Annemarie Jacir’s Salt of This Sea is now playing in U.S. theatres — check out this interview with her and make sure you support this film in any, and every city near you!

STATS
City to Film: Jaffa
Soundtrack: Blood on the Tracks
Mango or Guava: Mango. Definitely.

1. You are a screenwriter and director — do you enjoy one role more than the other?
I came into cinema as a screenwriter. I have always written and I cannot do anything if I cannot write. It’s a craft I have great respect for. Later, I worked as an editor and cinematographer — and never thought I was interested in directing until I was in film school. There I discovered the great joy of working with actors and how much I truly love directing — which combines all these elements. I continue to work as a freelance screenwriter for other people — writing scripts other people will direct. Everything is connected but everything is so different from each other and I enjoy it all.

2. Is there one particular actor or film that made you want to pursue this career?
No, there isn’t. There have been countless films, actors and directors who made me think of pursuing this career.

And more than that, there are poets, musicians and artists who helped me move forward and keep going.

3. How is SALT received differently in the U.S., Europe and the Middle East?
Salt of this Sea had a great reception in the Middle East and Europe. We’ve had a theatrical release in Spain, Belgium, Switzerland, Greece, India, Turkey, Holland, etc, and France where it stayed in the cinemas for four months. So the response was much better than I expected. The DVD release was also very good.

I went to an illegal DVD shop in downtown Amman and asked for the film. The guy didn’t know who I was but he gave me a copy and said it was his # 1 selling film. I asked him who directed it and he said ‘I don’t know. I think Suheir Hammad or Saleh Bakri but there’s this other strange name on the DVD — Annemarie — but I don’t know if that’s a man or a woman. I heard it was a woman.’

But these days, I’m especially excited about the U.S. release of the film! It’s been a long time coming! The U.S. has always been a much harder place for my films and the kind of work I am doing. I take it as a compliment. I mean, what else can I do?

4. What does SALT mean to you?
Salt of this Sea is the most difficult and most important project of my life to date. It means so much to me on so many different levels. The fact that the film exists is a miracle in many ways. It’s salty, it’s birth, death and continuation in the sea, and it’s ours.

5. Do you mind sharing the obvious obstacles in shooting SALT in Palestine?
It took five years to find the funding for the film and even in the end we did not complete our budget. We were forbidden from filming in 80% of our locations. Our cast and crew were denied permissions to move about. We applied for permits for the West Bank crew to leave Ramallah – every single one was denied. I was even forbidden from filming an aerial shot because they told me I have a “security issue.” And later I was refused permission to return to Palestine entirely — so the film was completed in France. I tried to make the film the “right way” — asking for permits, etc. But when so much was denied,

we had to make a decision — either we don’t make the film or we go ahead and do it sort of guerilla style. In fact, it’s a little like the film itself — Soraya tries to get her family’s money out of the bank legally, but when she is met with refusal…well, sometimes you just have to take things into your own hands.

6. What is your favorite song on last month’s FEN FIVE?
I never heard Mashrou’ Leila before and I love it. Great stuff! I want to hear more. But I gotta answer your question and Omar Offendum is not only a friend but he’s got something special — he’s smart, he’s fun, and he’s good. I’m loyal.

1. How did your story with art begin?
As a child, I particularly enjoyed drawing, and would often copy images from magazines or draw my family at home. At that time, I preferred to utilize watercolors on paper. Upon reaching secondary school, I was fortunate enough to benefit from the encouragement of my art teacher, who allowed me to use the studio at school. There, I was able to experiment with a wider range of media.

Later, as a young man studying archaeology, I encountered the ancient art of the Middle East – Sumerian sculptures, Assyrian reliefs and others – all of which heavily influenced my work, and continue to do so today. I was also increasingly fascinated by the old poetry and mythology of Mesopotamia, and began producing art based around the famous Gilgamesh epic. Other sources of inspiration include literature, for example the One Thousand and One Nights and Sufi texts.

2. You have been quoted as saying: “I may be British on paper, but in reality, I’m an Arab. The colors I use are also Arab.” What are Arab colors?
These are the colors of the Bedouins, of the desert. Almost all tribes, from Morroco to the Gulf, share a preference for warm colors – reds, oranges, yellows – in contrast to Europe, where pastels are more common. Such colors stand out against the neutral tones of the desert, and, indeed, Bedouins will often surround a black tent with textiles of vibrant colours, as if replicating a garden.

When the European artists of the Cobra Movement travelled to Africa, they returned with a completely new color palate incorporating these warmer hues that were so characteristic of the area.

Dafatir or Art Book

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4. You are known to be leader on the subject of the looting of the Museum of Iraq and the treasures of Mesopotamia. How have you been involved?
In terms of modern Iraqi art, I have in recent years been assisting Dr. Nada Shabout in this area. Difficulties arise as a result of the lack of documentation — pieces can spend several years wandering the market unnoticed. Initially, the early government could have prevented this by purchasing back the stolen items from the looters. In the long run, this would have in fact proved less costly, because the looters seldom possessed an understanding of the true value of the pieces.

5. You have produced numerous book illustrations for Contemporary Arab Literature. Can you elaborate on this experience?
Until the ’70s, I generated a lot of illustrations for poetry books or novels, perhaps because my interest in reading made me feel close to literature. However,

I wanted to take this idea further, to enter into a dialogue with the text rather than to simply illustrate it. The result was an abstract interpretation in shape and form,…

similar in concept to the work produced for my dafatirs. Thus, in order for the reader to properly appreciate the poem, an understanding of modern art is required.

The union of image and text adds another layer to be interpreted, draws on both forms to create a new, expressive vision.

6. Pierre Cardin bought two of your paintings in Paris. What were they?
Pierre Cardin is of course most renowned as a fashion designer, but he is also prominent for his work with furniture. The two paintings of mine that he bought from the Fiac Art Fair, and were later incorporated into his space at a furniture exhibition, as the colors of the paintings complemented those used for his furniture.

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About the Author: Ahmad Khodr Minkara is a U.S.-based writer and physician. This piece was originally published on Dia Magazine.

Photo courtesy Bering Photography

Randa Jarrar is the author of the critically acclaimed novel A Map of Home, which won a Hopwood Award, an Arab-American Book Award, and was named one of the best novels of 2008 by the Barnes and Noble Review. Her work has appeared in Ploughshares, Five Chapters, The Oxford American, The New York Times Magazine, The Utne Reader, and the Progressive. She has been chosen to take part in Beirut39, which celebrates the 39 most gifted writers of Arab origin under the age of 40. She currently lives in Austin, TX and took a break from her many projects to answer these 6Qs…

STATS
Favourite place in the Arab world: Beirut now.
Favourite book by an Arab author: Arabesques, by Anton Shammas
Jeem or Geem: Both!

1. You’re half-Egyptian and half-Palestinian. Despite being basically a full Arab, what are your favourite differences between the two?
Egyptians are so much funnier, I think. Palestinians are hotter (sorry, Egypt!) and their showers have better pressure. Maybe these things are related? My relationship with Egypt is physically stronger because I speak Arabic in Egyptian dialect, and I’ve gone there much more frequently.

2. As a Palestinian exiled to Canada via Kuwait (born there), I really related to your book because it dealt with identity. But in my opinion, it is difficult to claim a “quintessential” Palestinian identity because most of us are in exile and have to absorb a variety of cultures. How do you define your Palestinian identity and what are your thoughts on a universal Palestinian identity?
I think the only way to define Palestinian universal identity is to say that there is no such thing.

The moment you bulk people together is the moment you take away their humanity.

