Written by Arwa Hezzah

Up-and-coming Egyptian musician Abdelrahman Roshdy recently released a new album titled El Aasela (The Questions), opening up the doors to self-discovery through music.

Roshdy found his passion for singing as a teenager and released beautiful Sufi melodies hoping to become a Sufi singer. He persevered, focusing on his music, discovering more about his talents, and recording his songs at home. In 2015, Roshdy got the chance to perform as an opening act for Cairokee in RedBull’s SoundClash gig. Following the event, he gained some popularity, allowing him to release his songs Noaata Beida and Fel Malaqot. Since then, he has been working on a new album to expose his talents to the world.

This year, Abdelrahman Roshdy has released his new album, El Aasela. The album revolves around the notion of self-discovery by pondering life’s big questions in an attempt to find peace. After working on the album for two and a half years, the project has finally come to fruition, using spiritually explorative themes and exceptional musical compositions to make the album a truly unique experience.

The album’s title song, El Aasela, addresses the questions later posed in each of the album’s songs. Depending not only on music but also on visuals, the album required plenty of planning to bring all of its elements to life. Roshdy’s main goal was to leave a lasting impact on his listeners by experimenting with different kinds of music, lyrics, and visuals. He worked with lyricist Nour Abdallah to compile beautiful words to make his music truly come to life. Roshdy also worked with Moataz Mady, using his technical expertise to help him produce his album. Mady fully embraced his musical talents through the album, creating a cinematic and emotional work that fully engages the listener.

The album tackles notions of everyday life, including love, faith, society, and existence, all using questions one asks oneself daily.  To take full advantage of the album’s experience, Roshdy has featured three Egyptian musical stars on his newest work. One song, titled Fesam, features Cairokee’s lead singer Amir Eid. The song was composed by Sherif Mustafa and Abdelrahman Roshdy himself. Neshky Le Meen, another wonderful composition written by Khaled Essam, features singer Ahmed Kamel. And lastly, El Rezk, which features Mahmoud El Leithy. The song was produced by Mohamed Sakr, who mixed and mastered the whole album, and includes elements of Egyptian Shaabi music, bringing together various different styles. Not only did collaborating with these artists help Roshdy gain popularity, but it also allowed him to experiment through different genres of music by including the stylings of different artists in his work.

Abdelrahman Roshdy aims to reshape the minds of his listeners and open their hearts to diverse music with a mix of styles. His album El Aasela has come as a unique experiment within the Egyptian music scene, using everyday topics and questions and answering them through musical workings. Through his work, Roshdy hopes to take the first step in revitalising the Egyptian music scene, pulling away from the ordinary and exploring different approaches to music.

You can stream Abdelrahman Roshdy’s music on Youtube, Spotify, and Anghami, and follow his social media accounts on Facebook and Instagram.