CAIRO — When Egyptian rapper Aly Soliman announced on Facebook that his song “Ana Msh Bakhaf” (“I’m Not Afraid”) was cited in the unofficial early line-up for the prestigious Grammy Awards, many fans thought this may spur a wider interest in rap, a genre not widely listened to in the Middle East’s most populous nation.
They were wrong. Despite the rapper sharing the good news on social media several times, the song's clip on YouTube has only received just over 236,000 views so far. “I am still optimistic that this will help spur interest in rap in Egypt and also in Egyptian rap abroad,” Soliman told Al-Monitor. The official nominees for the 2020 Grammy Awards will be announced in early December.