Meanwhile, I don’t necessarily think of myself as Palestinian. I don’t pretend to have suffered the way my relatives in Jenin have; or the way Palestinians in Gaza suffer today. I want to write a short film one day about a Palestinian-American who returns to Palestine (specifically, the West Bank) after she’s inherited some land, and the fiasco that ensues with her family members. It’ll be a black comedy. The Palestinian writer Adania Shibli inspired the idea when we were sitting on a bench in Wales last month.

3. You are a single un-wed mother, and as we both know, this is an incredible taboo amongst the Arab community. How have you dealt with it?
I am actually a twice-wed mother. I was a single mother for 12 years, and although having a baby out of wedlock is taboo, I’ve recently discovered that a huge percentage of Egyptian women are divorced mothers. So single parenthood is actually becoming a very common situation for women all over the world. The first time I took my son back to the Middle East, my family treated me the way they always did. I think if I hadn’t married his father (however briefly) things would have been different.

4. On some occasions you stated that you and your father have a rocky relationship. How do you feel this relationship with him has contributed to your overall writing?
Every act of writing is a betrayal, and I have never been interested in being a good girl. My father was always my first critic (and believe me, he criticized everything) so I think

that taught me to have a thick skin, to be strong, disciplined, and ruthlessly brave. These are all traits every writer needs to cultivate to succeed.

5. Did you ever have doubt or fear about publishing A Map of Home because of the subjects it tackled?
No. I knew there were certain people who were going to have a problem with it, and I simply don’t share the same values with them. I was in fact, very excited for it to be published.

6. What’s your next project?
I’ve written a collection of stories, and I’m finishing a new novel about a young single mother in Michigan and her magical baby son, and doing research for a new novel set in New York City during World War II.

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About the Author: Danah Abdulla was not born in Canada but has lived here since the age of two. A Palestinian with a degree from the University of Ottawa in something other than Engineering (Mass Communications, minor Commerce), she lives in Toronto but is currently roaming the Middle East. She’s a freelance writer and blogger. She likes to doodle, read, make jokes and dance.

Omar Offendum

1. This is your first solo album. Can you talk about the transition from previous albums to SyrianamericanA?
Yes, this is the first time I’ve done an album entirely myself. Everything else prior has been collaboration, whether with Mr. Tibbz and the NOMADS, which was the first album I did, or the Arab Summit, or Free the P. Everything is a step to learn from, and build on. It took the making of those albums to find my own voice. Working with those guys and performing around the world, I was able to find what I was comfortable performing by not saying the type of messages I was well equipped to deliver, or saying ones I felt were not necessarily my thing. So yea, I definitely found my comfort zone on this album, where I’ve been able to tell stories that describe my worldview that go back and forth between the Middle East and the U.S.

2. Your audience is a part of a community that’s all over the place, who can understand being “back and forth.” Does that inspire the album?
Exactly.  It’s not such a unique feeling to be spread out across the globe, but something everyone can relate to nowadays, especially our community. Most of my immediate family lives in the Middle East. My mother and sister live in Damascus, and my other sister lives in Dubai. I have one brother who lives in Boston now. We are all over the place, and I think you get that feeling on this album when you hear it.

That back and forth is part of the album, but in a fluid way. It’s about finding a home wherever you are.

LISTEN to “Destiny” from SyrianamericanA and check the video out here >>

3. Describe SyrianamericanA.

SyrianamericanA is a nation-state of mind where everything is connected and everyone is welcome.  It’s a trip to Syria through an American’s eyes, and a trip to America through a Syrian’s eyes.

I feel as American as I do Arab, and I think that’s clear on the album. And it’s done with respect to hip-hop, not as some Arabic fusion project. I’m proud that the lyrics stand on their own, but there’s also a lot of great production on the album.  I made some of the beats, and a beat maker from Montreal by the name of Habilis also did quite a few of the beats. He does a really good job pulling beats from Barbara Streisand to Armando Manzanero, which sounds random but he knows how to create a mood. Some beats also came from an up and coming producer called Oddisee in D.C., and also beats from a kid living in Tunisia, who I met online. The Internet helps shrink the globe.

4. You breathe new life into the essence of hip-hop, and also bring back poets and artists of our parents’ generation like Nizar Qabbani…
I often try to tell stories on an album. I translate in both languages where I can switch from one to the other through poetry.  I conjured up a story about three individuals I met on an ancient street in Damascus, one of the oldest streets in the world.  There’s also an Arabic tale Magnoon Layla, an old story of star-crossed lovers that I thought would be cool to flip to a hip-hop song.

There generally is not a lot of storytelling in hip-hop these days, even though that’s one of the reasons I was so drawn to it.  A lot of what I hear has to do with bragging, as opposed to continuing an ancient, oral tradition that really pre-dates hip-hop.  Hip-hop is the modern incarnation of music like jazz, blues, rock ‘n’ roll, or even older African and Middle Eastern traditions.

5. Is there a difference between your Arab audience in the Middle East and the U.S.?
There are similarities between both because both are well versed on all things Western. Middle Easterners watch American TV and listen to American music. Then you have people here [in the U.S.] sticking very closely to their Arab tradition and culture. Over the years, I’ve found that I can perform the same material anywhere I go, and because I’m comfortable representing an honest expression of myself wherever I am, I don’t have to change too much. I can perform the same stuff about Damascus in D.C. or Damascus, and people still appreciate the music and the message. I’ve performed in Arabic in the U.S., and Americans who don’t know what I’m saying tell me ‘that’ was their favorite song because it sounded different or was a faster rhythm. It’s not an entire set in Arabic, and they’re able to relate to everything else being said.

6. You’re part of what I call an underground mainstream. Can you speak to that?
I credit the Internet for making that possible, it’s shaken up the old record label system. There are only a handful of artists who are really huge and selling platinum records, and that’s not something you necessarily have to aspire to because you can build a core fan base and develop a following over the years.

You don’t have to compromise your own integrity or beliefs, and you can do it all at home because technology is much more accessible.

Also because of the internet, I can have fans here and in the Middle East. None of this was possible 10-15 years ago, when you would have needed to get your demo to a record label. And I’m really fortunate to have people who find my music entertaining and relevant enough to want to invite me to perform all over the world. I also think it’s important that the main bread and butter should come from performance. Anybody can put out an album, but I always felt there has to be promotion for what you can really offer. I personally feel it forces you to work on your craft.

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About the Author: Born and raised in Southern CA, Lana Daoud can find herself at home just about anywhere. She has a degree in History with a minor in Middle East Studies, and is currently a fellow of NewGround: A Muslim-Jewish Partnership For Change based in Los Angeles. Home is where the next great experience lies, heart belongs to her nieces, roots are in Palestine.

Narrative Filmmaker Ziad Hamzeh

1. I understand you were just in Tunisia. What took you there?
Every year, the Tunisian Spring Film and Arts festival chooses distinguished artists to recognize their contribution to the worlds of cinema and art.

This year, I got the spotlight. It’s not for one specific work, but in recognition of the collective works of my whole career.

2. That’s quite an accomplishment. I also understand that the Atrash family sold you the rights to tell the story of  singer and actress Asmahan. How did that feel?
In 2001, I returned to my homeland for the first time since leaving in the early seventies to attend the Damascus International Film Festival as an honoree. While I was there, Mamdoh Al Atrash and his brother approached me and asked me to help the production of the series Asmahan. I was not available, and also had some reservations about doing Asmahan as a TV series — she has such an overwhelming personality that I wasn’t sure the small screen could really hold her powerful presence. But when I was in Damascus filming Women, Mamdoh approached me again, giving me nearly 80 signatures from the Al Atrash family asking me to create a work that would do justice to this great woman.

