Artist Session #14: Echoes From Palestine - Bashar Murad on Music, Resistance, and Identity

It's a rare and special opportunity to connect with an artist whose work has touched your life deeply. Today, I have the privilege of introducing someone who is not only a beacon of artistic talent but also a voice for resilience and identity. Bashar Murad is a Palestinian Pop artist, known for his music that challenges norms, embraces diversity and explores the Palestinian experience from a unique lens. He has consistently used his passion for music to channel the complexities of his homeland, creating art that resonates far beyond borders.

Bashar doesn’t stick to any mould — he sings beautifully in both Arabic and English, creating a bridge between cultures and he has a lot to say, whether it’s through his music videos or fashion. Through his music, Bashar has opened a window into the soul of Palestine and today, we delve into the stories, struggles, and triumphs that have shaped his journey.

Akriti: What are some of your most cherished and earliest memories of music? How was it like growing up in a musical family and even releasing music with Sabreen - your Father’s band, at a later stage?

Bashar: The earliest moments of music take me back to my Dad’s music studio where I grew up, in Jerusalem. The studio was my home and playground. I have fond memories of my Dad's band ‘Sabreen’ and it always felt like such a privilege to have music introduced to me at such a young age. When I think of the best times of my life, I go back to those memories of always being in the studio around musicians, instruments, Jerusalem, family life, sitting on my Dad’s shoulders and going to their concerts. 

Sabreen Band in jerusalem 1990

Sabreen, the original band, was active for about 20 years until 2002. Later, it developed into this non-profit. That’s when my dad started to do different productions under the title Sabreen and I was in one song about Jerusalem that he produced. I’m so lucky because Sabreen was a whole universe of music and the poetry that they sang were poems by amazing Palestinian poets that I was introduced to at the age of five. I'm privileged to have had this kind of outlet of music, something that I can channel all the complicated feelings that come with being from Jerusalem.

Akriti: I've been listening to your music for many years and I feel that every song you put out is very different from the other. How do you approach making music with  lyrics that have such a strong political message and yet makes people dance, because often people can’t see these two things coexist. Do you feel that the dance floor is where a lot of healing can take place?

Bashar: I think music and especially Pop has always been a way to entertain, but also to talk about really important things. Music is always very representative of the times that we are going through. Growing up I was inspired by all these artists that spoke about real things regardless of what kind of music they were making. Maybe a lot of people think that politics, serious issues and Dance music don’t go together. To me, these songs come out of my experience of growing up and living my whole life in Jerusalem, in Palestine under occupation. Every day of my life, whether it was happy or sad, it was always under the frame of living in Palestine in this context. For me, it’s so normal to have all these conflicting things. This is the life of a Palestinian. It's a life full of despair, suffering and struggle but also full of hope, perseverance and resistance just through being and existing. So to me, it's very natural that these two things would come together. Also, growing up I never saw any Pop artists contributing to representing Arabs in general and specifically Palestinians . Naturally, I became that representation that I wanted for myself.

Akriti: About your song, ‘Mawtini’, which was originally composed by Ibrahim Tuqan, a poet from Nablus, Palestine, how did you approach working on such an iconic piece of Palestinian art? 

Bashar: This song is covered to death. It's basically the unofficial national anthem of Palestine and the official anthem of Iraq. But it was also adopted by all the people who were colonised within the Middle East. I understand the seriousness of choosing that song, I knew it had to be produced completely differently. It couldn't be a piano ballad or something that we've heard before. It's an ode to the homeland. The lyrics say, “Will I see you in your peak?” There's beauty and longing in it, but there's also pain, sorrow and melancholy. I wanted to take all of that and have my rendition showcase the vision for the future, because we've sung this song so much in the past, I wanted to give a new twist. So I chose to go with a more Electronic sound, like pulsing synths and it keeps elevating but without reaching a full drop at the end. I start my concerts with it. It's the first song in which I lay out my mission. It is the song that has all these conflicting emotions around different things such as happiness and dancing and smoking weed on the dance floor, wanting to hide in the closet and not talk to anyone because the reality is horrible.

