Palestinian/Lebanese Rapper anees releases his first song "Neverland Fly"

anees

To be honest, I find it really refreshing to chat with a rapper like "anees" who is half Palestinian/half Lebanese based in Washington DC, USA. He's someone that brings a lot of positivity and great vibes through his instagram posts/stories and LIVES....So, it makes total sense to me to feature him on Re-Volt the moment he decided to drop "officially" his first single on streaming platforms... He's good people and I do love his flow, lyrics, it brings me joy listening to him...

I caught up with anees the moment he released his song "Neverland Fly" which you can stream anywhere now and watch the video posted below... I am posting this now, and the song has been out for couple of weeks now and I am loving the reaction hes been getting, he also just told me that he will be working with "ThanksJoey" ,  one of the dopest producers at the moment that works closely with nikohigh, Narcy and Offendum ...

To Re-Volt readers, followers and supporters.. I introduce to you ...
anees..

Re-Volt: Give re-volt readers a quick intro about you, where you from, when did you start rapping, what got you into it? 

anees: I'm Anees. I am a hip hop/indie pop artist from the Washington DC area. I've been rapping since a young age. I started freestyling at 15 but I only began my pursuit of a career as a hip-hop artist last January. 

RE-VOLT:Watching your stories and videos has always given me positive vibes, it is the "way you rap", your "Flow", the topics you discuss in your writing. How did the love for writing start? Who inspires you? 

anees:Man, my love for writing began with a love for words. I grew up on word games. Smart Mouth, Scrabble, Boggle, crossword puzzles, you name it. Finding ways to play with words, letters, syllables, has always been a rush for me. When I'm crafting rhyme schemes and word-smithing, I am truly alive. I'm inspired by artists who do the same, the elite lyricists of music. And I'm not just talking about rappers or singers, I draw inspiration from any writer who weaves wonder from words. I've drawn inspiration from Nas, Eminem, J. Cole, Immortal Technique, Los, Kanye, Bill Withers, John Mayer, Jim Croce, India Arie, the list goes on. And, of course, we cannot have a discussion about inspired writing without at least reverencing the true GOAT, Khalil Gibran. 

RE-VOLT: You just released your first single "Neverland Fly" , how do you feel? i know its been 2 days, but if you can explain the process of releasing this first song? How long did it take you to actually take this step? (im so proud of you)(this was sent 2 days after he released the track)

anees:  It's surreal to have my own song streaming on major platforms. I'm still processing the experience and taking it all in. It took about 15 months to get to this juncture of my journey. I'm grateful and humbled to be where I'm at. I'm trying to be mindful and enjoy the moment, but also making sure to remember that my next single has to be on deck. 

RE-VOLT: One of the great things about your content is the fact that you always consistent, how hard is it to maintain that consistency? 

anees: To be honest, it's not hard at all. I'm hungry. I wan't this bad. When I love something, when I'm truly passionate about something, there is nothing else I'd rather do. I can't do anything less than everything I can do. Every second spent working on my craft is thrilling. Every step I take in this journey is a micro-adventure. A story within a story. It's crazy easy to be consistent, when you're living your dreams. 

RE-VOLT: Do you miss Vlogging? And will you go back to it? :) 

anees: I'm surprised you even knew about my vlog, lol. Yeah man, I low-key do miss vlogging. Vlogging was my first step into a full-time creative life. It holds a dear place in my heart. The time I spent vlogging was so formative to me as visionary and as a creative. I will definitely make more vlogs at some point, maybe once I'm touring... Hopefully that means soon. 

RE-VOLT: As you know, I am a big supporter of the Arabic Hip-Hop movement, who are your fav rappers from Arabia? 

anees: If we're including Arab rappers living in the Western Hemisphere, I gotta go with my OG's: Offendum and Narcy. While we're talking on OG's I love me some DAM, and you can't understate their influence on the craft in the homeland. Another artist who comes to mind is BiGSaM. A friend put me on to his music this past year and I was taken back by the remarkable balance he carries between a venomous flow and groovy rhythm. 