The need to find the balance in this story while not defeating the very essence of being asked to direct this film presented me with one of the most challenging feats I have faced. The script is finally finished and I feel very good about the outcome. Now, the next task of development seems even more challenging as I try to assemble an international cast and crew who will be as dedicated to this story as I am!

3. How do you think a Western audience will react to an English movie about Asmahan?

The prevailing idea of Arab women ignores that we have our own share of brilliant, history-making women. Asmahan can rattle those old ideas and help shape new ones. Presenting a dynamic Arab woman character in a dazzling cinematic production could be the perfect way to take ownership of our own image.

4. What made her such a legend, particularly considering how young she was when she died?
Asmahan possessed a courage that other women were afraid to seek but were desperate to know. She rebelled against anyone who attempted to dominate her. By being a real woman — of substance, of nobility, of character — Asmahan paved a path of promise for the generations of women who came after her.

5. What is different about your version of the Asmahan story than others that have been told before?
I was given more private information than any story could hold. More importantly, I wanted to be as courageous as Asmahan herself and not shy away from events that might be deemed controversial. Yet I am not giving her entire biography, after all

I have 90 minutes to tell her life, so my choice of the events will focus the story on the extraordinary rather than a comprehensive play-by-play of her life.

6. You founded the Open Fist Theatre Company in LA. It’s been very successful — what do you think has made it so?
I created the company with a group of artists shortly after finishing my MFA in 1989. I made the decision to build the company in the midst of Hollywood despite the outcries that we would not survive for one month in that environment. I took a closed building that used to belong to Bob Hope and Houdini and renovated the entire Quonset hut, and we worked 18-hour days as we prepared for our first production, Sam Shepard’s True West. Now, the company is celebrating its 20th anniversary — it’s a visionary organization.

For more on Hamzeh, visit hamzehmystiquefilms.com >>

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About the Author: Ahmad Khodr Minkara is a U.S.-based writer and physician. This piece was originally published on Dia Magazine.

1. The fact that you have illustrated aspects of your Arab and American identity is amazing. What are some of the reactions you’ve received?
In general, the reception has been very, very positive. I have to admit that I was mostly worried about showing the comics to my family, since the stories have much to do with them (directly and indirectly). Since they don’t live near me, they only had a chance to see them when I had already published them in book form… probably not the best way to let a person know they’re featured in a body of work, in retrospect! But they took it well and like the work, so I breathed a sigh of relief.

I’ve also been thrilled about the positive feedback I’ve gotten from Arab-Americans who have read it. My original intention was to make the comic personal to my experiences but still have an “Arab 101″ feel for folks who aren’t as well-versed in the community.

2. Many Arabs claim that after 9/11 they felt it was important for them to educate Americans about being Arab and American by paralleling the two identities. Did the events of 9/11 play a role in the creation of The Hookah Girl?
9/11 was very, very important in its creation. I like to say that 9/11 helped me “come out of the closet” as an Arab-American. For the longest time, I would shun Palestinian-Israeli politics because it brought up so many strong emotions in people, which is something I was always bad at handling — in fact, I’m still working on it. I was also afraid of being treated differently if it came up, so I simply never talked about being Arab, let alone Arab politics.

The thing that really set me off was right after 9/11, when friends started advising me to tell people I wasn’t an Arab (’especially not a Palestinian!’) if asked. I know they said these things with good intentions, but it helped me realize that A) I am a rational person B) I have nothing to hide and C) I’m in a position to help alleviate fear for everyone’s benefit, and I must take advantage of that.

Leila

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I wish that there was more of a concerted effort to study current art worldwide to understand a culture, similar to how art historians/anthropologists study older work. Sometimes drawings are so much easier to understand than words.

6. Can you give us a look into your future projects?
I’m in the process of doing tons of research for a Silk Road comic I’d like to do next. There’s a lot to learn, and I want to make it right, so this will be slow going!

Browse more of Marguerite’s work on her site >>

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About the Author: Danah Abdulla was not born in Canada but has lived here since the age of two. A Palestinian with a degree from the University of Ottawa in something other than Engineering (Mass Communications, minor Commerce), she lives in Toronto but is currently roaming the Middle East. She’s a freelance writer and blogger. She likes to doodle, read, make jokes, and dance.

Dena El Saffar

STATS
Group hangout/rehearsal space: Dena and Tim’s living room
Describe your sound in three words: Middle Eastern – Fusion
First instrument you each ever played: Dena – violin, Tim – drum set

LISTEN: “Hadha Mu Insaaf Minnek”

1. How did Salaam come about?
Salaam started as an idea in my mind. I envisioned a group of capable, like-minded and versatile musicians who could play Arabic and Middle Eastern music authentically, as well as explore other styles with ease; musicians who could sight read anything! And I am happy to say that’s what I got. Tim Moore and I are the core of the band, and we work with numerous talented people, including Turkish, Iraqi, Palestinian, Syrian, Jordanian, Tunisian, Kurdish and American musicians.

2. What does music mean to you, what does Arabic music mean to you?
Music, what can I say, it’s my life! Music offers a magical way to communicate, and some of the best things that ever happened to me were through music. I love Classical music (I have a degree in Classical Music performance from Indiana University) and other styles, but to me,

Arabic music is the deepest style of music I know. There is so much to it, you can never stop learning.  The maqam system is wonderful in that it has clear structure and yet is still open for self expression, making it wonderfully compelling and complex.

Music is also a way to feel the connection with my Iraqi roots.  I miss Iraq terribly, and I am thankful that playing the music can fill a little of that void.

3. What kind of feedback do you get from audiences in the Midwest?
There is a growing Arabic population in the Midwest, but it is very much a minority. The population at large is undereducated about the Middle East, and so music is a nice gateway into the culture.

Salaam created an education show for elementary students called Middle Eastern Musical Journey to help expose young people to the beauty of the music and the attractiveness of the culture. Many people really like Arabic music, not even knowing what it is. Many times I have been asked, “What is that music you’re playing?  I really like it!”

4. What is the key to a good rehearsal?
Staying focused, and perfecting the details of a piece.  Not getting distracted by socializing, because we all enjoy one another’s company. On the other hand, it is important that we all get along and have fun — an audience can tell if the people on stage are friends and get along well.  Having an agenda, with sheet music on hand and possible listening examples always ensures that a lot will get done.

5. How do you go about composing for Salaam?
Composing for me is an organic process that starts when I am practicing my instrument, usually when I am alone.  I start to improvise, and something I really like happens, and I play it again, try to add cadences or things that might make the music repeat, or move on to a new melody. Then I try to write it down before I forget, or record it on a little recording device. Later, I invite my band mates to embellish and bring any inspired ideas, though if it’s my piece, I get the final say.

LISTEN: “Layla” – Composed by Dena

6. What can Salaam fans look forward to next?
We are heading back to the recording studio to work on our next CD, which will be all original compositions — inshallah!

Gaida

1. What was the vision you had when you were putting your debut album Levantine Indulgence together?
Little stories from my life, dreams, nostalgia, memories of loss and pain, and lots of love and forgiveness.

My songs were already there, I just put some on a CD to share.

2. What does the title Levantine Indulgence mean to you?
The beauty of the fertile crescent– the Levant where I came from — I indulge myself in it when I sing and I don’t hold back. I love as much as I can and I feel home inside my songs.

3. You have wonderful stage presence — what do you do to prepare for a performance?
I get out of myself — I get out of my own way — and I look forward to connecting with my audience.  I read verses from the Qur’an before going on stage, make sure I feel the floor with my feet and try to align with the universe.  I also make sure I have my lyrics with me…

4. How do you find a balance between Eastern and Western in your work?
There is no such thing in music. Music is a comfortable place for everyone…we get together, we play, and we all fall into that comfortable zone where it sounds good and feels good.