Akriti: I’ve noticed you sang a lot in English earlier but I hear more and more of Arabic in the last few years? Is this something you are consciously shifting towards or gravitate towards organically? 

Bashar: I think there is something intentional in it. I started writing in English when I was younger because I went to an American school in my last four or five years of high school and then I went to college in America for four years, my thinking switched and I was always thinking in and expressing myself more easily in English. I started writing in Arabic only after college when I went back home and worked a boring desk job for two years, living outside the bubble of high school. Maybe it depends on the context of where I am and what I'm experiencing, because I write from experience. Recently, I transitioned to English because I wanted to try out for the Icelandic Eurovision Contest. I intentionally made that switch but then me and an Icelandic producer Einar Stefansson ended up writing a whole album, which was all in English. So it's a mix of both - the context of where I am and when I sing. When I was singing in Arabic I was singing more about daily life, societal issues and interpersonal things that I want to address within my own society, whereas when I sing in English, I talk to the world more and am more political and straightforward with the things that I want to say. 

Akriti: What was it like being in the top two of the Eurovision Song contest in Iceland earlier this year, especially with all the backlash you got? 

Bashar: It was crazy, but it feels like a long time ago. I planned it two years ago, since it's been in the works for a while and it wasn't a reaction to what's happening. But then, I was seeing all the dehumanisation and how Palestinians were being portrayed as animals. I felt like doing this was the right time to show the world a different image than what people are expecting. But it was tough. The politicised nature of it made people not look at the music but look at me as an identity, a propaganda act or something. It was a struggle to cut through all that noise. The crazy Zionists on social media were insane and in Israel they were writing crazy articles about me. They made a parody sketch on the Israeli SNL on me but it wasn’t funny at all. But the artistic side of it was amazing. Being on stage, creating a whole world for a three minute song using fashion, visuals and dancers, making it to the top two was one of the best moments of my life. 

Akriti: Coming to the visual aspect of your music, whether it’s directing your videos or fashion - it’s unapologetically you. Tell us a little bit about your inspiration? 

Bashar: Creating visuals happened out of necessity because I was making music on my own and I realised how important it is for people since the 2010s especially, to have a visual. I found some of my inspiration from my love for big production music videos Pop stars used to make and the worlds that they created. One of the first videos I did was for a song about Christmas where Santa Claus comes to Jerusalem to give presents but then he meets the wall. It was a very popular image as everyone knows Santa Claus, but then juxtaposing it within this context. I kept creating videos as I started meeting more people back in Jerusalem who were my age and even younger and were dabbling in video and cameras. We started doing videos together and it kind of became a laboratory. With each video, we started to get better and  better, eventually creating a community in Jerusalem of visual artists who now all actually work in the field. 

Through the visuals, I can tell the full story and add more layers than what I have said through the words and music. But I think now, music videos are dying as everyone has moved to TikTok and Reels with short form content. I'm trying to get into it but for some reason, I'm just struggling with creating a 10 second clip. The thing with TikTok is, they give it to you in little pieces, but when they do, you really see the impact. I've been posting for four years and nothing has ever happened, but then I posted one and I got 10,000 followers in one day. Then they all went and streamed the music. It's not a lot, but you know now that it works. So it makes you work harder, but it is a challenge. But at the same time, I feel like I have to adapt to the music industry wherever it's going. 

Srishti: Well, Bashar, you'll be happy to know that India is the most populated country in the world and second highest in streams. We don't have TikTok. I was attending a workshop by YouTube and they were talking about how everything in the YouTube ecosystem from shorts to chat to recreation and so on, only exists to feed into long-form content. TikTok may get banned in the US and if the US does it, everyone else will do it as well. As much as the whole thing of banning TikTok is very political, I think it's really great for art. Because TikTok is not good for art. It's good for entertainment but not for art. Unless it comes naturally for you, because you used the word intention when we were talking about singing in English verses in Arabic. I don't think there's anything more important than intention and if the intention of making TikTok is just to get the views then it's probably not going to work anyway and it's better to focus on the things that you actually enjoy, because there's so many people in the world, the people who have to find the content that align with your personality, are always there and they will eventually find you.

