Molham Krayem, Saudi business strategist, artist, and writer based in Dubai. For my research, I will be looking at his musical side, where he creates music with a message.
Molham raps his music in a unique way by combining Arabic and English languages together. Growing up, he spent his time in high school writing rhymes on inside jokes. In his college years, he started performing at coffee shops, talent shows, and radio stations.
In March 2018, he released ‘The Time Is Yesterday’, shedding light on the importance of valuing time for what it's worth. He got the most recognition for his hit single Me Against The World, landing 5th on Anghami's top hip-hop chart and trending in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, UAE, Oman, Kuwait, and Morocco. He releases a new single every month.
After listening to his Single - Saudi Citizen, which was released on the kingdoms national day, I got a chance to interview Molham asking him a couple of questions regarding his cultural identity and personal identity struggles, where he called himself a “Globalised Saudi”.
Saudi Citizen talks about where the country is heading. In his interview on Al Arabia, he explained to the concept of his latest song. (This was translated from Arabic to English) “With the 2030 Vision, there are many changes happening we see every day. Hence seeing the community changing & helping, I wanted to thank them for their hardworking as this is the time we the world who we are” (Al Arabia, 2018).
He also explained why he sang in both Arabic and English, “Everyone today is listing to Rap and hip-hop music, in the gym, car, or working. Arab music started as poems, hence rapping moves in the same directions with rhymes but it has a base and a hook. By singing in both languages, I am able to reach a wider audience” (Al Arabia, 2018).
He points out his song has two messages, the first one is a national one, thanking the country with the new changes. The second message is an international one, explaining that Saudi’s are changing and they aren’t the same people/country they used to be. We are moving at our own pace, with our morals and ethics in check. We are changing for you, but for ourselves.
These are the lyrics that stood out for me:
“This country's future lies on the shoulders of youth”
“هذه رسالة خاصة لجيلنا المثابر بلادنا في أيدينا نبني فيها فلنعاصر”
Translating to:
This is a special message for our persevering generation, Our country is in our hands
“كلنا سند لبعضنا وللوطن نبني نعمر أرضنا ونرفع فينا الأمل”
Translating to:
We all support each other and for the homeland, we build our land and give hope to us
“لا تسأل ماذا بلدك ستعطيك اسأل ماذا أعطيت وكيف تعطي من مزيد”
Translating to:
Do not ask what your country will give you, Ask what you gave and how to give more
After intervening Molham, here are some of the key points that stood out to me:
Molham “Grew up in Canada, was super influenced by my childhood, I spoke English and when I came to Saudi (Arabia), I had a huge clash in my life, as I didn’t fit (in). Everyone around me spoke differently, talked differently, walked differently, thought differently. The mentalities were just miles apart” (Krayem, 2018).
“My first year back, I was in an international public school, as felt distant from all the kids there. I had a hard time transitioning into the country, I hated the first year here” (Krayem, 2018).
As time went by, I slowly started to “how they think and understand cultural norms” (Krayem, 2018). The language was a big factor in his transition as he spoke in English all the time, just Arabic at home. He expressed the idea most Arabs deal with today, myself included, that language is a big factor in our life. Where sometimes we think in Arabic while other times in English, even when expressing something, each language plays a role. Sometimes, one language isn’t enough to express an idea.
In terms of this quote “We are too Western for the Middle East and to Middle Eastern for the West?” What is your response? “It has always been there, but I was able to easily able to integrate into both (Krayem, 2018)” He explains himself as a globalized Saudi.
“Accept yourself, you do not need confirmation from society or community” (Krayem, 2018).
References:
Al Arabia (2018). ملهم يتحدث في صباح العربية عن تفاصيل مواطن سعودي، لماذا كتبت بلغتين، ومقارنة فن الراب بالشعر. [video] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNbfttFqwO8 [Accessed 12 Oct. 2018].
Krayem, M. (2018). Background on Molham and thoughts about Identity.
ВИДЕО, С. (2018). Molham - Saudi Citizen ft. Amal | ملهم و أمل - مواطن سعودي - видео смотрите. [online] Видео для всех! смотрим. Available at: https://tmpower.su/watch/molham-saudi-citizen-ft-amal-ملهم-و-أمل-مواطن-سعودي/4N3Dtl36Rmk [Accessed 12 Oct. 2018].