How do the Upcoming Musicians in Egypt struggle?
Aspiring and early-career musicians face various barriers to entry into the music industry, especially in Egypt, despite listening to music being an everyday experience for most people, according to the Egyptian Streets website.
Imagine the scenarios.
In one, Ahmed El-Sedfy, 26, has just finished performing a gig with his friends. He feels an exhilarating sense of fulfillment. When he returns home and recalls his day, he remembers that his performance was unpaid. Yet, he still deems it good because it brings him exposure. El-Sedfy wonders if there are other ways to help him gain recognition, from both professionals in the industry as well as his own family. Then, he remembers how challenging it will be to convince his parents that being a musician is a real job.
In the second scenario, Joudi Nox, 26, enjoys posting videos of herself singing on social media. An event organizer offers her a two-song performance slot as the opening act of another artist, at a concert. She is overwhelmed with happiness, but then she worries that her parents will deem her less moral because of it. She agonizes over her choice of outfit, and meticulously constructs her on-stage persona to appear more appropriate by her family’s standards.
Both scenarios, narrated to Egyptian Streets by real-life aspiring musicians, present the preliminary and varying challenges that artists have to face at the early stages of their careers.
This is just a glimpse into the thoughts and concerns that keep aspiring Egyptian musicians tossing and turning at night. Usually, in Egypt, pursuing a career in music is perceived as either a hobby or a phase, especially by families who hope their children will move on to more lucrative and socially-approved careers.
Those who decide to professionally pursue music face various hardships. Commonly, there are two approaches young artists resort to in their attempts to achieve their musical dream. They either decide to study music at a university level or gain work experience beyond their choice of academic major. Either way, the decision to choose this career is often riddled with stereotypes.
Nox, who studied Music Technology at the American University in Cairo, explains that the struggles musicians usually face are two-fold: personal and professional. Professionally, she believes the job market for musicians depends exclusively on networking, with a high chance of undertaking administrative tasks rather than creating music. While personally, musicians are usually not taken seriously, which is particularly evident during family gatherings and conversations.
Hardships in the job market
According to Nox, her desire to work as a sound engineer usually comes as a surprise to many in her field since it is expected that female musicians sing rather than produce music.
“The job market of sound engineers in Egypt is always surprising that a woman is behind the mixer and the man is the one who is singing, not the other way around. I’m usually not referred to gigs or projects because my job requires late working hours and some employers do not want to be responsible for making a woman work this late,” explains Nox.
El-Sedfy, who is an aspiring musician, majoring in business at Egypt’s Future University, adds that it is not enough to have the work experience required to find employment opportunities, nor is it enough to work on yourself daily to be considered a viable option when it comes to getting contracted to paid gigs.
Opportunities in the job market are passed on through word-of-mouth, from networks and acquaintances; it is a privilege not bestowed on all. According to El-Sedfy, unlike other work fields, one cannot apply to a studio or for a performance by sending in their resume. Additionally, when musicians are allowed to perform, remuneration is usually substituted by rationalizing that they are given a platform and exposure.
How musicians are socially perceived
According to a group of graduates and aspiring musicians who spoke to Egyptian Streets, society automatically molds ‘musicians’ into two boxes: one that considers music as a passing phase and the other portrays them as people who are just having “fun”.
El-Sedfy highlighted the social burden of proving himself as a financially dependable individual or one eligible enough to start a family one day.
“If I decided to propose to someone, her family would most likely condition me to take a ‘more serious’ job, and to have a steady income, since being a musician is not socially appreciated,” he explained.
Definition of “success”: what could be done better?
According to Nox, success is defined as having a steady income; the instability of income, for her, undermines the validity of her work in general. She hopes one day she can confidently answer the question “what do you do for a living?”
El-Sedfy defined success as not having to compromise his work to produce “popular” songs. In other words, he would not have to change the genre of his songs to sell. He also believed success is being able to approach labels and getting signed to produce his album, along with a positive reaction from listeners.
Succeeding in this industry can look different, according to El-Sedfy. One is by fostering a fanbase to be approached by record labels, as was the case for Tasneem El-Aidy, a popular Egyptian singer. Or one works on proving themselves a label from the beginning and works from scratch on building a community.