What comes out of the heart, goes to the heart and what sounds good to your ear sets the rules.

5. What are the challenges of your field and how do you overcome them?
One challenge is booking concerts in areas that are not familiar with Arabic music. In general, presenters don’t like to take a risk with unfamiliar music. This makes it difficult for us to open new frontiers. So, we mostly perform in areas that we have built up an audience such as New York, the Midwest and California.

Of course, this always brings the question of ‘do I have to sing in English in order to reach out to the mainstream?’ But I believe that our music is captivating and comes from our heart, which makes it universal and carries a language of its own that every one can feel in their hearts. People who don’t speak Arabic have cried in my concerts…

and have clapped and danced as well. Whenever presenters give us a chance in new areas even when the audiences are not familiar with Arabic music, we always break new ground and build new fans. People simply love it. And this inspires me.

6. If you weren’t singing — what would you be doing?
Currently I’m a speech pathologist and a voice coach. I could have also been an emergency room doctor or an interior designer.

Singing doesn’t stop me from doing my professional job. I will always sing. I was born to sing. It is the essence of my existence and I have no choice but to exist.

For more on Gaida, visit www.gaidamusic.com/

STATS
Instruments: Qanun and Voice
Song: “Felasteen” by Najat Brigui
Movie: Jenin, Jenin



1. What comes easier to you — the qanun or singing?
Throughout the years, I’ve worked hard on both instruments and balanced the time I spent practicing on each, to keep both of them alive and up to date. And now after 11 years I’ve reached the level where I feel that my qanun is an extension of my vocal cords, and most of the time while playing qanun, I sing the melodies I’m playing to feel it more.

2. It’s obvious music has always been part of your life — how has that made you who you are?
Music indeed has always been a very important part of my life. And since childhood it has been a major part of my identity.

Sometimes I imagine if I never found music, or music never found me, my life would have taken a very different path.

Music has cleared my soul, added happiness and confidence to my life. And it also opened up my mind to absorb diversity and look at things differently. And this has created a sort of sensitivity inside me towards any piece of art. Therefore, I’m very happy with the results.

3. What is the role of the qanun in Western music?
Qanun is a purely Eastern instrument in comparison to the violin, flute, or clarinet that are major instruments in both Eastern and Western music; being used in orchestra and the Arabic ensemble (takht sharki) as well. Before joining Berklee College of Music, I was focusing on learning Arabic music and going in depth to learn all the skills and knowledge in that deep ocean and only listening to other styles. After joining Berklee and getting exposed to all these different kinds of music, I felt it was a big loss not being aware that all those kinds of music existed, and this lack of information I believe is a problem that should be solved in Palestine. But now, I feel that Arabic music has made me unique and special. Qanun has a very special timbre that fits with different styles of music. And now at Berklee I’ve played with many different ensembles and styles such as South American, Middle Eastern, Turkish, Indian, Brazilian, French Folk music, African, Spanish Flamenco, Jazz, etc. Many professionals admire this merge.

4. Do you ever get homesick? And how do you deal with it?
Yes, of course I get this feeling and miss my family and my friends whom I spent special times with. During the day with all the work at school, I don’t even get the chance to think. But every night when I put my head on the pillow, I fly back home and remember all the great times with them. And the most critical times when I really need them around is when doing a great concert. I always feel that their seats are empty.

And I miss all the positive energy they give me. And I deal with this, with more hard work to make them proud.

5. What can we look forward to from you in the coming years?
Everyday I gain more knowledge, and I learn about new music and cultures.

I’m working as hard as I can to represent my culture and our rich music in the best possible way. And we will see where this will take me. I always enjoy surprises.

6. If you could compose a soundtrack for any movie, which would it be and why?
I would compose a sound track for a documentary about my country. There is a lot of sadness in my soul towards all the suffering, the terrible daily events and the world’s silence against peace…

STATS
First Hip-Hop Record: The Notorious B.I.G.’s Juicy
Movie: The Godfather Part 2
Favorite Rapper’s Favorite Rapper: Biggie

1. How did Re-Volt start?
The idea for Re-Volt came up when I first heard The Narcicyst and K’naan. I just connected with what they had to say and I asked myself, “Why cant I hear these songs on FM radio?” Since all radio stations play the same rotation of songs without exposing new talent and songs that have a message, etc…I decided to do something about it. So I started the “Re-Volt Radio” blog to introduce artists I find, talk about them, interview them and stream their songs on the site.

2. Why hip-hop? Do you have plans to expand into other genres?
Actually hip-hop is just a part of Re-Volt. Lately, the main focus is hip-hop, only because I got introduced to this movement and these artists that are of Arab backgrounds reflecting a good image about Arabia. But Re-Volt is and will be expanding into other genres that harbor good talents, new artists and fresh music. Also I not only interview the artists themselves, but the people who are documenting and supporting the movement.

3. What’s the best thing happening in Arab Hip-Hop right now?
Well, the recognition is high for sure. I mean The Narcicyst is opening for Talib Kweli. Arab Hip-Hop artists are releasing albums, Lowkey made it on TV and BBC Radio for an epic performance, so many good things are happening.

4. What’s the biggest challenge?
Promoting the artists in the Middle East. This is what Re-Volt wants to grow into. I want to be able to get all these guys to perform in the Middle East, and I find that very challenging because sponsors look for commercial and mainstream artists. It’s sad, actually. On another level, the challenge for the artists is to maintain their path and reach success yet stay humble and modest.

5. Who’s your favorite Radio/TV personality or show host?
I’m a basketball fanatic – I like the NBA presenters, I relate to them. I really like Mark Jackson – I love how passionate he gets during the game, being an ex-player himself.

6. Tell me about the mixtape…
The mixtape came together in an attempt to gather the Arab Hip-Hop artists into one single track mixed by DJ Lethal Skillz who actually is a big part of why this was launched. It includes top heads of the Arab Hip-Hop genre. I have been getting amazing feedback and we are trying to make it downloadable so that people can enjoy it and blast it in their cars and MP3 players. Big shout out to Lethal SKillz and all the artists in this movement.

Ultimately the mixtape was created to expose Arab and pro-Arab talents worldwide, elevate the sounds of the Arab mixtape culture, encourage the DJs to step their game up and to keep your ears busy with the good stuff!

Check out Re-Volt Radio and listen to The Real Arabic Hip-Hop Mixed Tape here >>

The Narcisyst ft. Shadia Mansour – “Hamdulillah“

1. How did you get into music?
I come from a musical family, so I grew up listening to the legends of the Arabic music world. I was always very political, so I used to go to protests and demonstrations and sing a capellas of Fairouz and Marcel Khalife songs. Then when I was 17, I met Eslam Jawaad and we collaborated on a song called “Beirut” — that was the first Arabic hip-hop track that I did. Then I joined the group he was part of that was called Arap, which consists of Cilvaringz and Salah Edin. I was the only female in the group at the time, and I combined the singing and the rapping together.

2. Do you strictly write conscious songs?
No, I don’t see myself under any category.

I have released conscious, political songs only because I felt like as an Arab at this point in time, there’s a duty, and I had to address certain issues. Because this is my life, it’s my experiences.

Before I got to the age where I was really starting to look at myself as an Arab, I wasn’t really thinking about trying to defend our culture, I was just proud. I was 16 when 9/11 happened — that made me feel more Arab than any time in my life, and after that I felt like I really had to make it known and claim back our culture and our tradition and our civilization.

