Electronic dance music demigod and guy whose name sounds like an iconic sushi chef - Steve Aoki has been very controversial for a good part of the last decade. From his insanely obnoxious ritual of ‘caking’ fans (throwing a gigantic cake into a pumped up crowd while they ask for more), to having unforgivably useless roles in b2b sets, he continues to stir kerfuffles.
But the world’s #7 DJ (in an entirely fair and unpaid listing) and man with insane rider demands didn't stop there. He recently contributed to the soundtrack of Hollywood blockbuster Ghost In The Shell where one of his tracks sparked a flame with one particular Egyptian musician. Guitarist and producer Ahmed Samy aka El Vigilante’s year-old track 3ada Le Yantaqem which has over 70,000 plays so far, bears an uncanny resemblance to Aoki’s take on the movie theme.
Sure, one might argue that all dubstep ever made sounds exactly the same and this is a mere resemblance in notes. But one could also make the very solid argument that the DJ who broke a woman’s neck while crowd surfing, as well as his own on different occasions, is most likely an asshole. El Vigilante contacted people at the label that released the track, who, in turn, shrugged and pointed him in Steve’s direction. Ahmed later took to several digital platforms to express his dissatisfaction.
Casting Scarlett Johansson as a bionic Japanese assassin may have passed without sparking a revolt, but jacking an Egyptian artist’s riff is where we draw the line Mr. Aoki. You should be original enough to come up with your stabs and wobbles by now (or at least pay for them like the rest of your top 10 colleagues did).
To conclude, we advise our readers to listen and compare for themselves as the similarity may seem very subjective. And, also, because we don’t want to influence your opinion about a musician who’s most memorable musical moment was screaming on a Bloody Beetroots track, the same musician that rented out his label’s office for a porn shoot once. Have a listen below.
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