Srishti: There are so many anthems that have started to come out from artists. Saint Levant has definitely been one of them. How is the music fraternity raising more awareness? How has that been across Palestinian artists over the last few months? How has seeing this outpouring of support from the International Artist Community made you feel?

Bashar: It is very rare for Palestinian artists to meet in real life because of the different separations that Palestinians have been made into. You have Palestinians who live in Jerusalem, Palestinians who are in the West Bank, Palestinian citizens of Israel, then there are Palestinians in Gaza and finally Palestinians in the diaspora. We are so separated. The first time during my generation that I was able to meet at least some of these artists and have a place where all of us can gather was the Palestine Music Expo, which is also where I met Spek, in 2017.

I am privileged in many ways, I might say that a lot but I was back home in October and I was accepted into this artist residency in December. I got a taste of being back home and then being away, especially during this climate and the context of what's going on. And when I was back home, I was very scared to post online, I was very scared to be vocal about anything. I was also worried about the music and the lyrics that I might say, because we were seeing examples of Palestinian artists who are citizens of Israel, such as Dalal Abu Amneh, an important Palestinian artist, who was arrested for two days for a post that she made. Many people who were vocal have been targeted by Israeli protesters and it's quite dangerous. 

I would say that being outside Palestine, you have a lot more freedom to be vocal. Right now, I've been reckless and saying what I want to say and releasing music but at some point I have to go back home and I might have to face some things. I think that everyone should use the opportunities that come to them. Be the voice and use your platform. But also, we need to make sure we're connecting with the Palestinians who are back home and raising their voices. I hate to differentiate, but they are living under occupation. We're seeing Palestinian flags, Palestine solidarity movements and people being vocal everywhere outside Palestine but in Palestine, none of that is happening. So I think it's important to acknowledge the privilege and make sure to amplify artists who are on the ground. Everyone deserves to have a voice.

The awareness all over the world about what’s been happening has been unprecedented. I've never seen these many people talking about it and artists making songs about it. Usually it's us, Palestinians, making songs about our own pain. Now you have Macklemore and Kehlani! It's the one ray of light in this whole horror that we're living through. It’s so beautiful, but I hope all this translates into real change. 

Akriti: I've been seeing a lot of your work on social media, especially your writings about queer Palestinians being denied their identity, Pinkwashing and I even saw some of your quotes being used in Pride Marches all over the world. Tell us about how you tackle these issues with your music?

Bashar: I don't remember how I intended to start talking about it, but I think it's another part of me that I address with my music and through the visuals. A lot of times, the world singles out queer Palestinian identity and they don't understand that queer and Palestinian are not separate but one thing and many other things as well, that are intertwined. A lot of the arguments that we get are that if you are queer and Palestinian, they would throw you off a roof. I try not to engage and go down this rabbit hole because it's a waste of time. What I've been trying to focus on is that I'm never trying to paint Palestine as a haven for queer people. Like anywhere in the world, there's homophobia in Palestine. But there are people who are very supportive as well. My being is an example of the climate that I grew up in. I come from a beautiful community of people who are open, who are artists, who also did things during their times that maybe were controversial or different for their surroundings. It's never healthy to paint one place as one thing because even in America and everywhere around the world, there is madness going on right now. Even if I was attacked for my sexuality by my own people, I would never turn against a whole cause, a whole history, just because who I can have sex with or who I can be. At the end of the day, I see it all as one fight for freedom from all kinds of oppression. But, at the same time, you see in my music, there's a lot of frustration about not being able to be who I am completely.

Akriti: I feel it in the song, Yalel. 

