Amid Cairo’s tired music scene, musician, electronic producer and DJ Hussein Sherbini is revolting against the music industry’s status quo with piercing originality and inspired dedication to his craft.
His message is genuine and clear: “I’m here to raise the bar (translated),” as iterated in "Mostawa," the seventh track off his new sophomore album "Electro Chaabi."
Don’t be fooled by the album’s title. There isn't much "Chaabi" in the 11 tracks. The title is clever social commentary. “It’s basically a marketing stunt challenging the mainstream’s boring domination,” Sheribini told Cairo Scene.
Electro Chaabi is an Arabic rap album infused with Sheribini’s trademark combination of techno, ambient, breakcore and grime. It sounds like nothing you’ve heard before and it’s definitely worth a listen.
“There’s a message behind calling the album 'Electro Chaabi' and it’s very clear in the lyrics. It’s 2015, and I think that we’re not where we’re supposed to be creatively. We copy everything, we take nothing seriously and we just take the audience for granted,” explained Sherbini.
Championing Egypt’s underground music scene, Sherbini said “I just want to give hope to independent artists and bedroom producers that they don’t need to cater to anyone to survive.”
