, and Sufi mysticism. In early 2025, Dallo released his debut full-length album, ‘Dahab Rayeh Gy’, a post-shaabi document of a life split between Cairo and Dahab.

From Egypt’s first music summit, @Ch4plus, where underground rapper Deka premiered his latest single and visualizer ‘Dayra’, making its way through the underground circuit, the track finds Deka doubling down on the raw, confrontational delivery that has become central to his sound.

In the latest episode, El Messery shifts from building ideas with external hardware to shaping them inside the DAW, demonstrating how a single sound can evolve into multiple textures. Using the rhythmic multi-effect plug-in Tantra, he transforms a simple pad by duplicating it across several channels, applying different settings to each layer before filtering, resampling, and recording the results back into the session. Watch the full episode on @WaraElMazzika’s YouTube channel

Ahmed Mounib turned one dream into a timeless legacy, bringing the soul of Nubia into every Egyptian home. .أحمد منيب حوّل حلمه لإرث عايش لحد النهارده، ووصل روح النوبة لكل بيت مصري

⁨ ⁨ بين شوارع أستراليا وروح المطرية والعباسية! المطربة المصرية Isadora في لقطات عفوية مليئة بالضحك والموسيقى؛ من تحدي "الزغروطة" المصرية وعشق الكشري، إلى ذكرياتها في شقة "العباسية" وحبها للعندليب عبد الحليم حافظ! هكذا تعيش يومها الخاص وحياتها بين شوارع القاهرة وسيدني!⁩⁩

On the first episode of “Building a Track From Scratch” by @WaraElMazzika, self-taught Cairo-based producer and DJ Mazen El Messery takes us through his creative process, from teaching himself music production through YouTube in 2012 to launching Studio Blanche after the COVID-19 pandemic, where he now mentors aspiring producers and shares production techniques online. Rather than focusing on finished records, El Messery breaks down the decision-making behind building an idea from scratch, showing how a single sound can evolve into an entire arrangement. Throughout the session, he demonstrates how he uses synthesizer Surge XT to shape basslines and melodic textures before processing them through Tantra, a rhythmic multi-effect plug-in designed to transform sounds through sequencing, modulation, filtering, and layered effects. By resampling and manipulating individual elements with different presets, he shows how to create movement and progression while keeping a track cohesive instead of relying on unfinished ideas. Watch the full episode on @WaraElMazzika’s YouTube channel via the link in bio. 🎥 @waraelmazzika

Ahead of their upcoming collaboration, Saint Levant and Haifa Wehbe were spotted on the back of a truck, staging a zaffa through the streets of Cairo dressed as a bride and groom. The pair have been teasing the track on TikTok in recent weeks, with the single set for release on July 10.

From Adriatique’s Jordan debut at Petra, the duo dropped their remix of RÜFÜS DU SOL’s ‘In the Moment’ against the ancient sandstone backdrop. Originally released on the Australian trio’s Inhale / Exhale album, Adriatique’s rework stretches the track into a slow-burning melodic cut, trading the original’s introspection for a deeper, club-focused pulse.

From @WarraElMazzika’s showcase at Egypt’s first music summit, held at District 5, Egyptian producer Riff aka 'Negm Misr' closed @Ch4plus’s idiosyncratic tapestry of sounds with a set defined by genre-blurring finesse. Drawing from lo-fi, hip-hop, shaabi, and tarab, and fusing Egyptian street music with slow, eerie, and groovy electronica.

Ahead of Egypt’s first World Cup victory over New Zealand, Disco Masr brought the Fan Zone to life with a set blending Egyptian classics and patriotic anthems. We’re not saying the team in Toronto could hear us, but after that second-half performance, we’d like to think we played a small part.