RE-VOLT:It seems that you have many many songs written, what made you decide to release your first single with 'Neverland Fly"? 

anees: I just knew I had to get my first song streaming. I have 12 other complete songs that are waiting in the pipeline, but you've got to start with one step. "Neverland Fly" is that one step for me. It was the splash I needed to get my feet wet, to introduce me to listeners, and to get the ball rolling. I made the decision a while ago, but I needed help to get the timing right. Shoutout to my homies Tantu Beats and Zak G for engineering this track and helping me get it across the finish line.

RE-VOLT:You help people with your music. Who helps you? 

anees: Everybody. I believe in humanity. I think we all help each other. I believe we are all connected in ways we will never fully understand. Interactions with others bring me joy. So everybody helps me. And as much as I may help my listeners, they help me tenfold. I think my followers/FAM base and I have a very symbiotic relationship. I am blessed by them in ways I could never deserve. But if I had to pick one person, my wife is my greatest help, hands down. She supports the vision and embraces all the madness that comes with it. She makes this music journey possible. Without her, there is no way we are even having this interview in the first place. 

RE-VOLT:How does the family feel about your music? and what was the Best Reaction you received from your fans? 

anees: They are extremely supportive. Borderline fanatical. I couldn't be more blessed in that regard. They have probably plugged my music to a cumulative million people by now. No lie. Oh man, the best reaction? I received crazy amounts of love, but I think the best reaction was my mom's. She's the president of the fanclub. When I got back home from my IG live song-release listening party, which I hosted in my car till about 2AM, she was waiting at the front door to welcome me home with a glass of scotch. That's the winner. 

RE-VOLT: Does your Arab Background play a role in your music? If so, will we ever see you use that in future releases? 

anees: I believe my background DOES play a role in my music, in the sense that my culture informed many of my values and views on the world. I am never afraid to make reference to my Arab Background and I'm proud to promote my people and my culture. I don't know how explicitly that comes across in my music, but we shall see. The future is a mystery but I'm open minded to collabo with artists from homeland, that would be incredibly special

RE-VOLT: Tell re-volt something NOT a lot of people know about you... 

anees: I am a licensed attorney in the Commonwealth of Virginia. But I have never spent a day practicing, nor do I ever intend to.

x

PALESTENIAN RAPPER "ILLIAM" RELEASES HIS FIRST ALBUM ENTITLED "BEFORE BED"

After many collaborations and singles since 2018, Palestinian rapper who is based in Qatar released his FIRST Official album on 10th Dec, 2019 on Soundcloud and then it was released on all streaming platforms (Spotify, Apple Music, Anghami, etc...) 

I just finished listening to the full album for the first time, and from the get-go, one can feel the passion this kid has for rap. A lot of discussion on mental health and also incredible punchlines. He is not holding back and lyrically he's discussing many things but the one highlight for me is the fact that "space" is where illiam feels at home. Space has no gravity so you always floating right? In one of the lines he actually says "... I am scared that the planet might not be enough for my imagination" 

My favorite song is "Cinema", from the first second till the last, he kept me engaged... "Bkhaf" is also a song that is getting a lot of love.

Let me know whats your fav song and why?

Love the album! Listen to it below

Show Love. Show Support

مقابلة سريعة مع الرابر "اليام" | Re-Volt Interview Illiam

Quick chat with "illiam"

DAM - JASADIK-HOM (Your Body of Theirs)

Palestinian rap group DAM releasing a very powerful message lead by Maysa Daw addressing equality.

Canadian/Palestinian Rapper BELLY Releases NEW ALBUM "IMMIGRANT"

Love Belly. I love the song "immigrant"...

The follow up to last year’s Mumble Rap contains 11 tracks in total and features guest appearances from Meek Mill, The Weeknd, French Montana, Nav, MIA, Yo Gotti, Metro Boomin, & more. 