3. Do you write/perform in English?
I started doing music in English, but I was always intrigued by the Arabic language. I’m the most fluent of my siblings and I was more connected — I spent a lot of time in Palestine when I was young, and I just felt I could express myself better in Arabic. I feel Arabic, I feel Palestinian. It sounds strange, but when I talk, I think in Arabic.

4. Who are your biggest influences in Hip-Hop?
I could always relate to Public Enemy. That’s always been my number one choice of music. Tupac, I could really relate to. Much respect to Biggie ’cause whenever we say Tupac we have to say Biggie, but to be honest I’m not into gangster rap. I would buy it, but I don’t feel I can relate — ’cause I’m not a gangster, I’m not from the street and everything else that comes with it. Tupac really focused on issues that were happening, and I really admired him for that. People like KRS-One — just teachers, educators…Lauryn Hill was one of my biggest influences — biggest biggest influences. In a way, actually, I’m glad she’s not making music right now, only because I feel like I wouldn’t want to know how the industry would try and mold her in terms of sound. I will play that [The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill] forever, and that’s how I like to remember her, that music is just timeless.

I’ve always loved hip-hop. I never called it old school, for me it’s real school. Something that had substance in it.

6. You’re independent — have you ever thought about going major?
I’ve thought about it and I’ve tried, but they wont sign me. They want me to wear the Nancy Agram dress instead of the Palestinian dress. I laugh at that, ’cause I’m too old for that type of propaganda. Even if I was under a label, I’m very particular about my kind of music.

Her book, Ordinary Lives was selected as one of the Best Books of 2009 by Photo-Eye Magazine. “In my work I am only looking at human beings, at mothers, at children, at families and people trying to go on with their lives regardless of their political affiliations and religion,” she says. “We are connecting at a personal and human level. When we put politics on the side, we can look at people’s faces and eyes and see the person — a person who is just like us.

“We can see a person’s humanity. What drove me to this work in the first place is that I grew tired of the politics of this whole area, of politicians and their slogans, and lumping people into one category or another.”

Check out the exclusive gallery Rania shared with us >>

STATS
Window or Aisle Seat: Aisle
Favorite Magazine/Newspaper: Aperture Magazine/NY Times
No morning is complete without: Coffee

1. If a picture is worth a thousand words, which ones reappear in describing your work and why?
I hope the words that would reappear in my work are:

humanity, dignity, resilience, beauty and vulnerability.

I like to photograph people, to show them in their surroundings and to show the beauty in everyday ordinary moments of life. This would apply to my work in Lebanon, in the Palestinian refugee camp, and in the aftermath of war. There is beauty in humanity and one just has to take the time to find it. There is dignity, resilience and humanity in all those simple mundane moments of a mother nursing her baby in the refugee camp, of the girl bringing a smile to her mother’s face in front of a background of destruction, of a girl juggling in a building where all the walls have been blown off.

It also applies to my new body of work “A Girl and her Room,” in the sense that I am looking for the beauty and the complexity of the teenage-self without any judgment associated with it. I am portraying those girls in their element, in their very private and personal surroundings; by themselves, vulnerable and free of any preconception associated with teenagers.

2. How has your background in architecture influenced your work as a photographer?
I studied architecture and combined it with numerous art classes in college — mainly painting; the combination of all this has been extremely influential in my photography in terms of seeing. Looking at everything from composition, texture, and light, to framing an image became second nature.

3. What are the challenges when photographing live subjects? Especially people — and how do you overcome them?
I truly enjoy photographing people. I don’t think of it as a challenge. I am drawn to people, to what they do, how they behave, etc. I am drawn to people in their surroundings. I am very aware of how I frame each image and where the person is in the photo.

In the more intimate and interior shots, access is the most important part and the biggest challenge. Once access is granted, it is up to me to make sure the people I am photographing are comfortable with me around. I need to earn their trust and make sure they know that I respect them, and I try to make myself invisible. I build a personal relationship with the people I photograph. I always go back and visit and I always keep in touch and send images.

It is very important to me that the people I photograph understand that I am not just looking at them as subjects but as human beings with a story to tell.

I listen to their stories and take their cues of what they feel comfortable portraying. It can feel very vulnerable being photographed and observed by someone, so I really have to create a relationship of trust and comfort.

4. You teach photography to young girls in refugee camps — tell us about that.
I just started this past summer in 2009. I worked with teenage girls in the Palestinian refugee camps in Beirut with the assistance of the Norwegian People’s Aid. I thought girls often have fewer opportunities and that teenagers would be perfect for this — photography could also be an accessible way for them to find a way to express themselves and portray their everyday lives. It was a huge success and I tremendously enjoyed working with the girls. The equipment was pretty basic, so it wasn’t as much about teaching them about the rules of photography as much as teaching them how to see, how to frame, how to edit and how to create a final body of work they can be proud of. The variety of projects that came out in the end was very impressive.

5. Can you ever shut your “photographer’s eye” or are you constantly looking for the next picture?
I never shut my photographer’s eye. It does get exhausting sometimes but at the same time, I wish I would never shut my photographer’s eye. It keeps me seeing life, beauty and uniqueness around me. Even if I don’t have my camera, I see the picture.

6. What does a photographer see that others don’t?
I am sure every photographer will have a different answer. For me, I tend to notice the beauty and quirkiness of human behavior, those funny little beautiful fleeting moments that come and disappear, that a camera can grasp in fractions of a second.

For more on Rania Matar, visit www.raniamatar.com >>

Purchase Ordinary Lives here >>

STATS
Place to compose: Airport lounge
Favorite Sound: Rain
Favorite Fruit: Newest favorite is mango


Kinan Azmeh’s City Band – “Merkin”



1. You’re working on several projects right now — tell us a little about each.
My City Band project, in which I am joined by a New York-based trio — Kyle Sanna, (guitar) John Hadfield (percussion) and Josh Myers (bass) — is my newest. We just performed at the Library of Congress and will be on our first European tour in November. It is an exciting project for me as

I am joined by very energetic players who have no boundaries, we are not preoccupied by what musical genre or geographical affiliation we belong to, therefore it is very fresh and exciting. The music itself borrows elements from Arabic music, jazz, and free improvisations.

In the meantime, I am completing film scores for three films, one American documentary, one Iranian feature, and one Syrian short. All this while I am also on tour releasing my newest album Complex Stories, Simple Sounds with Sri Lankan Pianist Dinuk Wijeratne (we just had our European launch at the Berlin Philharmonic).

Kinan Azmeh and Dinuk Wijeratne – “Ibn Arabi Postlude”

2. You studied physics/engineering  — how did you end up becoming a professional musician?
I actually did my undergrad in both, music and electrical engineering, so I never think of it as ‘I started’ and ‘I ended up.’ I think of everything you do as being an essential part of how you evolve. I am sure that if I spoke Russian some of the sounds of the language would find some way into my music. And I am sure my electrical engineering degree is there somehow while I’m creating my musical ideas. When I finished my undergrad I did not think twice before applying to music schools for my higher education. I was and still am very much obsessed with physics but I guess my music obsession is the same multiplied by a hundred. The transition was clear after winning the Nicolay Rubinstein music competition in Moscow when I was 21, it gave me enough self confidence and courage to pursue the thorny future that comes with music.

3. You have a very versatile playing style — what do you attribute that to?
I don’t believe in divisions of styles. While I do understand when people say classical music sounds different from jazz, rock, etc, I don’t really understand when people think that you can do either one or the other.

I like the idea of the diverse musician who maneuvers freely between seemingly contrasting worlds, music is music after all.