From @WaraElMazzika’s showcase at Egypt’s first music summit, taking place at District 5, @Ch4Plus featured performances from Hala and Nada Nader, including their recent collaboration ‘Bykalemny Bleel’ from the EP Nar Barda. 🎥 @WaraElMazzika

For one night only, Ewart Memorial Hall at AUC Tahrir became the setting for an unforgettable evening with Anoushka, presented by RMC. Blending timeless hits, powerful vocals, and the charm that has made her one of Egypt’s most beloved artists, the concert brought together music lovers for a night full of nostalgia and memorable moments.

⁨ من منطقة المشجعين بالعاصمة الإدارية الجديدة في افتتاح كأس العالم تامر حسني بيشعل الأجواء بأغنية “حلوة يا بلدي” لداليدا⁩ 📹@hossamhosny73

Turkish multi-instrumentalist DJ and producer Mahmut Orhan made a surprise street appearance in his hometown of Bursa, northwestern Turkey, where he was spotted behind the decks performing for it’s lively residents.

From @WaraElMazzika’s stage at @Ch4plus, rap and mahragan trailblazer @wezzamontaser brought his high-voltage energy, moving between bars over bass-heavy mahragan cuts. Leaning heavily into his solo material, Wezza brought his chaotic presence to this live performance, pulling from his recent discography. 🎥 @waraelmazzika

From engineering to being a DJ, Carmen San Diego is living proof that it’s never too late to rewrite your story. Growing up on early 2000s Arabic hits then building a community around music in New York, she shares how following her passion turned into something bigger than she ever imagined. Watch the interview for a peak inside her journey.

Rising artist Nasser shares a message of gratitude to Tamer Hosny ahead of their joint concert on May 29 at Cairo’s ‘El Arena’ in ‘El Malahy.’ Tickets are still available through Tazkarti.

For the first time ever, Sharmoofers hit the stage alongside orchestral musicians in a completely new experience at AUC Tahrir. Part of RMC’s ‘Music to My Ears’, the initiative aims to bring live music back into people’s daily lives while reviving Historic Cairo and Downtown through culture and entertainment. Blending Sharmoofers’ signature sound with orchestral arrangements, the night brought together music, atmosphere, and a fresh concert experience.

Fresh off headlining the ‘Cairo to Cartagena’ Festival in New York, we caught up with Mahmoud El Esseily as he reflected on performing for Egyptians abroad, why ‘Hena Masr w Hena Alby’ feels especially emotional outside Egypt, and how music can bring people back home, no matter how far away they are.

For one night only, Abdeen Palace became home to the ‘Queens’ performance, organized by RMC. The stage turned into a musical tribute celebrating the female voices that shaped generations, with unforgettable performances by @marwanagyofficial, @abeernehme, and @haidymoussaofficial. Bringing together timeless classics, iconic moments, and the kind of atmosphere only music and history can create, it definitely left us reminisicing on our favourite Arab women artists.

Egypt’s first music summit came out swinging, bringing together heavyweight talks from industry leaders and a lineup that stretched from the underground to the overground. The first edition of the three-day summit, held at District 5 from the 14th to the 16th, officially came to an end after bringing together artists, executives, and audiences from across MENA’s music scene for a packed program of discussions, performances, and networking opportunities.

Il Lamma closed out Egypt’s first music summit, @ch4plus, with a stacked lineup of MENA electronic DJs at the outdoor stage, featuring ThatGirl SherryK, Riad, Nizo, Mizo, Azaar, Omar Arafa, and Moti.

After an evening filled with insightful talks and workshops led by heavyweight musicians and industry pioneers across multiple genres, our Courtyard Stage carried the crowd through a genre-fluid musical journey. From hip-hop and R&B to mahraganat, psychedelic sounds, lo-fi textures, and everything in between, the night featured performances by He/Sham, Deka, Wezza Montaser, Nada Nader, Hala, and Riff. Stay tuned for the full performances dropping soon across all social media platforms.

We played “Never Have I Ever” with Disco Misr right after their 10/10 album release, and the answers gave us a peak into their high-school years. Guess who lost the challenge?