The misnamed “Arab Spring” unleashed restrained aspirations of the region and like all uprisings saw an eruption of expression in songs, music, lyrics, spreading, much like these intifadas, through social media, massive crowds, and sharing ideas and trends across borders. 

But just as the initial optimism of the protests was crushed by the harsh reality of reactionary governments, western interventions, oligarchs and capitalism, so too was the new music of Arab youth co-opted, suppressed, corrupted and infiltrated by the West and the Gulf monarchies. 

Lebanese writer Mohamad-Ali Nayel has recently written a two part series that is the definitive examination of post Arab Spring hip-hop and popular music. He joined Rania Khalek to talk about this and much more.

Moe’s articles discussed in the episode:

Part 1: https://www.jadaliyya.com/Details/44193/Music-Politics-After-the-Arab-Uprisings-Part-1

Part 2: https://www.jadaliyya.com/Details/44194/Music-Politics-After-the-Arab-Uprisings-Part-2