Muse-Letter 003 - Drill is Taking Over Egyptian Rap and Calvin Harris' VR Concert

Muse-Letter 003 - January 16th, 2023

Yoooooo! What's up fam!

Welcome back to The Muse-Letter. This week we will be looking at how Drill is taking over the Egyptian Rap Scene, Calvin Harris's first VR concert on TikTok, and more!

I've enjoyed creating these newsletters for you all, and I appreciate your support. Without further ado, let's get into it! 

This Week in Producer News 📰

Drill Has Found its Way into the Egyptian Rap Scene

Drill has grown to become one of the most popular styles used in Egyptian rap by artists like Maadi Town Mafia, Abyusif, Wegz, and more.

Rap music in the past few years has been one of Egypt’s most popular genres. New independent artists are producing music in their homes and as a result, the rap scene is growing more popular by the day and gaining the interest of global record labels, promoters, and music fans from all around the world. Egyptian rap has been going through trial and error with many different stylistic choices and using aesthetics from around the world such as trap, afro-beats, old-school hip-hop, and now, drill. 

We are seeing drill become a dominating music style in the Egyptian rap culture, with artists like Husayn, Wingii, and FL EX pushing the subgenre to the frontline with their wicked tracks ‘Khamsa’ and  ‘Stop (Magnolia)’ and more. These artists are part of a group called Maadi Town Mafia, and they have been blending drill with their signature sounds and delivery styles that are bound to influence many other rappers. Maadi Town Mafia has taken inspiration from UK drill music videos and brought their own version of UK drill aesthetics to Egypt. 

Drill comes from Chicago and can be dated back to the early 2010s, with the sub-genre ‘UK drill’ building popularity a few years later. UK drill influences rap scenes globally with countries like France, Germany, Ireland and others creating their own variations. You can tell when drill has been used in a track as they usually involve core elements like moody minor-key melodies, a common hi-hat pattern, and sliding basslines that help rappers to get into their flow. 

The use of drill in the Egyptian music scene doesn’t look like it will be slowing anytime soon, so I’m excited to see what else these sick artists will release in the future. Keep your ear out for new releases. 

Article of The Week 📜

Calvin Harris’s first VR concert in the ocean. 

You read that right, the Scottish DJ has hosted an immersive VR concert on the TikTok platform at the bottom of the ocean. 

DJ Calvin Harris has just entered the metaverse by hosting an immersive virtual performance on the TikTok platform. Aired on the 13th of January, it was the producer’s first-ever VR concert that was completely free for fans to view in 2D on his TikTok account.

The excitement began with the announcement from Harris and then a sneak peek into the virtual avatar that he would be using in a digitally animated performance that aimed to “take fans on a musical journey through Calvin’s virtual universe.” The promotional video gave an insight into what we would expect in the virtual performance showing Harris DJing at the bottom of a virtual ocean with whales, dolphins, and lit-up jellyfish surrounding him. A performance in that location is not possible in the real world which is why virtual reality is so wicked. You can’t say you saw Metro Boomin perform at the top of Mount Everest, but you quite possibly could in the VR world.  

The event is described as “a metaverse party filled with audio-reactive visuals in a nature-inspired luminous world.” Fans that experienced the event through VR headsets were able to delve into Harris’s world as avatars, party together, and be just a few feet away from Harris while he performed.  

Since the global pandemic, immersive virtual reality concerts have become more popular within the music industry. Though following our return to normalcy, the momentum behind VR concerts has slowed down quite a bit. Who knows if it will continue its popularity, or if we will remain with in-person concerts. We will just have to wait and see.  

You can watch the “replay” between January 14 and 26 at 9 p.m. GMT each night.

Harris has released his sixth studio album last year, ‘Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 2’, featuring collaborations with Pharrell, Snoop Dogg, Justin Timberlake, 21 Savage, Pusha T, Halsey, and Busta Rhymes. Have a look at the album’s lead single, “Stay With Me.”

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Recent YouTube Video 🎬

Making The HARDEST Beats in a Million Dollar Studio

Check out my recent YouTube video where I cook up some beats in a million-dollar studio!

Thanks for reading this week's newsletter. I hope you enjoyed it and look forward to providing you with more content that helps you level up throughout 2023. In the meantime, make sure to take a look at the top-quality sounds I use on my website! 👇🏿

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If you have any questions, ideas, or suggestions feel free to hit me up on IG!  @prodbyocean

Appreciate you, fam.

-Ocean