The Sound of Contemporary Egypt: 10 Essential Mahragnat Songs
Four lovers of the Egyptian genre share their favorite songs and the stories behind them.
The working-class genre has been stigmatized and unsuccessfully banned, but it continues to tell a story of Egypt that rings truer than any other.
from كليب أخواتي الصواريخ دقدق و فانكي و زوكش و شحتة كاريكا | Ekhwaty El Swareekh Ft Zuksh&Shehta Karika on YouTube
Mahraganat is modern Egypt’s most authentic representative. It’s loud, chaotic, witty, funny, audacious, at times misogynistic and over the top — just like Cairo and many other places around the country.
In conversations with four lovers of Mahraganat, OkayAfrica laid out the class politics embedded in the genre’s rise to prominence and the criticism it continues to draw. If that article made you curious about the hype, here are the interviewee’s recommendations of essential mahraganat songs everyone should know.
Alaa Fifty - “Mahragan assalam”
Alaa Fifty’s “Mahragan Assalam” is claimed to be the very first mahragan, so according to feminist writer Mariam Diefallah it needs an honorable mention.
Sadat El 3almy, Wegz - “Kharban”
Another favorite recommended by Diefallah is Sadat El 3almy and Wegz’ collaboration “Kharban,” which gave Wegz street cred and introduced him to an audience beyond the Alexandrian rap scene, helping to define his signature blend of trap and mahragan at the time.
Ali Samara, Ahmed Ezzat - “Mahragan Ayem Fe Bahr El Ghadr”
One of 2019’s standout mahraganat tracks, writer and journalist Sadig Eltigani explains that “‘Ayem Fe Bahr ElGhadr’ blurs the line between shaabi and mahraganat, pairing Ahmed Ezzat’s classic shaabi voice with Ali Samara’s mahragan-leaning delivery over a distinct shaabi melody. A heartfelt song about betrayal and the loneliness of life’s hardships, the track shows just how deeply shaabi can be woven into the mahraganat sound.”
DJ and multi-disciplinary artist Noor Adel also considers this track essential for a mahraganat playlist. “I love the melody so much, and the alto of the main singer that acts like a whole other instrument. I love autotune,” she says. “The lyrics are honestly hilarious. He's using an analogy of ‘bahr el ghadr’ which is the sea of treachery that he's swimming in with its shores full of lowlifes that have hearts full of malice. Like it's so eloquent wtf??? What a way to describe your friends betraying you.”
Hamada Abo El Soud, Te7a - “3aqabawy damy hamy”
Adel also recommends Hamada Abou El Soud and Te7a’s “3aqabawy damy hamy.” “An entire dance genre was created around this song and it's a dance genre that competes with vogueing for how good of knees you need to have for real,” she explains. “The dude is basically just flexing the entire song, so it's the perfect equation for a dance battle that is just so fun, so freeing, and a 1000 calorie workout.”
El Dakhlowya / El Qemma - “Farhet El Lemby”
About his recommendation of “Farhet El Lemby,” engineer Bassel Medhaat says: “I like this song very much because it makes me dance, but at the same time it has lyrics of a short story, so it's entertaining.” The short story, The Richest Poor Man in Alexandria, is about El Lemby, a broke man who can’t afford his rent, but uses his last 35 pound to pay a DJ and throw a party for his neighborhood because “sometimes, when life gives you nothing to celebrate, the greatest act of defiance is to celebrate anyway.”
Sadat El 3lmy - “Dracola”
Medhaat also recommends Sadat El 3lmy’s “Dracola” for the confidence boost he finds in the lyrics. Sadat is the godfather of mahraganat and to Medhaat, he remains the genre’s quintessential and best artist. Making music in El-Salam City in the late 2000s alongside Figo and Amr Haha, Sadat created the blueprint of mahraganat using cracked FL Studio software, heavy auto-tune, and socio-political street lyrics which became the soundtrack of the 2011 Egyptian Revolution and earned him international acclaim.
Saudi, Salma Adel - “Rakeb Dababa”
“While many know ‘Rakeb Dababa’ for its second half, which starts off with an expletive that has since been memed to death on Instagram and TikTok, this Saudi and Salma Adel collaboration is fun, unorthodox and endlessly shareable, which makes it exactly what a quintessential mahraganat track sounds like in the 2020s,” says Eltigani.
El Sawareekh, Zuksh, Shehta Karika - “Ekhwaty”
“Who hasn’t heard of this song?” asks Eltigani of his third recommendation. “‘Ekhwaty’ blends Zuksh’s famous electronic beat drops, El Sawareekh’s humorous lines, and Shehta Karika's free-flowing, danceable vocal runs, echoing his early work. It’s a fun, celebratory track that has become one of the most popular mahraganat of all time, soundtracking everything from weddings to Marvel’s Moon Knight.”
Ahmed Shiko, Ahmed Figo - Mahragan Aha El Shebsheb Da3
“Mahragan Aha El Shebsheb Da3” (Fuck, the slipper is lost) was one of the first mahragan songs cultural worker Alia Wasfi encountered. “I loved the absurdity and how it wasn’t a love or heartbreak song. Just light hearted fun,” she says.
Halakolo, Mody Amin - “Asabny Waga3 Dakhel Alby Fahadny (Habibty Ezayek We Ezay Habibek Ba2a)”
Wasfi also recommends Halakolo and Mody Amin’s “Asabny Waga3 Dakhel Alby Fahadny.” “It’s super dark and depressing using one of the key themes in mahraganat: betrayal,” she explains. “The sounds and production are full of emotion that moves me every time.”