Bashar: Yalel is one of my darkest songs. I think it's all intertwined and at the core of it, my songs always talk about this hunger for absolute freedom.

Srishti: Who are some of your role models that you wouldn't be able to be here without? Who are some of the people that, even in your darkest of days, you managed to pull through because of some of these people?

Bashar: My family, my Dad, he is my rock. With all of this madness, with the competition in Iceland earlier this year, there was so much going on. He was the person I would call and talk things out with. I get a lot of inspiration from my mom who also passed when I was 16. She was a strong woman. She was Christian and decided to marry my dad who was Muslim and that was a huge thing in the family. She went after her education, got her PhD, all before she was 44 years old. Even in her death, she taught me how short life is and you need to go for things. Also, my two cousins who I grew up with. We would play with Barbies together, enact music videos on Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera’ songs in their room. They introduced me to a lot of Pop culture. Recently, I've been more aware of intentionally trying to be grateful just because I'm lucky I'm not in Gaza and I'm lucky to be alive. I really appreciate everyone along the way who supported me, especially with my music career and people who gave me these opportunities. Having the PMX happen in Palestine was one of the first rays of light I saw. It felt like a real tangible connection to the music industry. It introduced me to Spek, who I got to release the Maskhara EP with, which was so special to me. Abed Hakuto is from Levantine, which is a MENA publishing agency and he's always been so supportive and also produced my music whenever I couldn't because I didn't have enough money to do it. It's these people, including Einar, who produced ‘Wild West’, the song I competed with on Eurovision and helped me on this journey to go to Iceland in the middle of this craziness.

Akriti: It's so amazing what you're doing, Bashar, using your voice. Of course we knew about these things but I think now it's just so in our faces and you can’t choose to look away. This is the reality and thank you for kind of showing that to the world through your music.

Bashar: That's what I'm here for.

Check out the HIVEWIRE playlist - The Hive

One 'The Hive' is where our diverse team shares new music and trends from emerging markets. New additions this week:

Asar Tera Kaisa - Shekhar Ravjiani  

Aur Ek - Kidshot

BAARO MALA - EXCISE DEPT

The Heir - Sid Sriram

Sahara - Hasan Raheem

Interesting reads from last week:

>>>The debate over music royalties is stuck. Is it time to make the case for ‘completion’? | Sam Blake | Music Business Worldwide

According to Will Page, there have been discussions around changing the status quo in terms of music royalty distribution. The model that he proposes will prioritize completed streams over incomplete ones. It is the choice of a consumer if they want to either change a song before it gets over, or because they like it enough to get through the whole song. The proposed system will increase the streaming share for completed streams by 3% while reducing streaming fraud where listening for 31 seconds meant it was a royalty attached stream. If not a solution, it is a way forward. 

>>> The rise of the songwriter ‘brand’ | Tatiana Cirisano | MIDiA Research

It’s an open secret that most of the biggest acts collaborate with others to write their music. Songwriters have stayed in the back end of a song for far too long and now are emerging as a brand of their own. With more awareness about how music is being made, and the fact that publishing houses and streaming companies are giving the respect where it is due, songwriters now have a following of their own and are leveraging that following both to get more work and to create diversified sources of income through brand partnerships and merchandising amongst others.

>>>How Copa América Moved the Needle for Latin Music in the U.S. (Guest Column) | Ray Uscata | Billboard

Football has united diverse cultures from all over the world for a long time now.  With the Copa America that ended last month, we also saw how much of a musical influence it has. Many of the biggest names from the Latin music industry performed in the halftime show (something unusual for football) and their music spread through the US via social media and garnered a lot more attention to Latin music. From footballers dancing on a certain song while celebrating to songs that were used as anthems by countries, they all found their way into people’s playlists. 

Hivewire is an independent music industry publication launched in June 2023 by Srishti Das. This dynamic newsletter offers a unique perspective on the music industry, focusing on emerging markets and the rapidly growing music cultures gradually making their mark globally.