Meanwhile production is handled by the likes of DaHeala, DJ Mustard, NAV, Rex Kudo, Austin Powerz & TRAKGIRL, among others.

This is what he said about the album “With everything going on, I can’t sit by and say nothing. I decided to speak my truths. my album is now called, IMMIGRANT,” 

47 Soul RELEASE their NEW ALBUM "Balfron Promise"

Hailing from Jordan & Palestine, I've been following/supporting 47 Soul since they started. I love how they were able to break-through and also be able to connect with both Arab & Non-Arab speakers.

They celebrate Freedom & Equality in their music. Their goal is to break barriers through what they what they call now "Shamstep" which is an Electro-Arabic Dabke genre. 

It's all about the energy and its also about the message they have in their music. They are currently signed to "Cooking Vinyl" which is an Independent Record Label Based in the U.K 

They just release their NEW album "Balfrom Promise" out of which they have release the single from the album Oct 2017 with a great video that you can watch here

As I am writing this, I am giving the album a listen and I am LOVING "Moved Around", its quickly becoming my fav but I still need to listen to it again & again! 

You can STREAM the Album on Anghami, Check it out & Yalla, Support the 47 !!!

Q&A with Palestinian/Canadian Producer/Singer/Songwriter ROSEGOLD

Canadian/Palestinian Producer/Singer Rosegold

When I first found out about Palestinian-Canadian producer Rosegold, I was extremely happy to see a female music producer from the region. I then discovered that she also has a great voice which for me is also incredible and its a no-brainer not to feature talent like that on Re-Volt. I believe it is a duty on any person who has a voice to reflect & support these kind of talents. I wish her the best and I am sure she will be able to make a huge impact in the music scene in Arabia. 

Below is a Q/A with Rosegold whose based in Doha,Qatar.
Also check out her latest track featuring MVRS (interview with him is out soon)



Big Hass: How did you get into music production? 

Rosegold: This is gonna sound cliche, but I really think it was just a sweet twist of fate! I was a media and film student at a university in Canada, and one of the courses offered was an introduction into music production and sound design. 
Being me, I always loved to know how things were made, be it movie magic (the reason I got into film), or a beautiful musical composition. And I revelled in the satisfaction of knowing that I could make that kind of magic happen, like I was in on some secret not many know about. So I took the course. And it definitely changed my life. Since then I've listened to music differently. Music was no longer just a beat and some vocals; it became layers of sounds that I could hear and feel. Every song became a chemical compound I was trying to deconstruct. I started asking myself "what sounds combined on a 4/4 beat would make one wholesome frequency that changes or compliments a mood I was feeling?" "How do I make these sounds materialize?" "How do I manipulate them so that I have full control over their effects?". And so I learned, and I'm still learning. 

BH: Why RoseGold as an artist name?

RG: Simply, because its my favourite color and it fits my aesthetic nicely ;)


BH:You have a beautiful voice. Who inspired you to start singing? take us back to when you realized you can sing! 

RG: Thank you! I don't know if this is going to be the plot-twist of the day, but actually, I started singing when I was 14 and trying to cover some Avril Lavigne and Paramore songs. I was that Angsty Awkward Teen™ that sang in her room pretending to shock her classmates with a rock show performance at the school talent show hahaha. So I picked up a guitar and learned one of Avril's four chord songs (probably Complicated or I Will Be. I don't remember too vividly) and did actually try to perform...I completely bombed it haha. So I actually didn't start singing again until I left my rocker/punk phase behind and discovered softer indie songs, then eventually r&b. I realized "hey, maybe this is more for me", and it was. I started to cover songs by Banks, Lana Del Rey, Florence and the Machine, then Erykah Badu, Lauryn Hill, and even some Motown tunes, and I felt more in my element. 
Still, I hardly performed at shows cause I was still reeling from that time in high school, but I had a lot of fun doing covers with some of my talented friends in Canada and Qatar. And at the end of the day, it really should be about the fun of it all. 

BH: In your own words, how do you see the music scene in Doha? 

