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Long ago, Mounir was dubbed “the King,” and it’s mainly because he is the voice of the Egyptian population, able to express what we feel but cannot put into words. Few others address the issues that he brings so vibrantly to life.
For the third consecutive year, the King graced the GUC stage last November and — being a member of the Digital Media Campus (DMC) as well as Echo team — I had the honor of being invited with other team members to his house in Garden City to interview him for the GUC station and for the magazine. My colleagues, Marc Onsi and Noha Khattab, are also great fans of the King.
To finally meet our favorite singer and have a chance to talk to him about his life, his work and show him our appreciation of him as an artist was a dream come true. We spent hours preparing questions and came up with a long list of things we have always wanted to ask him. This was our chance, we thought, it’s not everyday you get to meet the King!
The visit, which lasted an hour and a half, was inspirational and we got to delve deep into the star’s life and thoughts. The GUC Media Center already presented the interview during the Welcome Party, and it was played several times on the big screen of the B1 hall. In this article, I’m taking you behind the scenes of the interview to share with you unforgettable moments that were not included in the footage.
| We walked into his house, and waited for him in the reception area, which is furnished in a classic style. Suddenly, the king came walking down the long hallway, dressed simply in a pair of jeans and a long-sleeve blue striped t-shirt. Of course, he was wearing his signature silver necklace — part of Mounir’s identity — which is the digit “1” topped with a crown.
He gave us a warm welcome and invited us to join him in the living room where it’s much more comfortable. We got to chill out with him in his private domain and watched the rest of an important Zamalek match being aired at the time before starting the interview. Yes, the king is Zamalkawy!
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Twenty minutes passed as we sat on his dark purple, corduroyed couch watching the match, drinking pineapple juice and chit-chatting about life as if we were childhood friends. No boundaries, no complications.
Before starting question-answer session, we were honored to listen to a couple of songs from his new album “Taam El Beiut” (The Taste of Houses). Of course, it felt different — actually, exceptional — to listen to his songs as we sat with him in his very own living room. We got to hear it before the album launched in the market.
He started the interview with a message to GUC students: “As students, you are living the best days of your life. This is the best phase, because you have a lot of dreams, a lot of rebellious and revolutionary emotions, stubbornness and you also live relatively a spontaneous life.”
He advised teens to listen to the words of wisdom that come from adults — who are speaking from more life experience — and not let their stubbornness and pride get in the way and mislead them to impulsive decisions.
Still, he admitted that as a child, he never followed the advice he was given. He said he was not a typical child; he didn’t play football or with other children. Instead, he was attracted to anything related to music.
Over the years, Mounir became known for choosing lyrics that reflect his life philosophy, his opinions and his viewpoints about an array of issues. His music is always full of thought, hope and optimism.
”I had a goal ever since I stared my career: To bring the music form the south to Cairo. This is contrary to what used to happen … songs about romance and love were very typical … of course you need them, but at that time, we needed new topics that reflected people’s needs and life.”
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In the early 80s, Egyptians were immigrating in search of opportunities all over the world, and this was one topic that needed to be addressed. Mounir’s music tackled peoples’ mixed emotions towards leaving their home country, feelings of alienation and the immigrant experience overall. At the time, this reflected the voice of the streets and any one could relate to the lyrics and feelings behind them.
His friends who lived in the United States during this time helped him launch this new type of music in Cairo. Mounir was the backbone, representing the music of the south, while Yehia Khalil and Fathy Salama were the vision. They all had a common dream and the idea was to fuse American jazz with Nubian music using western instruments to accompany Arabic and Nubian lyrics.
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Mounir's voice propelled this new sound into the market and made it accessible to the audience. Their musical merger was an immediate success.
The King has devoted his life to music, which is why we had to ask him about his favorite Mounir song. “I sing for Mounir the songs which people still didn’t hear”.
When asked about the song “Ebki” (Cry), he said, “Crying is great. It’s a great feeling to cry if you can. It is a cleanse and it’s a relief when you cry.”
As for his song “Horeya” (Freedom), he took a deep breath and said, “If I don’t breathe the freedom, I die.”
Unfortunately, the interview had to come to an end, but he didn’t want us to leave and we didn’t want to leave. So we sat around some more, listening to more songs from his new album “Taam El Beiut,” which every Mounir fan is waiting for in high anticipation.
Monir is not only a great singer, he is an amazing person: generous, down to earth and intellectual. We had the opportunity to chat more with him about life, ask him some personal questions and, of course, got his autograph and took plenty of pictures.
Our visit to the King is an unforgettable experience and will always be one of the most significant moments in our lives. As a matter of fact, this visit was arranged by Ms. Noha Khattab and Mr. Mohamed Ghanem for my birthday, and it will forever be the best birthday present I ever received.
Thank you for making my 25th birthday this special :)
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