Provocation: what is "shaabi" music and dance?

The - spicy - subject is more alive than ever as the political unrest (to say the least) in Egypt jumps into dimensions no one (or almost no one :/ ) could have predicted.

Egyptian PEOPLE - " il SHAAB MASRI" - seems to be arising from the sleeping sands of the desert and with them a new LOOK and ATTENTION towards the music of the poorer, the claims of the most vulnerable, the frustrations of the most ignorant and the DREAMS of the majority of egyptians - which is, like it or not, on a pretty low poverty line.


Terri Dale - sweet heart from Ireland - has pushed me (kindly, though...) to talk about a subject I usually don´t give much attention to: "SHAABI" music and dance.

Why haven´t I put it under my spotlight?! Plainly: everybody else seems to be doing it and with little knowledge; it is fashionable and I don´t follow fashions; it is a kind of music and dance I got use to see as something I did, time after time, when I went out to party in Cairo or when I was invited by one of my musicians for an authentic "street party" in some dark cornered neighbourhood of the city.

For me, it is just the music and dance we do - and, by "we", I mean me and egyptians - when no one is looking and ALL WE WANT IS TO EVADE OURSELVES (from reality) AND HAVE A GOOD, ROUGH, FREE and PEPPER TEMPERED TIME. For this reason - and others fairly explained bellow - I didn´t consider it as ARTISTIC material worth of much attention but a way to have fun with no beauty, artistic or sophistication pretensions.
Now - for some reason I gladly surrender to - the subject is ON again.
Here we go (here´s the answer I sent to Terri):


In a few words (I´ll try): Shaabi comes from "shaab" that means, literally, PEOPLE. So this is the kind of music and dance regular, simple people practice in Egypt and is clearly separated from the classical - more sophisticated - music such as Om Kolthoum, Abdel Wahab or Abdel Halim Hafez (just to cite a few).

Shaabi is also a reflection of the poorest people´s world: their worries, dreams, frustrations and way of evasion from real life hardships (quite like a drug).

In this matter, you will find a style that often speaks of subjects that ART usually runs away from: the dark side of life (no usual egyptian romanticism included),drugs, sexual harassment, sadness, injustice, despair, rage, less than diplomatic REAL thoughts of the people, etc.

 The language is often slang and even umpolite and it has an open, multilayered - and provocative - interpretation to it.

As it reflects the PEOPLE - simple people which is the majority of the population - of Egypt, it naturally changes with the times.
 The shaab - people- of Egypt today is NOT the same of a decade ago or twenty years ago. So shaabi music reflects the CHANGES egyptian society goes through.
This is why you see the music, nowadays, "contaminated" with foreign influences (eg: hip hop or rap music). It is easy to understand: egyptians - specially the youth - is now open to the world via mobiles, internet, cable t.v., etc. Their mentality, horizons, hopes, fears and dreams changes with the world around them and so does "shaabi" music.

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In relation to BALADI - which is also associated with the "shaab" or "people" - there is a BIG difference. Although both genres are usually practiced by the simple people of Egypt, baladi is way more poetic, lyrical, musically rich and wide than "shaabi".
Besides that, baladi speaks of each human being´s inner world while "shaabi" speaks of the outer world, the current social issues of specific generations. The rage, joy, toughness and dreams, in this case, are from the collective and not from each personal soul. 
I could add: Baladi is eternal and shaabi changes with the times.

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You ask: "if it is music that is claimed as still for the people and communities, is its meaning still authentic or do you think it is diluted?"

Sure it is diluted as people are diluted. As I said before, shaabi music and dance reflects current social situations in Egypt - particularly the problems and joys affecting the lower social classes.

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 "Do you think Sha'abi and its meaning has re-surfaced in Egypt and especially Cairo since the government changes and upheavals to become more popular, since its meaning is more for the people and less for government and forced establishments?"

 

YES, I do think Shaabi music and dance has been revived since the egyptian - almost! - Revolution of 25th January 2011. PEOPLE - il shaab - has been aware of its power and identity (still struggling with it) and "shaabi" music has been directly affected by it. Naturally. And YES, there is a greater FREEDOM of expression so this is clearly felt in the lyrics of the shaabi songs as well as in the movements-dance that follows them. Shaabi can get really rough, wild, violent and ordinary but it is a TRUE mirror of the lower classes of Egypt as well as the result of many centuries of lowered heads.

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I read the article you sent me ( http://www.jadaliyya.com/pages/index/5738/we-are-the-eight-percent_inside-egypts-underground ) and it fits the idea I have about the subject (most of it I already told you about).

 

Also notice that shaabi music is, in an evasive manner, a way of ESCAPING reality completely diferent from the way Classical egyptian music uses. Shaabi music - and dance - goes directly the DARKER side of society and people. No shame, beauty masks or sweet talking attached.
The things other songs don´t speak about and that are not "politically correct": the drugs, the poverty, the despair, the sexual mess in Egypt, the ordinary and AUTHENTIC mood and thoughts of MOST egyptians. In this way, it is a HONEST music that gives voice to the simple people of Egypt in a way other kinds of music never really did.

 

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"I'm just wondering why its still 'underground' - is it because of some oppression from the state or what? I don't seem to see it clarify this issue in the article."

I would not say it is UNDERGROUND because it is EVERYWHERE in Egypt, particularly these days. It is not hidden, forbidden or anything of this sort. It is quite mainstream, actually. But it is - on purpose, I guess - ordinary and shocking and it does not reflect the ARTISTIC elites of Egypt who may see it as a lower form of entertainment for the poor and ignorant. Artistically speaking, I consider it poor. The lyrics are shocking, for sure. But shocking does not mean, necessarily, interesting (at least, for me). Some lyrics can be creative, even funny in a sarcastic, ironic, bitter sweet way but the musical structure is usually extremely basic, predictable and repetitive which is everything the GREAT EGYPTIAN MUSIC never was.
If artistically this music does not enthusiasm me, it does so if we see the SOCIAL side of it. It can be interesting if we listen and UNDERSTAND this music as a barometer of most egyptians minds, bodies and souls.

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"Do you think that Sha'abi was less popular before this started happening when Egypt was gaining influence from western civilization and perhaps being lured away from traditional dance but at the same time still under a fixed regime?"


Shaabi music is NOT a recente phenomenon. Egypt always had many layers of music and styles that fit diferente people and contexts. Shaabi music has changed with the times and the people, that´s all. When Egypt opened itself to the globalization, shaabi music changed. When Revolution - almost - happened, shaabi music also changed in egyptian search for its own identity. But it is not something that was born now. It has only been more visible than before - that´s all. Also the CONTENTS of the music have been more abundant since social revolt started: freedom to express what one feels and things as well as political opinions to be expressed. Nowadays, there is much more material for shaabi singers and composers than before and this may also have contributed to make it more visible but it has always been there.