RG: I think it needs a chance. I'm sure many have said this before, but there's a lot of untouched talent in the city, and I think that's because the platforms and resources needed to boost these artists up are not as easily accessible or as abundant as they are elsewhere. I know, upon moving to Qatar last year, if I hadn't met Mvrs and Trak, I'd probably still be producing mini beats in my bedroom and doing nothing with them because I wouldn't know where to take them here! They knew the city better than I did and they are well established artists, so they showed me the ropes and introduced me to the new wave of other young, dynamic, versatile, and incredibly gifted Arab artists in the region. That really inspired me to keep going with my music here in Doha. 

BH: How's that EP coming along with MVRS? What can you tell us about it? Will you be producing all of it? 

RG: The EP is honestly a product of realizing the incredible musical chemistry Mvrs and I have, whether making music in Trak's studio or just jamming in the car to our mutual favourite artists. Over the course of the year, he's become the older brother I never had and (sometimes) wanted haha. After we recorded Make U Wait in an impromptu studio session during a vacation we took with our friends, we confirmed that there's a lot of potential we could unlock in one another. He encouraged me to sing again when I wanted to just be comfortable in music production, and conversely, the music I produced brought him back to his roots as a melodic rapper. And it just worked! And now we have an EP in the works that I'm producing in full and we're both vocally present on. 

BH: Who are some of the talent you like from the region? 

RG: What I love about artists in the Middle East is that they each have their particular thing, a trait unique to themselves that gets me hooked on their music. For example, I like N1yah for her ability to freestyle in real time, and her singing voice is outta this world. I like Shébani's lyrical repertoire as well as her creative music video concepts - I could watch her clips on loop! Our boys in the UAE - Menon, Majeed, Mohflow - are crazy epic rappers too. AY the Producer, Bailouni, and Sarah Nabil got insane production skills. There are other artists (Narcy, Omarion Shihottie, Meryem Saci, Mashrou' Leila, Kshr..I could go on!) that actually don't reside in the region, but are originally from a MENA country, and they're making a name for themselves and putting us on the map everywhere around the world, and I think that's profound. 

BH: Being Palestinian/Canadian , how does that affect your production/songwriting? (or how is that represented in your music)?

RG: The intersections of my identity do end up seeping in the sounds I produce, however it's not simple to explain. I used to run the Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights club at my university, and during that time I attended and participated in a few spoken word functions that took place on campus. I used to write poetry that explicitly focused on the Palestinian Diasporic plight of having no home to return to and nowhere that I feel I truly belonged. That began to translate in my early musical compositions which are unreleased, but sometimes when I couldn't find the words to express how I felt about my Palestinian identity, I found solace in composing instrumental pieces. That began to develop my confidence in playing the keys, which I eventually combined with percussion I picked up from the Toronto music scene. I will admit that, musically, I identify more with the Canadian scene than anything else, simply because I've lived there for years and I have a direct emotional connection to the music through the memories they take me back to and through the relevance of the lyrical content to my lived experiences. The soft and sampled r&b sound paired with low-fi trappy percussion is what Toronto and London Ontario sound like to me, which is why my music draws a lot from this sound - it sounds like home. 


BH: What kind of feedback have you been getting on your production & songwriting? 

RG: I'm always grateful about the feedback I receive because it is nothing but positive feedback from everyone I know. I have my close circle of friends who will always push me to strive for better by giving constructive criticism (like if a kick drum is too loud etc), and I love them for their honesty and support. As for songwriting, the only person I seek feedback from on my lyrics at the moment is Mvrs actually. I don't like sharing my lyrics with anyone before they hear me sing them, especially if I write from a vulnerable personal perspective. But with Mvrs, I think he is very lyrically gifted and I trust him to always tell me if something I write sounds good or could be better - he's basically been kinda like a mentor to me haha. I've been writing poetry for years, but haven't been writing songs for a long time, and the latter has proven to be more challenging than the former. But like I said before, I learned and I'm still learning. 

