What’s the latest video breaking the internet in the Arabic world? Well, it has a little something, or rather a lot of something, to do with music. An Acappella artist by the name of Alaa Wardi got together with Anghami, and filmed a cover of 42 of the most popular Arabic songs from before the 1900s till today! Take a dance down memory lane with the lyrics of the most memorable Arab singers with The Evolution of Arab Music.
You may have come across Alaa in a previous hit of his, his cover of Lorde’s Royals, with an Arabic twist. What makes his videos intriguing is that we get to see multiple clones of Alaa Wardi in each video shot. The Evolution of Arab Music has already hit over 1,500,000 views within one week!
With a little help from some of his friends, Alaa put together a list of Arabic music, in chronological order, which took over two months to make. His first choice was “Lamma Bada Yatathenna,” a form of poetry that was sung way before the 1900s. Alaa goes from impersonating Umm Kulthum and Asmahan in the 1930s to 1950s, to the prominent Egyptian artists Abdel Halim Hafez and Mohammed Abdel Wahab, as well as to the amazing Farid Al Atrach, known as “King of the Oud”.
After covering a few songs of the legendary singers Fairouz and Sabah in the 1970s and 1980s, Alaa quickly shifts into full gear into a new era filled with the more modern, funky music of Amr Diab and Cheb Khaled. As soon as Alaa enters the 1990s, Elissa steps on board, and at the turn of the new millennium Haifa Wehbe and Nancy Ajram also step into the mix. Finally year 2015 is here, and Alaa wraps up the video with Sa’ad Lamjarred’s famous hit in 2015 ‘Inta M3allem’.
In this video, not only do we get to see a lyrical and vocal transition of the Arabic musical generations, but we also get to see a fashion transition through his wardrobe! From hats, sunglasses, shoes, and shirts, Alaa made sure that he fit into each role his several counterpart’s played.
What songs do you think Alaa Wardi should have included in his video? Let us know in the comment box below.
Make sure you share his video and don’t forget to leave a smile 🙂
You can check out the individual songs from Anghami on this playlist.