Photography by Alexandra Barbareau
New Vibes/اجواء جديدة gives a snapshot of emerging and established independent, experimental, and underground sound artists and projects in their own words <3
Layal (she/her) is an Egyptian artist based in London, creating soulful music rooted in self expression. With a stylistic openness that resists genre boundaries, she challenges social expectations and the influence of Western media and beauty standards, transforming personal experiences into bold artistic statements.
Tell us a bit about yourself. How would you introduce yourself?
I’m Layal, NOT Layla, NOT Leila, and I’m your local Egyptian diva with sass for days. Any true Egyptian would describe themselves the same way, right?
I’m a singer/songwriter & performer. I’m an all-around creative; I love building worlds around each song/project I work on! I want to make timeless music that makes people feel confident & ready to be their unapologetic selves. I’m painting a picture of what life could feel like when you stop trying to fit into other people’s expectations and give yourself the freedom to be completely, unapologetically yourself.
How do you describe your sound?
I’d say it’s warm, it’s full of life, it’s silky & rich! Especially this year, I have been so intentional with my sound, fully imagining where/when/how someone will be listening, and trying to find a way to maximise that experience for them, be the booster that will give them the confidence to tackle the day ahead.
Can you tell us about your latest project, and what you’re looking forward to?
My new release is called Bent El Eh & it’s a bit interesting to work on this one because I had to tap into certain emotions I have felt growing up, which weren’t great and find the silver lining in it. I’m so intrigued to see how people will receive it, what conversations it will provoke. It definitely has done a lot for me already. Bent El Eh talks about my obsession with Eurocentric beauty standards growing up, absorbing everything the Western media was feeding me and fully believing that based on my physical appearance I’m automatically othered. Looking back now, I truly wish I hadn’t spent so much time being enamoured with certain features and had spent more time focusing on my own superpowers.
Which of your tracks do you connect with most right now? Can you tell us more about it?
The track I connect to most is one that will come out later this year & it talks about our relationship with people in authority who are meant to take care of us. You know when it gets to the point where we can’t trust our government, our media, our doctors, then it’s a big problem!
However, Bent El Eh is definitely one of the songs I’m most connected to because it’s such a fragile topic, and I never thought I’d be able to articulate those feelings, let alone write a song about it
What are you listening to these days?
These days, I’ve been listening to a lot of Egyptian rap, like Moscow’s Tawahin, Karim Osama ft. El Waili’s Nazlet Seman, and Marwan Moussa’s Mafhashmafhash. Maybe I’m in grind mode & this music gets me hyped up & ready to hustle, you know?
Reflect with us: is there something on your mind you’d like to share?
Lately, what’s been on my mind is: how can we as humans learn to connect again? I don’t like this unbothered, nonchalant energy we’re embracing. Let’s get deep!
Find more of Layal’s work here.