I got exposed to lots of different music growing up: I was classically trained in Syria, a country known for deep traditions in Arabic classical music, yet I was also exposed to jazz, rock, Eastern European folk and techno. Later on, I found myself using elements of these styles subconsciously. I love it when people come to me after a performance and say, ‘Was this piece inspired by such and such?’ Lots of the times they mention elements that I was not aware existed!

I never worry about to what genre this piece of music will belong, it is not up to me after all, the listener is the one who is creating the musical experience with his/her ears and brain, and it is only him/her who will have the power of associations.

5. Your piece, “Airports” is one of our favorites — please tell us the story behind it for our readers.

Having lived between New York and Damascus for the past 10 years, I have made JFK my main hub when I come to New York. Usually, in every airport in the world there are two lanes, a lane for visitors and a lane for citizens. Every time I land, I go to the visitors lane as I am on a visa, and when I show my Syrian passport, it is as if a third lane opens up and I am sent to a room on the side where I get questioned. This is the same room where I meet friends from Iran, Iraq, Cuba, Sudan, North Korea, etc. They keep you waiting for hours sometimes. After a few years of doing this I decided to start using my time creatively, and so I wrote “Airports.” I am always keen on playing this piece everywhere I go as a means of musical protest. I usually ask the audience to sing along and I dedicate it to all those people I meet in that famous room — people who do not have the means to protest from a stage like I am privileged to have.

6. If you weren’t making music — what would you be doing?
I would either be a chef in a little, tiny restaurant (where it is the chef who brings the food to the customers — you know, I still cannot let go of the show part!!), or a farmer.

For more on Kinan, visit www.kinanazmeh.com >>

DAM – “Kalimat (Words)”


STATS
Group Hangout: NYC
Best cook in the group: Tamer – “I’m the only one who can cook”
Favorite Rapper(s): Tamer – Lupe, Mahmoud – K’naan

1. Tell us about your humanitarian project and poetry teaching workshops.
We go to kids from broken homes and show them that we come from the same neighborhood, from the same situation, and that the world is bigger than where we live. Basically we go in and show them that they can write their own rhymes. We give them a word and everyone throws in their own word. Then you’re just rhyming ’cause when you drop 10 words, a few of them gotta rhyme. Then we show them that they can write it, then we teach them how to flow with it. And suddenly kids come to us with full songs, asking how they can record and where can we perform. When there are festivals, kids who didn’t know anything about hip-hop want to do shows.

2. How did Slingshot Hip-Hop affect your experience as artists?
We see Slingshot Hip-Hop as the degree. You suffer five years in college and you study and work hard and sometimes you’re just exhausted and you cannot go on, and suddenly Slingshot Hip-Hop comes along and it’s like ‘hey, here’s your degree man, here’s your marks, you’ve been doing well, we see your life.’

Not many people have the privilege to see their life and achievements documented. At some points you are so weak and suddenly you are watching yourself in a big film that makes you strong, so it just gives you the feeling that you can get over it.

And it really opened the door for us in the USA. Ever since Jackie dropped Slingshot Hip-Hop, we’ve been doing two or three tours a year. We’ve been big in Europe and the Middle East, but it really opened the door to America and Canada.

3. What can fan look forward to next?
The next album! We’re working on it, were halfway. It’s gonna be very different, we are working with very big artists, like Rachid Taha, and we have Trio Gibran — three brothers from Nazareth who play the Oud. The album will be very musically creative. It’s very different from the first album where we are just throwing words; now we are storytelling.

4. If there was just one thing you want people to know about Palestine/Palestinians, what would it be?
Ashab haq. People with cause.

5. Favorite on-stage moment?
Mahmoud – in the Basque Country, we performed with Farmin Maragoza, and there was like 50,000 people. It was a really good experience.

Tamer – My favorite moment is when people get the punch lines and start laughing and whispering. I love punch lines. So when I work hard on them and people respond immediately, I appreciate that.

6. Writer/Scholar Reza Aslan was in Israel a couple of weeks ago — upon his return he said, “as depressed as I was about the two-state solution prospects, I couldn’t help but notice that the most popular hip-hop act in Israel was a Palestinian group called DAM.” What do you guys have to say about that?

Whenever you are popular that’s good. I would say that we’ve been noisy. Nobody gave a damn about destroying the houses in our town, so they never came to document it. So I invited the top celebrities of Israel to the neighborhood for a bus tour, that dragged at least eight of the top media over there. So we know how to make buzz — when you speak with full confidence with a cause it creates buzz.

I appreciate that, it makes me proud. A lot of times, you just say ‘damn what am I doing? Am I doing it right?’ And when you hear stuff like that, it’s not money, it’s not a prize, it’s not an Oscar, it’s just just a compliment. When you hear that youre like ‘cool’.

Simona Abdallah

1. How were you introduced to playing the tablah (darbuka)?
There are always so many weddings and parties to attend as an Arab, and it was during these weddings that the percussion player would fascinate me. It’s so little, yet so powerful — so many tones and beats. I started to play at around 14 years, and always listened to classical Arabic. It was a bit difficult with my upbringing to go out much, so I learned to play what I heard in my room.

2. How much did your choice of instrument have to do with shaping your identity?
I had to follow my dreams even if it was going to be rough. I asked myself what would be the worst thing to happen? People are going to talk? When I have interviews with Danish media, I have to explain how my family didn’t allow me to play. But I really don’t care, because people will talk no matter I do.

If I was married and had children, people were still going to talk. That’s how it is for an Arab girl. Today I’m very thankful to have this life, which I had dreamed of.

3. Is there a genre of music you would be curious to pair with the tablah?
I love old, classic Arabic music like Um Kulthoum.  I’m all for an Um Kulthoum remix done from a whole new perspective. Also remixes of the old songs by Abdel Haleem and the Rahbani Brothers. Originally, this is what inspired me — a love for mixing the traditional with the New Age beats and sounds. I’m curious about mixing anything with Arabic rhythms.

People want to be safe, and I say do something new, and just put it out there. Many cultures might identify with what they hear.

I also love to play with different musicians that have been playing jazz. A few days ago, I played with a oud player and a double bass/contra bass. It sounded so jazzy and special with just the three of us playing. I’m checking out electronic, indie, and ambient but that will take a little time. I love to get a piece of every culture, because there’s beauty in each culture.

5. What is Missing Voices?
After playing in public for five years, A Danish Muslim woman called me and said she’s starting a project. Even though I hate to use religion in what I’m doing, because it’s a private thing for me, she said she was collecting women who can play concerts all over the world to be an inspiration for Middle Eastern women. This includes concerts and workshops to help other women follow their dream. We have toured the UK and Holland, and will be in the Middle East, Sweden, and Norway this summer. It’s all about motivating women since there are often cultural preventions that keep them from believing in themselves. Whenever you hear about women from the Middle East, it’s always about how they’re victims. Missing Voices tries to be a role model, and help others reach goals in the process.

6. What has been the most interesting venue that you’ve played so far?
I have been part of the Middle East Peace Orchestra, which is a mix of Jews, Christians, and Palestinians playing for peace. One of my most unforgettable gigs was when we played for the Queen of Denmark. That was so much fun! We played, and then there was a reception where we all had to face her. We’re not allowed to stand to our back to her, or the prince, so there she was right in front of us!

________________________________________________________________________________

About the Author: Born and raised in Southern CA, Lana Daoud can find herself at home just about anywhere. She has a degree in History with a minor in Middle East Studies, and is currently a fellow of NewGround: A Muslim-Jewish Partnership For Change based in Los Angeles. Home is where the next great experience lies, heart belongs to her nieces, roots are in Palestine.

