EMEL
Photo Credit: Amber Gray
Tunisian/American, New York-based artist Emel Mathlouthi, also known as EMEL, has released her long-awaited album, ‘MRA’. Combining ethereal hip-hop, powerful beats, and catchy melodies, the album features a diverse lineup of female and queer collaborators across genres. EMEL’s career is marked by collaborations with iconic artists like Iranian filmmaker Shirin Neshat and Laurie Anderson. Her song ‘Kelmti Horra’ became a symbol of the Arab Spring, performed at the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony. She also performed in Baghdad, Iraq, and Iran, documented in “No Land’s Song.” Despite backlash, she performed for Palestinians in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, echoing the message of her song ‘Naci En Palestina’.
EQ: For those who don’t know you, how did you first get into music?
E: I first started in a metal band doing goth covers, then I learned guitar and started performing troubadours protest songs. Eventually I started writing my own revolution songs mixing metal and arabic and cinematic music
EQ: Can you tell us more about the vision behind your upcoming album MRA?
E: The vision was to create an album only with women for a change, an album that’s almost like a movement, to try to create trust between us women and break the male dominance in the music industry. At the same time, tell stories of visible and invisible violence and create a virtuous circle to bring healing by and through women creativity
EQ: The album features a hugely diverse variety of collaborators, how did these come about and what was it like working with the featured artists?
E: I started searching for co producers at first, found Lyzza with whom I drafted most of the songs ideas and structures , then reshaped them with Hannah, they both encouraged me to invite feats, which I have never done before we were thinking of emerging eclectic artists at first then I eventually went for a cool set of rappers . I have always been super eclectic in my music taste and my influences so it’s only normal that I went all the way this time like an all colors album, literally.
EQ: Your journey so far has been nothing short of impressive. Can you tell us more about the most memorable, and also most challenging, moments so far?
E: Thank you! Somehow the most memorable moments are always the most challenging, at least for me. Like touring in Palestine, after which I got many of my later performances cancelled, performing in Ramallah was a life changing experience
or recently performing for the Kurdish Newroz in the heart of Diyarbakir which came with a lot of political pressure somehow but in the end, the amount of love I received from people just for singing my heart was everything. Being the first non classical performer at The Nobel Peace Prize Ceremony, opening the door for Patti Smith, John Legend and more in later years… and being the first Arab woman artist to tour Japan 🙂
EQ: Anything else that you can share with us that you got cooking up this year?
E: I am working on my first solo instrumental album and a score 🙂