By Ann Hanna
Music has always spilled out of Cairo’s cafés. But the lilting tones of traditional songs are now being replaced by the rapping of musicians such as Wegz, a 25-year-old Egyptian hip-hop artist. His music is popular across the region. In 2022 his song “El Bakht” (“Luck”) was streamed 45m times—the most ever recorded by Anghami, the leading Arabic music-streaming platform. In 2023 he became the first Arab artist to announce a world tour with Live Nation, an American concert promoter.
This growth is not just confined to Wegz. Revenues from recorded music in the Middle East and north Africa rose by 24% in 2022, says IFPI, a trade body. In 2021 it was the world’s fastest-growing market.
