work
WRITING + Audio
Cover Stories
The Return of Stormy. Rolling Stone MENA, Apr. 2026.
The Tao of Zeyne: Self-Love, Radical Vulnerability, and Unabashed Determination. Rolling Stone MENA, July 2025.
The Redemption of Moroccan Rapper, ElGrandeToto. GQ Middle East, Oct 2023.
Rolling Stone US
The Jamaican Riddim That’s Shown Up Across 2000s Hits, Arab Pop, And Now “BbY WOW”. Rolling Stone, Sept 2026.
Witnessing The Greatness Of Nancy Ajram, The Queen Of Arab Pop. Rolling Stone, May 2026.
Nabeel: Waves Of Noise, Songs Of Family. Rolling Stone, Mar 2026.
Marwan Moussa Already Defined Egyptian Rap. He Wants To Go Even Further. Rolling Stone, Jan 2025.
The 50 Best Arabic Pop Songs of the 21st Century. Rolling Stone, Apr 2024.
DYSTINCT Is Taking Moroccan Culture Global, One Hit at a Time. Rolling Stone, Feb 2024.
NPR + Public Radio
The Enduring Legacy Of Lebanese Singer Fairuz’s ‘Bahebak Ya Lebnan’. NPR, Apr 2026.
Lebanon Mourns Beloved Artist Ziad Rahbani. NPR, Aug. 2025.
Iconic Lebanese singer Fairuz turns 90. PRI The World, Nov 2024.
Amid airstrikes and armed conflict, Lebanese musicians hit a somber note. NPR, Oct 2024.
Arabic music is having a cultural moment thanks to TikTok. WDET 101.9 FM, Apr 2023.
A new wave of Arab musical artists are gaining global traction. NPR, Mar 2023.
The Celtics didn't win it all this year, but they still make me happy. WBUR, Jun 2022.
The New York Times
The Egyptian Rapper Wegz Wants to Take Arabic Hip-Hop Worldwide. The New York Times, Nov 2023.
Pitchfork
Arabic Music Is on the Brink of a Global Breakthrough. Pitchfork, Mar 2023.
LOS ANGELES TIMES
Remember This Banger: Don Omar and Hakim’s Arab Latino Jam “Tigi Tigi”. Los Angeles Times, Sept 2026.
The Guardian
'I can’t listen without feeling rattled': how Fairuz’s anthem of resilience became a harbinger of strife for Lebanon. The Guardian, Apr 2026.
SPIN
The Perfect Storm. SPIN, Apr 2024.
THE GRAMMYS
How Palestinian Star Saint Levant Is Helping Uplift & Support His People. The GRAMMYs, Feb 2025.
5 Independent Record Labels Bringing The Sounds Of The Middle East To The World. The GRAMMYs, Oct 2024.
Get To Know TUL8TE, The Rising Arab Pop Star Bringing Egyptian Culture To The World. The GRAMMYs, Oct 2024.
Boston Globe
My Lebanon Is At War Again; I’m Watching From Massachusetts. Boston Globe, Mar 2026.
The Washington Post
After the Beirut blasts, the Lebanese diaspora is left between helplessness and guilt. The Washington Post, Apr 2020.
GQ Middle East
Dua Saleh Has An Urgent Message For Humanity. GQ Middle East, May 2026.
How Danyl Found His Sweet Spot. GQ Middle East, May 2026.
Lana Lubany Understands Herself Better Than Ever. GQ Middle East, May 2026.
10 Emerging Artists to Put on Your Radar. GQ Middle East, Apr 2026.
Shobee Is Just Having Fun. GQ Middle East, Apr 2026.
Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl Performance Was A Masterclass In Going Global. GQ Middle East, Feb 2026.
The Curious Case of Mohamed Ramadan. GQ Middle East, Jan 2026.
We Don’t Know Much About Najm. That’s By Design. GQ Middle East, Jan 2026.
Norhan Is Not Apologizing For Her Arabic. GQ Middle East, Jan 2026.
Meet Kazdoura, The Duo Fusing Psychedelic Rock with Traditional Arabic Maqam. GQ Middle East, Jan 2026.
Danny Hajjar’s Favorite Songs of 2025. GQ Middle East, Dec 2025.
The Industry Put Tawsen On Hold. He Came Back Thankful. GQ Middle East, Dec 2025.
Arabic Music Deserves To Be Critiqued. GQ Middle East, Nov 2025.
Yasmine Hamdan Still Refuses To Conform. GQ Middle East, Sept 2025.
The Rise of MENA Music. GQ Middle East, July 2025.
In The Algorithm Age, Should We Go Back To Burning CDs? GQ Middle East, Apr 2025.
Arab Lincoln’s Quiet Power In The Sneaker Game. GQ Middle East, Apr 2025.
