Top 10 most famous Egyptian singers

Top 10 most famous Egyptian singers

Egyptian music dates back to Ancient Egypt and has been an integral part of Egyptian culture. The ancient Egyptians even credited their goddess Bat with the invention of music.

Since then, Egyptian music has undergone a revolution that saw the music industry merge the old traditional style with new modern styles. The changes have introduced new music, including pop and classical music.

Along the way, Egyptian singers influenced the development of music and inspired the following generation of singers. Below are some elite Egyptian musicians from the past to the present.

1. Sayed Darwish

Sayed Darwish – Wikipedia

Considered the father of Egyptian popular music, Sayed Darwish wrote his name on the Egyptian greatest of all time musician list.

He was born on 17th March 1892 in Alexandria. He received his primary education, later travelled to Lebanon and Syria, and was trained by the biggest names in music.

Darwish paid more attention to expression in his music. His music was relatable to the masses as he summed up their thoughts and feelings. He became a pioneer in his field and contributed to transforming Arab music by blending western instruments.

Sayed Darwish produced some great songs in his six-year tenure before his sudden death on 10th September 1923. Despite his death, many still consider him the most influential composer Egypt has ever seen.

2. Abdel Halim Hafez

Abdel Halim Hafez, 1970s – Wikipedia

His real name was Abdel Halim Ali Shabana. He was born on 21st June 1929 and had the nickname “the brown nightingale”.

Halim’s talent was discovered when performing the songs of Mohamed Abdel Wahab remarkably. He was rejected in the early days of his career, but his persistence saw him gain accolades later on in his career.

He was not only a singer but also played different instruments such as oboe, drums, piano and guitar. Despite working purely as a live singer, he became a fan favourite and consistently performed in sold-out arenas.

With over 80 million records sold, Abdel is still widely celebrated, despite meeting his demise on 30th March 1977 from liver failure.

3. Mohammed Abdel Wahab

Mohammad Abdel Wahab with a mandolin-banjo – Wikipedia

Born in Cairo in 1902, Mohammed Abdel Wahab was a prominent singer, actor and composer.

Wahab composed more than 1820 songs and is best known for his Romantic and patriotic songs. His style of music, however, got mixed reactions as he combined western and Arabic music. This approach earned him criticism and acclaim.

His broad artistic career made him a significant figure in the music field. This made the then president Anwar as-Sadat arrange for his song to be used as the national anthem. He also had a hand in crafting national anthems for Tunisia, Libya and the United Arab Emirates.

4. Umm Kulthum

Umm Kulthum in Life Magazine, 1962 – Wikipedia

Born Fatima Ibrahim es-Sayid el-Beltagi, she was an Egyptian singer, songwriter and actress.

She’s dubbed the “The voice of Egypt” and is considered an icon in the Arab world. Her talent was recognized by her father, Sheikh Ibrahim, who was able to introduce him to her first audience.

Umm could make you hear your own stories in her songs and managed to touch people of all ages. She mainly dealt with themes of love, longing and loss. She gave monthly concerts, which always cleared the streets as thousands of people would tune in to listen to her resounding voice.

Despite breathing her last in 1975, she is still considered an icon to date.

5. Sheikh Imam

Sheikh Imam – Wikipedia

Sheikh Imam, whose real name was Imam Mohammad Ahmad Eissa, was a famous Egyptian singer and composer.

Imam was born to a low-income family and lost his sight when he was a child. He found sanctuary in music. He formed a duo with Ahmed Fouad Negm, a famous Egyptian colloquial poet.

The pair is known for their political songs to favor the poor and lower classes in society. These songs got them imprisoned several times, and their songs were banned from Egyptian radio and TV stations, but this didn’t stop their popularity among the people.

The duo later went separate ways after disagreements, before Imam died in 1995 from a long illness.

6. Amr Diab

Amr Diab with his 7 World Music Awards in 2014 – Wikipedia

Amr Diab is an Egyptian singer, composer and actor. He created his style of music, which combines western and Egyptian styles, which he deemed “Mediterranean music”.

He is one of the first Egyptian artists to create modern high-tech music videos to make quality music. Amr Diab has won numerous awards, including the World Music awards seven times and the African music awards four times.

Diab also holds a Guinness World Record for the most World Music Awards for Best Selling Middle Eastern Artist.

7. Sherine

Sherine, 2017 – Wikipedia

Sherine Sayed Mohamed Abdel-Wahab, known professionally by the mononym Sherine, is an Egyptian singer, actress, TV host and personality, and a former judge on MBC’s The Voice: Ahla Sawt

She started her career in 1991 and has released over 65 songs. Her songs are a mix of local Taarab style and traditional musical instruments.

8. Tamer Hosny

Tamer Hosny in an interview with Middle East News Agency in February 2015 – Wikipedia

Nicknamed the “King of The Generation”, Hosny is an Egyptian musician, songwriter and director.

Hosny is known for his romantic songs, exciting live shows and stage presence. One of his famous songs is “Si Al Sayed”, in which he features American artist Snoop Dogg.

He has over 80 songs to his name and broke the Guinness world record for the most contributions to a bulletin board in December 2019.

9. Angham

Angham – Wikipedia

Angham is an Egyptian musician from Alexandria.

She is known for her soft voice and emotional songs, which she says she got inspiration from Egyptian singing legends. She often collaborates with other artists, with some notable songs being “What Should We Dream Of?” featuring Thekra, another Egyptian singer.

Her soft lyrics, powerful vocals, and low tone show her talent’s incredible.

10. Mohamed Mounir

Mounir performing at the Deutscher Evangelischer Kirchentag 2019 in Dortmund, Germany

Mohamed Mounir is an Egyptian singer whose lyrics are particularly noted for their intellectual and philosophical content and passionate social and political criticism.

Mounir has integrated various genres in his music career, including Egyptian music, Nubian music, blues, jazz and reggae.

Besides his music career, Mounir has an acting career in which he has appeared in 12 movies, 4 TV series and three plays.