MIDDLE EAST PROFILES SERIES – INTERVIEW WITH EGYPT’S MAHMOUD REFAT
Freedom Beat teamed up with Arash Sobhani of the Iranian band Kiosk, and Iranwire.com on a series of documentary profiles of contemporary Middle Eastern music artists who engage in nonviolent resistance through the medium of music. Arash traveled with journalist Jahanshah Javid of Iranwire to Turkey, Egypt, and Lebanon in August of 2013 to meet musicians, interview them, share ideas, and to play music together.
Who Killed The Radio Star? by Arash Sobhani
For an industry that is changing and shifting so rapidly like the music industry, being a producer is a very tough job. Now imagine being a producer in a country going through a series of revolutions and turmoil. Add to that having to deal with multiple musicians whom each might have something to say that one of the country’s political players might be sensitive about. Mahmoud Refat does just that!
Mahmoud has been an active player in Egypt’s modern music scene for many years. He has been making his own electronic music, collaborating with other artists as a guest musician, and has produced up and coming talents in the Egyptian music scene. As founder of the 100 Copies record label, Mahmoud looks out for his artists while also balancing any potential reactions from conservative officials. These skills are part of his trade, and he needs to be careful in order to keep his record label and recording studio alive.
Mahmoud tells us how he’s not worried about the future of Egyptian folk music, and he has faith in it’s ability to adapt to a changing music landscape. He is well aware of the impact that digital media like Youtube and Facebook have had on the underground music scene here in Egypt, and he’s looking for ways to use these tools for the young artists he’s working with. Technology has played a major role in the recording and distribution of music over the past few years. I was well aware of this before my trip, but I became aware of a whole new level of importance that social media plays from my conversations with musicians in Egypt. Without social media, I can’t think of a way for these young talents to distribute their work, build an audience, and create the scene they’ve created. The simplest example is that all of these artists put their music on the web for free download, and built a independent scene in Egypt.
Executive Producers: Maziar Bahari, Daryn Cambridge, Tim O’Keefe
Produced by Jahanshah Javid
Directed by Tim O’Keefe, Arash Sobhani, Irene Su
Edited by Irene Su
Interviews by Jahanshah Javid, Arash Sobhani
Camera & Sound by Mohammad Talani, Jahanshah Javid
Freedom Beat logo animation by Sang Un Jeon
Freedom Beat Middle East Series animation by Beth Wexler
Music by Tim O’Keefe
Special thanks to Iranwire.com and The International Center on Nonviolent Conflict for their support & collaboration in the making of this series.