STATS:
Now playing? Beyonce – “Halo”
Favorite singer(s)? Beyonce, Lara Fabien, Aretha Franklin
Breakfast, lunch or dinner? Breakfast

1. How did you get into music?
I was always singing. I started writing songs when I was seven or eight. I’d hear a song on the radio, then I would re-write the lyrics to fit what I was going through. In high school I did a few talent shows, and then in university my path diverged as far as it could go from music (major: Microbiology). But then I was working at a restaurant, and

when we closed I would sing at the top of my lungs. And this waitress came to me and was like, ‘You need to do something with that voice.’  So she introduced me to her producer friend,

I did some backing vocals for his album, then six months later he calls me up and he goes, ‘Do you still sing?” And I’m like, ’Yeah.’ He goes, ‘Can you write?’ and I’m like, ‘Well, I’ve written in the past, I think I can write.’ And he goes, ‘Okay well, come to the studio, we’re opening a new label and we think you might be a good fit.’ So he gave me beats, I wrote to two of them, recorded them…they loved it, and that’s where it started.

2. What language do you prefer singing in? Writing in? Listening to?
I love languages. On my album, I have a little bit of Spanish – I learned Portuguese when I was in Brazil so I have a little bit of Portuguese. I can’t write in Arabic, but if someone writes something for me I’ll sing it. As long as it sounds nice, I can go back and forth between all the languages. I have no preference. I love writing in French, because making a song sound nice in French is a big challenge. I like French hip-hop a lot, I think very often it’s a little more profound.

The thing with French is the audience is so attentive to the words that there are a lot of things you can’t get away with that you totally could get away with in English. English is easier, it’s more universal.

So I really like both, or all three, or all four — it just depends on my mood and where the track is meant to be released. For ballads, Portuguese sounds very nice. The vowels — the way they pronounce the plosives is sweeter, they’re not as pronounced, which sounds very nice. Japanese sounds really nice in pop-rock.

3. Take us through your writing process…
If I’m inspired I’ll just write. Sometimes I’m inspired because I have an idea and I think it would be a good concept and then I try to find a beat that will suit it, or I write the idea down and keep it until I have a good track to put it on. And if I’m told, ‘Okay, we need one track in the next 14 days,’ I usually work very well under pressure.

4. What do you do when you have writer’s block?
I change the environment. I listen to more songs, so it gets my brain off that melody or off of that train of thought. I read a lot. I think that the fact that while you’re reading you don’t have to think about anything — you don’t have to create — it alleviates a little bit of the pressure. Or I talk to people. I ask them about their experiences and then it inspires me again.

a lot of my first tracks were inspired by stories. because I see a common denomitaor — I hear that story and I’m like, ‘oh, I think i’ve heard something similar, so it must be a general human feeling so if I write about that a lot of people will identify…’

5. What’s your ultimate goal, musically?
To perfect myself as an artist by collaborating with different artists and eventually finding a sound that people will recognize. It would be ideal to be touring worldwide…I’d like to have some more Arabic influence. I’m not the type of artist that’s going to be playing a role — it has to be me. Complex, but at the same time easy to define.

6. How was working with Karl [Wolf] on “Yalla Habibi”?
It was nice to work with someone who’s driven like that. I learned a lot from him ’cause he’s done a lot of his stuff on his own. After working with him, and being on the set with him, I understood why. He’s so focused, disciplined and driven. He knows what he wants and how to get it. He’s very inspiring and makes it look very achievable.

Meeting him made me realize that it was a little more accessible than I thought it was — it’s just that you have to do a lot of it yourself. Good encounter to have in the first couple months of a budding career.

STATS
Sonic or Mario: Mario, ’cause I look like him
Now playing: Drake – “Forever”
Train, plane or automobile: Automobile

1. Why comedy?
I actually decided that this was something I wanted to do at a Eid party. There were about 60-70 people there, and I didn’t prepare any notes or anything but they said, “Why don’t you get up there and crack a few jokes on people?” It ended up turning into a freestyle 45 minute set. When I went back and watched a tape recording I heard all the people laughing and I heard laughs that I didn’t recognize, loudly. So I thought maybe I could give it a chance. And one of Dean’s [Obeidallah] relatives happened to be there at the time. And that family was like, “You need to get into this.”

Whenever anybody approaches me, or walks by me or I see anything, I automatically think of like 20 things that are funny to the point where I will smile. And they’ll look at me and smile — but little do they know, I just thought of about 10 jokes about this person.

2. What makes you laugh?
What makes me laugh is people who are willing to laugh at themselves. Rather than be embarrassed, they have the ability to make fun of themselves. I also love when people impersonate others.

3. Your favorite comedians?
My favorites are Robin Williams, Richard Pryor, Chris Rock and Eddie Murphy. But just to make it interesting, I’d put Bill Cosby at the table instead of Eddie Murphy. Because I just want to see Bill sit cross from Richard. And Chris Rock there making commentary. And Robin would be the mediator.

4. What’s your biggest challenge with Arab crowds?
Personally, with Arab crowds — often times you have to show them that you’re laughing with them and not at them. And I think that’s the biggest challenge for me because no matter what I’m talking about, I want them to know that I’m son of these hills too, and I’m not just here ’cause there’s some tickets being sold.

I don’t want to get up there and make fun of things that I wouldn’t be able to stand by. That’s probably my biggest challenge because after the show they respect that.

5. What about non-Arab crowds?
It’s a similar challenge, except it’s flipped inside-out. I don’t want to get up in front of a non-Arab crowd and make them laugh at my culture. Whatever I’m gonna say, even though it’s comedy, they’re gonna take it to heart. So my biggest challenge is being an ambassador to my culture and staying true.

6. So who’s your ideal crowd?
I prefer any crowd who doesn’t know me very well. At the Big Brown Comedy Hour in New York, there were two girls standing there as I walked in, and one said, “Do you mind if we sit here? Cause it’s just a little bit dirty, do you think you could get someone to wipe this off?” So I walked over and I was like, “Here let me wipe that off for you.” Then at the end of the show, those same girls wanted a photo and an autograph. I said “I’m actually surprised you want to be photographed with the bus boy.” Out of the five major shows I’ve done, four of them I’ve been asked where my ticket was, and I love it.

Some people want to be that Arab comedian. I want to be that comedian that’s Arab.

Photo Courtesy Noor El Deeb

He lives, breathes, writes, draws, talks and walks the walk of artist. I met him in the newsroom of Egypt Today Magazine, where we both once worked as full-time staff writers…and part-time doodlers. This is when I first saw his artistic genius. So when I heard he was putting on his first exhibition titled “Three” opening April 21st at Studio 14 in Cairo, Egypt — all I could say was, “it’s about time.” It’s with great joy that I introduce you to my friend and artist Hassan Hassan.

Hassan grew up in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia — “which [is] actually not what a lot of people would imagine,” he says. “It was a great experience going to British school there, having so many different cultures right at my door step — with the Brits, the Lebanese, Americans and people from all walks of life in the Arab world.” As to how it influenced him, he says, “You don’t have many options outside of a certain routine growing up in the Gulf, so you get kind of into different things: cartoons, magazines, books, anything you can get your hands on.” You might want to keep that in mind as you check out his gallery of work (media used: markers, pens, pencil, acrylic, watercolor, poster paint, and even one with coffee and green tea…)

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1. What do you feel is the purpose of art? Or the artist?
Anything that has beauty in it is art. Personally, I hate forcing feelings and emotions on people, especially when it comes to art. Defining things is usually when they lose their meanings.

Art’s only purpose is inspiration and beauty can’t be defined.

