Somah

[VIDEO] Egypt Has Inspired Us All

I put this video together as a tribute to the Egyptian Revolution that truly inspired the world. I hope you like it :)

Gay Egyptians are "Born This Way"

When Lady Gaga's "Born This Way" single came out a week ago, I didn't really care for it that much. But this little girl made a believer out of me. The message in this song (be & love yourself just the way you are) struck a chord with me given the current situation in the Middle East, and Egypt in particular.

Right this minute, millions of gay Egyptians are cautiously trying to find their place in a new Egypt. As the promise of freedom and reform echos across Egypt, decades of torture, abuse and scapegoating may soon come to an end. There is hope that the torture and humiliation gay Egyptian men had to endure in 2001 may never happen again.

But even when the torture ends, mental and psychological damage inflicted by society on its own who are gay is whole different ballgame. How can we expect young gay men and women to grow up with any sense of pride and self-esteem when they are told from a very young age that being gay is "perverted", "disgusting", and "a family disgrace." Strong societal aversion and lack of any positive gay Arab role models are the two most important things we need to address to complete the free environment so many are yearning for.

The Egyptian Revolution has been a fight to restore dignity, self-esteem and pride to ALL Egyptians, and that includes the gay men and women of Egypt.

This song is for you, my fellow gay Egyptians, and for anyone who has been marginalized for not fitting society's mold.

Don't hide yourself in regret. Just love yourself and you're set. You are on the right track, Egyptians, you are born this way. 

VIDEO: Egyptian Revolution on YouTube - صوت بلادي بينادي بينادي

This patriotic song from the 80's captures what's really beautiful about Egypt. I especially love the second song (6:30s) which says:

صوت بلادي بينادي بينادي
بيدوي عبر الأجيال
صوت حضارة

من يومها جبارة

ياما صنعت أبطال و رجال

 صوت شعب ماشي آلاف السنين 
كل خطوة منه بكفاح ملايين 
أمجاده كتبها بحياته و مصر حياتها خطى المخلصين

My country's voice chants chants
Echoing across generations
Voice of a civilization
That's born great
That produced many heroes and men
Voice of a people trudging for thousands of years
Every step by the struggle of millions
A people that wrote their glory with their lives and Egypt's life is the steps of those faithful

عيش حياتك  بس ابحث عن ذاتك 
يا مصري و شوف عمرها كام 
شوف جدودك من لحظة وجودك 
شعلة عزم و خير و سلام

صوت شعب مصري و أعظم ما فيه

أي أخ عربي يعوزه يلاقيه 
أمجاده كتبها بحياته و مصر حياتها خطى المخلصين

Live life to search for your own truth
O Egyptian look how old your country is!
Look at your ancestors from the moment of your inception
A beacon of determination, goodness and peace
Voice of the people of Egypt that are greatly known for being
Available to any Arab brother seeking them
A people that wrote their glory with their lives and Egypt's life is the steps of those faithful

x2

VIDEO: Egyptian Revolution on YouTube - احلم معايا

A heartbreaking melody, lyrics, and of course, imagery, of the Egyptian Revolution. The title of the clip translates into "dream with me." The interview in the clip is with one of Egypt's most beloved and respected composers whose music has moved many Egyptians in the 70's, 80's and 90's.

The song is about dreaming of a better future; the very future whose birth we're witnessing this very moment.

The 15th Anniversary of D'EUX

One of my all-time favorite albums, and evidently, "the best-selling French-language album of all time", is getting re-released on December 1st with remastered tracks and video content.

Originally released in 1995, this album, and particularly the song "Pour Que Tu M'Aimes Encore," were the reason I asked my dad to send me to France to study French. I simply had to learn that seductive language expressed ever so beatuifully in this song. A few months later, I was living in Chambéry, France, studying the language of love. To this day, every time I hear the song (once a month or so) I reminisce about the time I spent in the South of France and all the people I met and the friends I made. More importantly, the song always reminds me of the power of music and its cultural relevance and influence, transcending borders, conflicts and even language.

It's worth mentioning that every single song on this album is amazing. I never really liked Céline's English efforts; She feels cold and unauthentic, maybe because English isn't her native tongue. In French, though, she's brilliant and real. I have all her French albums and none of her English ones. "D'EUX" and "1 Fille & 4 Types" are my favorite, but they're all really great. I headlined my review of "1 Fille & 4 Types" with "A Testament to the Transcendence of Music." This is true of all her French music!