Danny Hajjar’s GQ Middle East Playlist Is All Human, No Algorithm. GQ Middle East, Apr 2025
The Unlikely Architect of Iraqi Shoegaze is a High School Teacher in Virginia. GQ Middle East, Mar 2025.
Saudi Singer Fulana is Anything but Anonymous. GQ Middle East, Apr 2024.
Multidisciplinary Lebanese Artist Blu Fiefer Plays Chess in a Music Industry That Plays Checkers. GQ Middle East, Sep 2023.
Get to Know the New Perrie, the Egyptian-Moroccan Artist Whose Latest Album is Her Most Vulnerable Yet. GQ Middle East, Mar 2023.
Complex MENA
In Conversation | John Six Carving Out The Sound Of Tunisian Rap. Complex MENA, May 2026.
In Conversation | Moroccan Rapper Khtek Is Wired To Take Risks. Complex MENA, Apr 2026.
In Conversation | Iranian-American Artist Neena Roe Remains Hopeful In Humanity. Complex MENA, Mar 2026.
In Conversation | Tarek Qaddafi Quietly Shapes Sneaker Culture From Kuwait To The World. Complex MENA, Mar 2026.
In Conversation | Neemz Is Designing Sneakers, Dropping Bars, and Building Her Own Lane. Complex MENA, Feb 2026.
Putting Respect On Lebanon’s Pioneering Role In Arabic Hip-Hop. Complex MENA, Feb 2026.
New Lines Magazine
Morocco’s Government Is Cracking Down On Rap. New Lines Magazine, July 2026.
What It Means To Be An Arab Fan Of The New York Knicks. New Lines Magazine, June 2026
Hip Hop Finds Its Groove in North Africa. New Lines Magazine, Feb 2021.
OTHER
Your Favorite Songs Were Written For The Algorithm. WIRED Middle East, May 2026.
Motherhood, Music, and Defiance: How Moroccan Superstar Manal Is Transforming Personal Struggle Into Powerful Soundtracks. The New Arab, Dec 2025.
Al-Música: When Arabic Music Went Latin. ICON MENA, Nov 2025.
Ten Arab musicians to watch in 2025, from Zeyne to Molham. The National, Dec 2024.
Saudi Rapper Blvxb Says Hip-Hop ‘Saved My Life’—Now, He’s Using It To Help Others. The National, July 2024.
According To Apple, Non-Western Music Doesn’t Exist. Mille World, May 2024.
إليانا تجدد الأمل بموسيقى عربية جامعة ينتشر صداها حول العالم. Billboard Arabia, Feb 2024.
Artist Spotlight: Tamtam the Saudi artist turning pop into poetry. SceneNoise, Mar 2023.
Rita L’Oujdia: The artist putting Morocco on the global music map. Middle East Eye, Feb 2023.
10 Arab artists you need to listen to in 2023. Esquire Middle East, Jan 2023.
Starting a new story for Black artists in the Gulf: Somali-UAE rapper Freek mashes up the beat, Arab style. The New Arab, Oct 2022.
Catching a vibe: Nadine El Roubi's artistry is as elegant as it is enigmatic. The New Arab, July 2022.
How Egypt's mahraganat music marvels in Disney's Moon Knight. The New Arab, Apr 2022.
Reattaching rhythmical roots: How Arab artists in the diaspora navigate identity through musical expression. The New Arab, Mar 2022.
INTERVIEWS
How An Imagined Nostalgia Catapulted TUL8TE To Global Success. OkayAfrica, Sept 2026.
Drake’s ‘Habibti’ Moment Sparked A Familiar Arab Internet Cycle. WIRED Middle East, May 2026.
Death of the Critic? Power, Access & the Future of Criticism in MENA. SceneNow, Apr 2026.
Should North African Musicians Aspire To Global Fame? OkayAfrica, Feb 2026.
MENA Is The World’s Fastest Growing Music Industry: What Next? OkayAfrica, Apr 2025.
Arabic pop music takes the global stage. CBC, Jan 2025.
The Year’s Best Albums, Handpicked by Danny Hajjar. Mille World, Dec 2024.
‘Shik Shak Shook Ones’ Is The Newest Podcast Providing Hot, Unfiltered Music Takes. Mille World, Sept 2024.
In Conversation with Danny Hajjar, the Unofficial Ambassador of Arabic Music. Mille World, July 2024.
‘We’re just taking space.’ How Arabic music is breaking through to new audiences. PBS NewsHour, Apr 2023.
Sa’alouni El Nas: A digital sobhiye for the global MENA community. L’Orient Today, May 2022.
Danny Hajjar’s Weekly Newsletter “Sa’alouni El Nas” Spotlights the Best Music From the Middle East and Africa. GQ Middle East, Mar 2022.