BH: Who would you like to work with worldwide & from our region? 

RG: To be honest with you, I'm still new to the scene, so I wanna work with everybody! Right now it feels like there are no limits to what I can and want to do, I just want to experiment and learn as I go. But if I were to pick a few artists now, it'll have to be Kehlani, Jhene Aiko, Quinn, SZA, and Tyler the Creator from worldwide. All of them are major influencers on my sound at the moment, especially Kehlani, but that's cause I'm biased - I've got a major crush on her voice and style! As for regional, I'd say Shébani, N1yah, Meryem Saci, Narcy, and Mohflow - all different vibes, but all talents I would love to partake in projects with. 


BH: Tell Re-Volt something not a lot of people know about you.. 

RG: There was a brief moment in time where I was going to choose "Pandz" or "Panda" as my producer name because that's been my nickname for years to everybody that knows me....I'm really glad I didn't go with that, especially after Desiigner dropped his single "Panda" LOL. My friends still call me Pandz though, and almost never by my real name.

BH: I truly fell in love with your talent & production. Big up Trak & MVRS for introducing me to you. What are your final words to re-volt blog?

RG: Thank you so much Big Hass, it's your support and the encouragement I've received from everyone over the music I've released so far that keeps me going and pushes me to do better. Let's keep the scene thriving in the region!


Listen to MVRS Ft Rosegold track entitled "Way" & you will understand how amazingly talented these guys are.

"WAY" by (Rosegold x Mvrs)

Lovin the vibe! Big up to Rosegold & MVRS 

Palestenian Hip-Hop Artist "Muqata'a" releases "La Lisana Lah" || A Sound Like No Other!

Muqata'a 

I have always loved Muqata'a , I do believe he is TOP 3 Arab Rappers. His production is also incredible. He has released an Instrumental album entitled "La Lisana Lah" (One without a Tongue)

I asked him what's the process of creating such a sound, and this is his answer.. "Loved it" 

"As a child I was listening to a lot of Trip-Hop, downtempo, electronic, drum n bass & hip-hop music. When I started, this is the type of music I wanted to make. Then I started writing on my beats because I felt like I had to express myself in a more direct way and through that start some sort of conversation, and also because I love hip hop music. 'La Lisana Lah' and a lot of the instrumental tracks I have been releasing recently are still hip-hop, but also influenced by many other sounds and types of music. The fact that I am now releasing mainly instrumental music has a lot to do with the situation we live in today. Our reality is being changed quickly and we have no control over what happens. Also, the over-saturation of "information" and "content" essentially mutes us all. We need a new language to communicate with. 

La Lisana Lah, is somewhat a representation of that." Muqata'a 

Al Nather x Awal Wej || BEATS

I am a huge fan of Al Nather's work. He's a Palestinian producer based in Ramallah.

Check out his collaboration with "Awal Wej" which is a set of musical performances. Al Nather is presenting to us some of his finest production/beats.

I also see the brother "Muqata'a" there. Dope video. Juts click play & enjoy them BEATS!!

Satti - Batthakar (Produced by She'rab & Smokable)

Jordanian rapper SATTI collaborates with producers She'rab & Smolable to make "Batthakar" - Check out the video below

Arabic Rap | Muhandas X Asifeh - Neuron/نيورون

With a beat that allows you to vibe and some dope scratching by TAKO, Lebanese MC "Mohandas" & Palestinian MC/Producer "Asifeh" explode on a track that will sure teach you a thing or two. It also has some great punch-liners. Love the vibe for this. Been a fan of Asifeh for quite some time and I love Muhandas vibe and flow. Can't wait to have them rep on a RE-VOLT CYPHER !

Beat produced by Asifeh. 

Listen 

فونكي فيكن || ألبوم راب عربي من انتاج دي جاي جودمان Funky Fikon | Rap Album produced by Dj Goadman

What I respect the most about Lebanese/Armenian Dj Goadman is his work ethic, he keeps pushing himself and somehow also empowering the Arabic rap scene. He has a certain love and feel to authentic sounds, he was lucky enough to open up to acts like Tech N9ne, Bone Thugs, Ghostface and many others along playing in a lot of clubs.

