A searing spotlight will be shone into the region’s thriving alternative music scene, with a brand new, large-scale UAE music festival.
Lebanese indie quintet Mashrou’ Leila, Algerian singer-songwriter Souad Massi and Jordanian rockers Jadal are among the headliners booked for Wasla, to be hosted at Dubai Media City Amphitheatre on January 20 – a venue normally reserved for the most poppy Western names.
Other highlights of the all-day fest include Tunisian protest songwriter Emel Mathlouthi, Egyptian electro act Neobyrd and fusion trio Salhi, who meld Sufi vocals, jazz trumpet and Bedouin folksong.
With so many heavyweight alternative Arabic acts in one place, Wasla offers perhaps the UAE’s greatest showcase of a generation of thriving musicians, from across the Middle East and North Africa, too often overlooked by the mainstream.
“We’re talking about some of the region’s best and budding artists from Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Algeria, Tunisia and the UAE, all under one roof, and what better place to do this than here?” said the festival’s marketing director, Moustafa Abdelhamid.
Rounding out the bill will be local favourites Abri & The Funk Radius. As well as music, festival-goers can look forward to art, entertainment, pop-up shops and stalls selling traditional Arabic street food.
Early bird tickets are priced at Dh235 will go on sale later this months from Virgin Megastores.
