Aida Al-Sha'ir was an Egyptian singer born in Mansoura on 29 October 1940. Raised in a family in which the interest in art and music was very high, from an early age Aida accompanied Muhammad, her older brother, to the clubs where he performed . A multi-instrumentalist and French language teacher, Muhammad supported her and encouraged her propensity towards singing by taking her to music lessons and entrusting her to composer Mahmoud Kamel who helped develop her artistic talent. She enrolled in the American school, then moved on to the French one and began to take her first pr ..read more

  Fatma Kamal El Din Ahmed Shaker, known by her stage name Shadia, was an Egyptian actress and singer, symbol of the golden age of Egyptian cinema and a true icon in the Middle East region. Born on 8 February 1931 in Cairo in the Al Helmia Al Jadida neighborhood to an Egyptian father and a mother of Turkish origin, Shadia dedicated herself to music at a young age during primary school, encouraged in this particular by her father who always strongly believed in his talent The first part of her career will mainly concern the world of cinema. In 1947, at the age of 16, she responded to an ..read more

  Born in 1967 Maya Yazbek is a Lebanese singer daughter of the famous musician George Yazbek and sister of the percussionist Bassem Yazbek.  Musically active during the 1980's, she has recorded a handful of excellent albums containing songs composed largely by her father whose lyrics were written by the best poets of the time. Among them: Shafiq al-Mughrabi, Ibrahim al-Qahwaji and Abd al Jalil Wahbi.  She has made many songs of great depth in which the classical component blended perfectly with a certain pop taste which, although present, always remained at the margins ..read more

  About a couple of years ago I published a post dedicated to the great Algerian musician Boutaiba Sghir, considered the father of the modern Rai. Recently I have come into possession of further recordings belonging to the repertoire of the musician in question.   These are a couple of cassettes recorded in France during the eighties and the material made available byAlex Poe, creator of The Musical Goldilocks Zone, a blog born in April this year.   It is very good stuff, qualitatively acceptable, which allows us to deepen our knowledge of the work of Boutaiba Sghir.  &n ..read more

  Second release regarding that almost forgotten music from a truly creative era of Moroccan cultural history. A new handful of fantastic 7 "made by equally fantastic bands. Many of them have never made a proper album and only in recent years some compositions have appeared on commemorative CDs and cassettes. What remains of their work can only be found on some 7 "still in circulation in the collectors market, often at very high prices. Good listening and good discovery to all Don't forget to take a look at the first part: Nuggets from the Ghiwane Generation / Issue # 1   ..read more

  Rasha Magdy is an Egyptian singer-songwriter who appeared on the music scene at the beginning of the first decade of the 2000s.  During her career she has not made any albums and has followed a personal artistic path that has led her to publish very different songs on the web. If at the beginning she tended to perform accompanied only on the acoustic guitar, over time the arrangement of her songs has evolved. While maintaining the intimate tone in the singing, the stylistic code that characterizes her, Rasha Magdy has shown that she knows how to move easily through more elect ..read more

  Since the 1950s, the cafes and clubs located around Place du Pont (now known as Place Gabriel Péri), ​​a square located in the heart of the "La Guillotière" district in Lyon, have played a fundamental social role for several generations of migrants and contributed significantly to the emergence of a unique music of exile.  These places, spaces of solidarity, relaxation and expression, have made it possible to heal the painful experience of the Ghurba (separation or nostalgia for the exile) and have been a launching platform for many singers and musicians, creators of a multif ..read more

  Elie Touitou, better known by the stage name of Kahlaoui Tounsi, is a Tunisian singer and percussionist born on January 24, 1932. He spent his entire childhood in the popular districts of Sidi Maghdoum and Bab Souika, the latter district renowned for its artistic activities, especially during the month of Ramadan. From an early age Elie Touitou was attracted to the art of music and singing showing a keen interest in everything that belongs to the world of rhythm. At the time of his adolescence he was very impressed by the song "Fadhlek ya sayeg El matar" played by the Egyptian sin ..read more

  Musician, composer, arranger, virtuoso of Oud and Organ, the Egyptian Omar El Shariyi was one of the most influential Egyptian composers in modern history. His encyclopedic knowledge of Egyptian and Arab folklore in general and his deep familiarity with the history of modern Arab and Western music led him, between the 70s and the 80s, to write and rearrange songs that have become a model for composition of contemporary Arabic music Looking forward to a more substantial post dedicated to him, in this mixtape I wanted to group some songs performed according to a style that is well suit ..read more

    Thana Mahmoud Ahmed Nada, known by the stage name of Thana Nada (more often Sana Nada), was an Egyptian singer born in the 1930s in Cairo.  Sister of the famous Sharifa Fadel and granddaughter of Sheykh Ahmed Nada, Quranic reciter forefather of the modern acting style, Sana Nada began singing during her school years. She graduated from the secondary school, she taught for a couple of years at the school of Qasr el Nil before moving to Libya. Returned to her homeland she joined the troupe of the Balloon Theater with whom she starred in the show entitled "Al Shater Hassan ..read more