“Ana Masry” is a newly established band that combines different kinds of music and lyrics to reflect on the Egyptian identity, in addition to introducing an emerging kind of music to revive Egyptian sense of nationalism.
By- Mai Shams El-Din
CAIRO- Muslim Sufi Chanting, Christian Hymns, Nubian Songs, Egyptian Poetry, and old oriental music represent a unique cultural mix that Egyptians never imagined that it would make sense. Yet, Ana Masry “I’m Egyptian” band just brought this mix into reality in the mindsets of all Egyptians.
"Ana Masry" represents an unusual cultural mix
“Ana Masry band has a very unique message and have a very unique vision that wants to promote, which is the idea of an all-embracing, all-inclusive Egyptian identity,” said Ihab Abdou, founder of the band.
“We want also through our music to remind people who as a country we always been a melting pot and a mosaic for a lot of different identities and this is exactly what we try to promote and present through our music.”
The Message
Established in November 2007, Ana Masry band began performing at the American University in Cairo (AUC) in Howard Theatre and they used to perform on a regular basis there. Dr. Ashraf Fouad, Director of Music Series and Professor of Music Theory and Composition at AUC witnessed the establishment of this band when they first performed at AUC.
“What I like about Ana Masry is that it is a band with a message, and the message is set very clear through its title,” he said. “I’m Egyptian and period, no attachment to this, and everything else is dissolved in this adjective: Egyptian.”
The diversified image that Ana Masry is trying to draw could be simply an attempt to do what politics failed to do: reaching out for people and trying to represent the uniqueness of the Egyptian cultural identity.
“Our dream is to go and tour Egypt, all over the country, all villages, all mall communities, presenting this message of co-existence, peace, tolerance and diversity, and may be one day trying to present our message to our Diaspora in different countries , whether in north America , Europe , Australia and otherwise.” said Abdou passionately.
Many observers appreciated how “Ana Masry” band is preserving Egyptian identity even if in the type of music they use for their songs.
The band rocked AUC campus a month ago
“What I appreciate about Ana Masry that they are not affected by other traditions in music, and the band wants to keep and preserve its own heritage, and this is different from other bands are performing right now.” confirmed Fouad.
Reactions to the new band
During their performance in Malak Gabr Theatre at AUC two weeks ago, Ana Masry impressed AUC students who came to listen to this new trend in music.
Rana Othamn, Marketing Coordinator at the PVA Department at AUC expressed her great astonishment for the message of Ana Masry since she has never heard of them before.
“They are very new and creative, I have never imagined that I would be that happy after listening to them,” she said.
After the concert was ended, Othman insisted on talking to Abdou personally to tell him one sentence “Thank you for being creative, thank you for being new, and thank you for being different.” said Otham with a great sense of enthusiasm.
Othman is inspired by the unifying message that they are presenting, which should make them stand out from other types of music that other bands are performing.
“Ana Masry is doing a great job; their concerts are almost full house. In Ewart Hall concert last week, people were standing, and audience kept flooding all the time.” said Fouad.
Abdou express the reactions towards the new trend of music that targets Egyptians and who they really are.
“We have seen a lot of tears, we have seen a lot of laughter, we have seen people thanking us for reminding them of this message they might have forgotten, we have seen people come to us and ask us to present at other places because they believe the message is important to promote more,” said Abdou. “I think the strongest source of energy to us is this support from the media, from the people and this belief and this thirst for such a message.” added Abdou.
Ramy Ramadan, a singer and a composer in the band recalled how he joined the band and how its message touched him.
“I attended a concert for Ana Masry band in Cairo University, their music and lyrics really affected me and touched my heart,” said Ramadan. “At that time, I have written some lyrics that may suit the message of the band. The lyrics was names “Oh Egypt, show me your tenderness”, they liked the lyrics, and I started working with them.”
More media spotlights needed:
Established in 2007, Ana Masry is still a newly established band that not all people are still aware of in Egypt, yet it seems that it is not only because it is a new band, but may be some other types of music are getting more popular due to commercialization.
“Other bands singing romantic songs are booming faster because they are commercial, and commercials are easy to sell,” said Fouad. “When you have a message like this, it takes time. There are still new, and they will get media attention soon.”
Ramadan sees that although the band is now starting to compete with other famous bands, it still needs more.
“The band lacks the financial and media support,” said Ramadan. “We are receiving less media attention because we are not singing romantic songs like the other more famous bands do.”
