Following his much more introspective and slow-paced February release, ‘Kaseen’, Egyptian mahraganat artist, Afroto, has unleashed a decidedly more wicked side to his personality with his latest track.
‘Sharany’ (which most accurately translates to ‘evildoer’) starts with the words “I’ve never been an evildoer/Just avoid me instead of hating me,” though the Alexandria native breaks off from any threat of playing the role of victim immediately. His defiance against a larger power only grows, with other lyrics including, “I don’t wish death on you/Although you are failures and you cheat.” Ouch.
It’s towards the end of the track that Afroto gives the most succinct insight into life as a mahraganat artist, however. The words “When they saw me, they said what is this?” ring true to the genre, particularly now following the banning of mahraganat performances by the Egyptian Musician’s Syndicate and the growing demonisation of the music in the mainstream.
Expect more mahraganat tracks with an extra dollop of spicy sauce to collectively slap the music industry in its face soon.