As for the artist, it depends on the artist. I don’t have a message, I like to see what people get from it on their own without my input.

2. What inspires you?
Everything. Television shows, music videos, fashion magazines, clothes, moods, feelings, coffee, jokes. I love to think that you can get inspiration from anything and everything. I don’t like to limit myself.

3. Do you enjoy writing or drawing more?
They’re different. Writing is my vocation, its never been a creative process for me — but a job that requires creativity. Drawing has always been a kind of escape, to give myself the ability to kind of go into myself and just zone out. If i had to choose, it would be drawing for sure…I’m better at it.

4. Would you ever consider illustrating a cartoon?
A cartoon? Probably some hot chick that takes over the world and has some weird Russian name like “Lucrecia.” But it’s something I’ve always considered, I always wanted to write and illustrate a graphic novel. Something along the lines of Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi, in the sense of it being biographical. I’d love to have a fun little book that shows that Arabs aren’t all terrorists, and I think we need to start doing that in media — fashion, music, celebrity, art I think that’s much more enlightening of a community than a BBC documentary.

5. How long does it usually take you to finish a piece?
It depends. I’m mad fast with pencils and pens and can finish things off pretty fast. Painting is very time consuming and I don’t have the patience, but the outcome is always worth it. But I tend to do things fast so I don’t have the luxury to sit and second guess them. Once you over think the process, you’ve lost it.

6. What can Hassan Hassan fans look forward to next?
Hopefully a lot. I’d love to have my own fashion line, something basic and everyday rather than couture, t-shirts and sweats — that kind of thing. Honestly, would love to branch out and work in all kinds of design.

The thing about art is that it can be interpreted in so many different ways, so the sky’s the limit. I’m going to reach for the sky I guess.

For more on Hassan’s work, visit his facebook page >>

STATS
Black & White or Color: Color
Now playing: Bob Dylan
Favorite Photographers: Michael Ackerman, Rebecca Norris Web, Giorgi Pinkhassov

1. What’s the first picture you ever took?
The first picture I took was in university when I started taking my photography course — our first assignment was to go out and approach random people on campus and ask them if we could take a headshot of them. It was an absolutely horrible set of pictures. I didn’t know what I was doing, it was awkward, the people’s expressions were awkward — it was actually so bad that I was assigned to go out and re-do it.

2. Do you see the world differently through the lens?
Yeah, because I’m really looking for certain things like the color, the movement and the light. If I don’t have my camera, those things will pull my attention, but

when I’m looking through the lens I’m in a completely different zone.

3. What’s the longest you’ve gone without taking a picture?
I used to have to take at least one picture on a daily basis because of my practice as a newspaper photographer. Every single day [I was] out there taking a picture of something. And then when I became a freelancer, it was a lot more about me initiating the work and projects that I wanted to do. So it could be a month that I go without a picture that I’m taking seriously and intensely, that’s intended for something.

See more of Laura’s “Four Seasons in One Day” gallery >>

4. What’s your favorite thing to photograph?
People. In the last year or so, I’ve really been focusing more on women. I’ve developed this interest in photographing women’s issues — like the project on the veil, and I just recently photographed something in India that was about the widows of farmers that were committing suicide.

5. What’s one place or event you can’t wait to photograph?
I would really love to photograph some kind of conflict or war situation. I’d love to be there to witness it first hand and document it in pictures. For a very long time, that’s really what I wanted to do. I stopped dreaming of that because I realized maybe I’m not so emotionally prepared for it, but if the opportunity comes my way, I’d take it. The other thing I’ve always wanted to photograph is fashion, like New York Fashion Week or something like that. I’d love to do that, that would be fantastic.

6. Has anyone ever confronted you/complained for taking their picture?
Yeah it happens all the time. And typically, from my experience, it’s always someone that you’re not even photographing that comes up to you and complains. It sounds really strange, but usually I’m pointing my camera in one direction and somebody that’s behind me comes up and says, “Why are you taking a picture”?

Normally, I don’t ask people for permission to take their picture before I take it because if I do, then the picture will completely change. Whether they like it or not, they become very conscious of me and my presence. So I usually try to smile at the person and give them some kind of recognition like ‘yeah I’m taking a picture of you’ but I’ll just leave it kind of open ended.

See more of Laura’s “Four Seasons in One Day” gallery >>

For more of Laura’s work and to purchase prints, visit her website >>

STATS
Mild, Spicy or Very Spicy: Very Spicy
Favorite Muppet: Kermit
London vs. NYC: NYC

1. How did your upbringing influence your work?
I grew up in Norfolk, Virgina and I watched a lot of TV when I was a kid. That was okay with my parents — there were some attempts to get me outside, but I mostly liked watching Cable television. I remember dancing around my living room to the opening sequence of “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles,” dancing around, doing karate moves so that was one of my favorites but there are so many. It wasn’t even about good or bad, I just watched everything.

I had a fairly strict family, they pushed me to work really hard at school and that kind of work ethic extends to the art making. I think you have to be very focused when you’re working on a play, or an acting role, or anything artistic.

And I believe in doing a lot of background work and giving things attention, it’s work — not an excuse to have fun. The fun is the work, one friend describes it as “serious play.”

2. What are the challenges of your field and how do you overcome them?
There are a lot of challenges and I’m always negotiating them. One challenge is economic. I don’t make my living making my art and that’s something I’m trying to move toward through a combination of things; through teaching and performing. Another challenge is creative — what I do primarily is create original work, that’s removing myself from the auditioning — so the problem isn’t in finding a part or finding a play that I want to do. The difficulty is in that I have to do it all myself; I have to raise the money for the play, find the rehearsal space, perform it and create it, too. And that’s a huge burden to create something from scratch.

3. You have many talents; acting, writing, producing, puppetry, etc, — is there one aspect that you like more than the others?
I’m definitely a performer. I’m working on a solo show now and I have the story and the character, and the way I’ve dressed him is really important to me, so in a way that’s costume design. I also have to make decisions about the lighting, etc, — all of these specific choices come out of the same root thing, out of the same creative spark. All of the different aspects of creating a play are all coming from the same source so there really isn’t one aspect that’s more enjoyable than the others.

4. Where do you get inspiration for an original work?
Creating something new is a journey into the unknown, so it’s always different and it’s a process of continual frustration. It’s like being in foreign territory and not knowing where you are or where you’re going. For example, I was working on this solo show and I knew I wanted to tell a love story,  I wanted to tell something about the universe and how the universe exists, so I was was wondering how am I going to do this. I was in the subway one day and the whole story came to me in one moment, this whole intricate thing developed and I don’t know where it came from…

5. Your bio claims that you create absurd work out of the realities around [you] — tell us about that.
I  like to create theater that is something more akin to fairytale or fantasy. What I think I’m good at is putting things through a kind of filter –

some people want to create things in the here and now, but I’m more interested in putting things through an alternate-reality filter.

6. Do you have a favorite role or stage moment?
All roles are learning experiences, they can’t be compared. But my favorite moment was when I was in this beautiful play, Empire of Feathers and at the end, this guy who had been searching for this magical, mystical bird discovers that this bird is just an old war plane and he’s spent the entire length of play trying to get away from war machines, which he’s been making his whole life — so he gives this speech to the audience, while he’s under the spotlight about when he was young he was so proud of his family and proud of the world they had built and he’s so sad because he’s clearly not happy about it anymore and at the saddest moment I’m up on this ladder, and I start throwing these red feathers down and he discovers there really is a bird after all and it’s such a beautiful moment. The audience reaction was great, it was a really successful play.

For more on Karim’s work, visit his site >>