Funky Fikon is his latest project and it is something worth checking since it has 17 rappers all spitting on beats PRODUCED by Goadman himself. The album has a very cool/fresh sound; something we really need in Arabic Hip-Hop and for people to not always associate Arabic rap to revolutions and always hardcore beats.  This album includes some of the best rappers in Arabia and also some of the upcoming ones. I love how each track has Goadman's scratch on it, adding his touch to it. The album has tracks collected since 2014 and was just released a week ago.

These are the rappers involved in the project, Bu Kolthoum (Syria), Malikah (Lebanon), Edd Abbas (Lebanon), Hamorabi (Lebanon), Rushzilla (Egypt), Bill Amaliyeh (Lebanon/US), Black Drama (Saudi), Satti (Jordan), Jnood Beirut (Lebanon), WMD (Tunis), ILL Paz (Palestine), ElNasser (Egypt/Qatar), Katibe 5 & Yaseen (Palestine) & Anas Arabi (Syria/KSA). I was also blessed to give a small intro at the beginning. 

The album is based on some great sampling wether its Jazz, Soul, Funk and Old "Tarab".

I personally would click play and get to know this new and cool sound of Arabia accompanied with some great scratching and lyrically it is up to a level where I can call it a classic in the making. 

I love these initiatives simply because it just connects us more and it gives more awareness on our movement, I would only wish to have some GCC countries included, because I truly believe there are some great rappers in GCC that deserve also the exposure. More power to Dj Goadman and all the rappers that participated in this project. S/O to Anas Arabi for mixing and mastering. 

Go Ahead and listen to the FULL Album BELOW!

Ses With Stormtrap Asifeh & Edd Abbas & Kolonel Blip

Two of my fav MC's Edd Abbas & Asifeh !! in collaboration with Kolobel Blip !

Big up guys

Palestinian Rapper YASEEN releases ALBUM Entitled SELF-MADE

Very happy for this brother! Check out his album! I personally like track #3 & #9 !

Edd Abbas || Safen B3ard El Ba7r (Prod by Stormtrap)

Lebanese MC Edd Abbas is one of my personal favourites! 
He is joined with Stormtrap who produced this dope tune! 

Big Hass Hosts Re-Volt Cypher PArt ii (Produced by Orient Squad) | LIVE

I been working on this track for the past 3/4 months, I truly appreciate all the MC's that are part of this. I want to thank Orient Squad for a great beat and last but not least, I want to thank "ilakh" for giving us such a powerful Cypher Artwork 

Ladies & Gents, I am proud to present Re-Volt Cypher Part ii for your eardrums. 

Big Hass Hosts Re-Volt Cypher PArt ii (Produced by Orient Squad) | Release Date: 4th June,2016

I've always been a big believer that "cyphers" are dope. 

I launched Re-Volt Cypher Part i about a year ago & now I am proud to present Part ii which is produced by one of my favourite producers in the game "Orient Squad". 

The track features 6 Arab MC's from Sudan, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Syria & Palestine. 

The official artwork for the cypher was done by "ilakh" (Dope artist) 

I will be releasing the track on the 4th June, 2016 ! 

It will be released on my Soundcloud page.

Please help me spread this around & circulate it. 

British-Palestinian schoolgirl wins the ‘Speak Out’ challenge

Respect to Leanne Mohamad

British-Palestinian schoolgirl wins the 'Speak Out' challenge from Artists for Palestine UK on Vimeo.

Marche (Akhenaton X Edd Abbas X Asifeh)

This right here is Historic! Its EPIC. Akhenaton who is a legendary French Hip-Hop artist is on the same track with our brothers Edd Abbas (Lebanon) & Asfieh (Palestine) - The track has been on repeat all day. Check it out.