You can pre-order the album on Amazon right now. The Product Description goes as follows:

It's been a decade and a half since the album D'EUX (released March 1995) was written and produced by JEAN -JACQUE'S GOLDMAN for CÉLINE DION! D'eux is the best-selling French-language album of all time, selling 6.5 million copies worldwide and over 700,000 copies in Canada. To commemorate the 15th anniversary, Legacy has created a remastered version with three new demo songs from Jean-Jacques Goldman's personal archives (Pour que tu m'aimes encore, J'irai ou tu iras and Le ballet) plus two PBO versions of Pour que tu m'aimes encore and Vole, new liner notes, a 40-page booklet featuring never-before-released photos and a reproduction of Jean-Jacques Goldman's handwritten lyrics of Pour que tu m'aimes encore. The DVD contains three legendary videos: Pour que tu m'aimes encore, Je sais pas and an alternative version of J'Attendais along with behind-the-scene footage with Jean-Jacques Goldman on Les derniers seront les premiers'Live A Paris.' All this, and a special live-recording of the famous 1995 Spécial Dimanche program (which aired exclusively in Quebec), presented by Sonia Benezra bringing Céline Dion and Jean-Jacques Goldman together for the very first time. On the show Céline delivers live performances of 5 songs (2 of which are duets with Goldman) along with interviews from that era. Sony. 2009.

Here is the lyrics to the song that made me fall in love with the French language:

J'ai compris tous les mots, j'ai bien compris, merci 
Raisonnable et nouveau, c'est ainsi par ici 
Que les choses ont changé, que les fleurs ont fané 
Que le temps d'avant, c'était le temps d'avant 
Que si tout zappe et lasse, les amours aussi passent 

Il faut que tu saches 

J'irai chercher ton cœur si tu l'emportes ailleurs 
Même si dans tes danses d'autres dansent des heures 
J'irai chercher ton âme dans les froids dans les flammes 
Je te jetterai des sorts Pour que tu m'aimes encore 
Pour que tu m'aimes encore 

Fallait pas commencer m'attirer me toucher 
Fallait pas tant donner moi je sais pas jouer 
On me dit qu'aujourd'hui, on me dit que les autres font ainsi 
Je ne suis pas les autres non non non 
Avant que l'on s'attache, avant que l'on se gâche 

je veux que tu saches 

J'irai chercher ton cœur si tu l'emporte ailleurs 
Même si dans tes danses d'autres dansent des heures 
J'irai chercher ton âme dans les froids dans les flammes 
Je te jetterai des sorts Pour que tu m'aimes encore 

Je trouverais des langages pour chanter tes louanges 
Je ferais nos bagages pour d'infinies vendanges 
Les formules les magiques des marabouts d'Afrique 
Je dirais sans remords Pour que tu m'aimes encore

Je m'inventerai reine pour que tu me retiennes
Je me ferai nouvelle pour que le feu reprenne
Je deviendrais ces autres qui te donnent du plaisir
Vos jeux seront les nôtres, si tel est ton desir
Plus brillante et plus belle pour une autre étincelle
Je me changerai en or Pour que tu m'aimes encore.

A Night at The Troubadour with Greg Laswell

I was at The Troubadour last night to see my new fave, Greg Laswell. I got there early, so I killed sometime at the nearby, newly remodeled Pavilions supermarket, which is a must-visit if you're in the West Hollywood/Beverly Hills area. At 9:00 pm, the opening act, Elizabeth and The Catapult hit the stage and boy were they good. Well, suffice it to say, I downloaded their album off of iTunes today and have been listening to it all day.

Elizabeth and her catapults performed for an hour and they received a heartfelt applause as they left the stage. The audience did indeed enjoy their music, which is hardly true for most opening acts out there. Most opening acts are merely an excuse that gives the main act enough time to calm his nerves backstage and the audience plenty of time to build anticipation for his magical performance. Unfortunately for Greg, the audience wouldn't have minded if Elizabeth and gang were indeed the main act. Not that they were better than Greg, but that they were definitely entertaining. Too entertaining, in fact, that a solo LA performance should be planned in short order.

Sorry, back to Greg.

Greg came on a few minutes after 10:00. I love his music and I was glad he played most of my favorites. His voice cracked a bit here and there, especially in the ballads. Not a big deal since I wasn't expecting a Bocelli performance. And although "High and Low" hit all its lows and none of its highs, it was heartfelt and sung with passion, and that's all I cared about. I know he's not the best singer out there, but he's cute and has a kind demeanor to him, and that's plenty enough in my book.