Darbuka Artist Sabrine Makes Singing Debut With ‘Adalaa’k Wetdalaa'ny'

Queen of darbuka Sabrine El Hossamy, aka Sabrine Darbuka, is putting aside her instruments for a hot second to make her debut as a singer with her new track ‘Adalaa’k Wetdalaa’ny’. The multidisciplinary artist has been making waves internationally since 2010, touring the world with her unique darbuka fusion performances on top of opening up her ‘Dom Tak’ a school to spread her love for the instrument. A writer, lyricist, director, producer, and an award-winning percussionist, El Hossamy is spreading her wings further with this new direction.

“Combining musical instruments with vocals is freeing, and grants me more room to express myself,” El Hossamy tells CairoScene. “Especially since writing lyrics is a long process yet it feels more authentic and genuine to sing something I wrote.”

‘Adalaa’k Wetdalaa’ny’ embodies the singer-songwriter’s fierce feminine presence, a core element to her previous projects. “The lyrics are an invitation for women to accept and express themselves without fearing judgement, to express their desire to love and be loved and be assertive when navigating romance,” El Hossamy explains.

El Hossamy drew inspiration from her personal experience as a woman of the Middle East, the hurdles of womanhood and relationships pushing her to explore those social issues through her lyrics and a bold, dreamy, summer-y music video, which was directed by Karim El Deeb and - unexpectedly - starred El Hossamy herself. “We actually had planned for a model to act in the video but she couldn’t make it, so I had to improvise,” El Hossamy says. “The idea is that I’d communicate with the camera, representing a romantic partner.”

The eclectic artist has four more diverse singles in the works, all embodying an electronic pop sound. She also wrote her first film recently and is working to produce it soon, with constant reinvention and collaboration at the heart of her philosophy as an artist.