Amidst the loud rhythms of the "Dashdash" band

Saudis: Music is our new black gold

Dashdash seeks to take advantage of the openness to boost the local music industry.

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Young Saudi men and women wearing luminous sunglasses on their faces jump together to the loud rhythms of the Saudi disc orchestration band “Dashdash”, whose rise reflects the music scene in the Kingdom, and many of those working in this field see it as the new black gold.

The hall, in Riyadh, was crowded with them, and most of them wore comfortable jackets and jeans, while others chose to attend the party in the traditional dress and abaya.

The hall is not at all like the places where the “Dashdash” band, consisting of the brothers Abbas and Hassan Ghazzawi, born in Jeddah, began its journey in the world of songwriting more than 15 years ago, including a wedding party hall in which the attendees of both sexes were separated.

“We used to stay in the room for five hours and arrange songs in front of a wall,” Hassan recalls, laughing. “The only way to know if people are enjoying it is by hearing their screams.”

Like other aspects of cultural life in the kingdom, the music scene is undergoing a process of renewal.

International musicians and artists are visiting the Kingdom, including major pop stars from Justin Bieber to Usher and Maraya Carey.

At the Middle Beast Sunstorm festival, which took place over the weekend in Saudi Arabia, organizers said more than 600,000 people attended concerts by singers like Bruno Mars and DJ Khaled, who documented Saudi food and the traditional sword dance for his 31 million followers on Instagram.

Talal Al-Bahiti, head of operations at the Middle Beast Festival, notes that the story of Nouf is becoming increasingly popular in the Kingdom, whose youth population of 34 million people represents a vast market hungry for this type of entertainment.

"I keep telling people that this is our new black gold," he explains, referring to oil.

And he continues, “This is the new boom, and it is all about these creators and what they offer.

I think the next big star will be from this region.”

Saudi artists such as Dashdash are seeking to take advantage of the opening to boost the local music industry, and Saudi musicians report significant progress, pointing to unprecedented new bands, studios and concert venues.

Hassan explains that not long ago, "people used to tell us: 'You're just wasting your time and not getting anything done'," adding, "Now people are calling us to be on the party invite list."

DJ Nouf Al-Sufiani, who performs under the name "Cosmicat", says that she began to take her music career seriously only after organizing the first edition of the "Soundstorm" festival in Saudi Arabia in 2019.

Before that, she was both a dentist and DJ, but the buzz caused by the raucous annual event led her to focus on music.

"I am 100% able to live thanks to what I earn from music," she explains, adding, "This should also be a motivation for everyone who wants to play music and has the talent but hesitates."

 A Saudi doctor: “I started taking the music profession seriously and was able to live with what I earn from it.”

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