A Common Voice: Libyan Artists Post-Arab Spring

In February of 2011, the revolution of the Arab Spring made its way to Libya, and the streets were once again filled with glorious noise.

Stagnated for decades by Qaddafi's strict regulation and suppression of "non-Libyan" music (meaning anything not in a traditional style or glorifying him), artists are popping up from the woodwork to share their own thoughts and experiences about the February Revolution. Music is uploaded and distributed via social platforms on an almost daily basis, and music holds a revolutionary and nationalist slant. These artists speak out against the former Qaddafi government, as well as fueling the morale of groups continuing to fight. Interestingly enough, most of these songs are uploaded to the internet anonymously. Artist bios, copyright information, and future career plans are all but impossible to find, if not nonexistent. This paints a sharp contrast from the Qaddafi era, where one man, Muhammad Hassan, was appointed as the country's official composer, gaining all official praise and acknowledgement from the regime in-power but rarely differing in style or content.

Formerly silent, music can now be heard from all corners of the country. Western- and European-inspired hip-hop, hard rock, rap, and lyrical pop abound in the streets, all focusing on similar messages of patriotism and revolution. One particular song of this variety has become very popular during street protests; during one such demonstration in Doha, group morale seemed low until the protesters involved began singing a modern pro-revolution song, featuring a list of all Libyan cities and regions and criticizing Qaddafi's violent misrule and terrible hairstyle. As if by magic, a nearby van began blasting it from its speakers, reinvigorating the crowd. Not only has this music pervaded daily life and protests, but it also holds its own place in more official contexts: the medical room in Benghazi's courthouse was transformed into a media room in which citizens can listen to the burgeoning of this groundbreaking new music form.

In light of the Arab Spring, many women have utilized music as a way to both speak about their own experiences and exercise their own freedom of expression. Traditional means of protest, especially as a women, were very dangerous during the Arab Spring. Across north Africa, women faced being beaten, imprisoned, or raped for their participation in demonstrations against the ruling government of their country. One particular image of "the girl in the blue bra," depicting a female protester stripped and beaten in Cairo due to her attendance of a rally, became a focal point for female activism through less conventional means.

Enter the nine Arab women who compiled songs for the album Sawtuha. Produced by Jakarta Records, the album title roughly translates to "her voice" and is a celebration of women from  Libya, Tunisia, Egypt, and Syria exercising their rights to freedom of expression. The eclectic mix of songs on the album features a range of styles including French pop, Arabic infused hip-hop, lyrical pop, and accordion-heavy production. Regardless of the odd mix of sounds, the theme of each song is the same: the empowerment of women in a post-revolution society. Ad the women involved in the making of this album have stated, they wanted to depict “the women you didn’t see in the glossy photos of the Arab Spring." In their music, fierce patriotism and revolutionary overtones remind the audience that progress does not begin or end with the overthrowing of one dictator, and the freedom of women to express their political beliefs is just as important as those of oppressed racial or class groups

Listen to Sawtuha on Bandcamp: https://jakartarecords-label.bandcamp.com/album/sawtuha (and be especially sure to listen to the closing track "Don’t Loose Your Way" by Libyan artist Nada!)