The therapist can be heard asking the 30-year-old Egyptian artist about his feelings.
Just a few days after her passing came Oct. 7 and the ensuing Israeli invasion into Gaza.
I felt like this is not actually what our values are as Arabs.
Moussa performs at the Soundstorm music festival in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Dec. 13, 2024.Mohammed Cristiano*
Moving forward, I want to choose more wisely what it is that Im bragging about.
Adding your own flavor while remaining authentic is what makes artists stand out.
My mom forced me to do it, he says with a chuckle.
When I was 13, I ditched it immediately.
(I took The Games side in that beef, Moussa admits.)
I started being just very against everything, and I hated everything.
I just had no motivation to even go and find music or listen to music.
Simultaneously, however, Moussa was reading books on managing a soccer club.
Despite all of this, his time at AUR proved pivotal to his musical career.
Moussa shouts out Kendrick Lamarsgood kid, m.A.A.d city, for his reentry into music.
Even then, he says, he yearned for a missing musical connection to his home of Egypt.
In his last year at AUR, he started listening to avant-garde Egyptian rapper Abyusif.
I can do this in Arabic.
I didnt know that I could even rap in Arabic, that it was possible to not sound corny.
The rapper concedes that his early music lacked the distinct Egyptian sound he wanted.
Moussa turned tomahraganat what he affectionately calls raps cousin in Egypt.
The following year, 19mahraganatartists were banned from ever performing in Egypt.
It really annoyed me because I felt like these guys, theyre just making music, Moussa passionately shares.
And I really respect all of them.
Thats how they recorded.
I have to respect these people, and they made all of Egypt listen to the music.
Im against hiding from your emotions, and I feel like its counterproductive, he says emphatically.
And hes quick to point out that making music isnt the same as when he was first starting.
Thats a success that I want to reach in terms of the whole Arab region.
