YALLA—COME ON!

7 Artists and Creators to Stream During Arab Heritage Month—and Year Round

April 19, 2019

April marks Arab Heritage Month in the U.S. To celebrate, we’re featuring Arab American artists, comedians, and actors in our key Yalla Araby playlist. We kicked off with a message from comedian Mo Amer, and will be continuing with several other artists and actors, including French Montana, who released the first single to his upcoming new album this week.

Our playlists builds on the excitement of our Arab hub, which unites the full spectrum of Arab audio culture and creativity, past and present, in one place. It launched this past November, with playlists like Women Wa Bas (Arab female artists); ’90s Arabic Hits (big at Arab wedding parties); and Arab Indie (emerging Arabic tracks and artists), to name just a few. Listeners all over the world have used the hub to connect to the music of Arab culture.

Get to know some of the Arab-American creators featured on the playlist. And don’t worry if you can’t get to all of them in one month—their stories and sounds are available to stream year-round.

  1. Bazzi – Bazzi, whose father is Lebanese, learned from a young age to play Arabic instruments such as the oud and guitar. “Growing up with a Lebanese family, you really learn the importance of having a good base,” he says. The singer-songwriter has built a true musical foundation, touring with Camilla Cabello and Justin Timberlake, as well as several K-Pop groups. Stream his “Beautiful” remix featuring Camilla Cabello.
  2. French Montana – The Moroccan-American rapper has collaborated with everyone from Swae Lee to  Drake. “I want to share the things I love the most about my heritage,” he says. “Tajin (a type of stew), baghreer (Moroccan pancakes), karmous (figs), kora’en (sheep legs), and barkook (dried prunes), you know what I’m saying?” Stream his hit, “Unforgettable.”
  3. Mo Amer – “One of my favorite instruments is the tabla,” says Mo. “Tabla gets everyone moving, a little Dabke going on, it can break out at any moment.” He’s toured with Dave Chappelle and Jon Stewart, and now you can check out the Palestinian-American stand-up comedian’s brand-new Netflix special, The Vagabond, which details his life from refugee to citizen.
  4. Abir – The Arab-American singer-songwriter from Fez, Morocco, says, “My Moroccan heritage influences everything I do, from the colors of Morocco to the sounds of Morocco, to the Moroccan mint tea, which is so good, and influenced my last project, Mint. I’m so happy to be celebrating the culture.” Stream her album, Mint.
  5. Massari – Massari is a Canadian-Lebanese singer who is known for combining elements of Western and Arabic culture in his music. He has credited Syrian singer George Wassouf with being a big musical influence. Stream his hit, “Number One.”
  6. Faouzia – This teenage Moroccan-Canadian pop singer has a commanding voice with a rich tone beyond her years. “My heritage has played a huge role in my career,” she says. “When I was younger, my parents would play Arabic music. I’d listen to the artists and push myself to practice the trills and runs that they did with their voices. To this day, I still use these trills and runs in my music.” Stream her hit single, “This Mountain.”
  7. Ramy Youssef – Prepare yourself for the comedian/actor’s debut Hulu series, Ramy, about an Egyptian-American millennial balancing his cultures, faith, family, dating and friendships. Tune in to the first episode, out on Hulu today.

Let’s go – stream Yalla Araby below.