Rapper and producer Perrie El Hariri had her name up in lights recently on Spotify's digital advertisement hoardings in New York's Times Square.
The recognition follows her appointment as the ambassador for Equal Arabia, an initiative by the streaming platform to amplify the voices of female content creators from the Middle East and North Africa.
El Hariri, whose artist name is Perrie, is only coming to terms with the notion of joining the small list of Egyptian superstars, including Amr Diab and Mohamed Ramadan, who have appeared on advertisement hoardings in Times Square.
However, it is what the move represents for Arab female artists that is more inspiring, she says.
"I do it for myself, the [hip hop] culture and women," she tells The National. "That's what keeps the drive going when it comes to my work, ethics and effort. It is also quite a strong move to be on the billboard, it's not something that we, in a scene, would have ever imagined.”
Perrie caught Spotify's attention in 2020 with her breakout single Shigella, a potent retort to Tameem Youness's Salmonella, a controversial track the singer hoped would be taken as a joke about how men respond to rejection from women.
However, with lyrics wishing the ex falls ill from food poisoning or a promise to spread false rumours about her lifestyle, the track was accused of encouraging harassment against women, a charge Youness vehemently denies.
Shigella’s lyrics have Perrie forcefully calling out men’s disrespectful behaviour towards women, something she says remains depressingly prevalent in Egyptian society.
"Salmonella was a reflection of society and I view that song, basically, as the man or majority of men speaking, while Shigella is the sound of women talking back and standing up for themselves,” she says.
“The song is not a direct response to Tameem but more a response to patriarchy and misogyny as a whole."
Born in Egypt, Perrie was raised in an artistic household with a music-loving mother and her father, the late Egyptian actor Omar El Hariri. Despite the influences, her move to becoming a musician came with its own share of anguish.
"Being an artist was expected after having such individuals in my family," she says. "But the thing is, I've always wanted to be a doctor or gynaecologist and I had that battle between having my own path and doing what everyone expects me to be.”
Perrie's eventual decision to commit to music was down to the freedom it afforded.
"I am not really a multitasker but when it came to music I was able to write, produce and mix songs very naturally," she says. "Even the act of creating a song and being fully responsible for it from start to finish made me feel like I am a one-woman industry.”
Fans have been given taste of where Perrie's passions are taking her through El Sa’a Tes’a (9 O’clock), the lead single from her coming second album.
The track epitomises the command she has of her craft as a performer, writer and producer. Backed by murky trap-hip-hop production, the lyrics are boastful as she compares herself to, among other things, a cobra poised to strike.
"I didn't want this song to be accessible to the general market, but only for rap listeners. It is very intense when it comes to the flow and the lyrical punchlines and metaphors,” she says.
“Where the last album felt like I needed to prove something to myself, the new work is more self-expressive, dark and hostile, in a way."
With the track leading Spotify’s Equal Arabia playlist, which has Perrie's face on its cover, it seems the world is primed to listen to what she has to say.
The Cockroach
(Vintage)
Ian McEwan
Results:
Women:
1. Rhiannan Iffland (AUS) 322.95 points
2. Lysanne Richard (CAN) 285.75
3. Ellie Smart (USA) 277.70
Men:
1. Gary Hunt (GBR) 431.55
2. Constantin Popovici (ROU) 424.65
3. Oleksiy Prygorov (UKR) 392.30
THE SPECS
Engine: Four-cylinder 2.5-litre
Transmission: Seven-speed auto
Power: 165hp
Torque: 241Nm
Price: Dh99,900 to Dh134,000
On sale: now
Day 5, Abu Dhabi Test: At a glance
Moment of the day When Dilruwan Perera dismissed Yasir Shah to end Pakistan’s limp resistance, the Sri Lankans charged around the field with the fevered delirium of a side not used to winning. Trouble was, they had not. The delivery was deemed a no ball. Sri Lanka had a nervy wait, but it was merely a stay of execution for the beleaguered hosts.
Stat of the day – 5 Pakistan have lost all 10 wickets on the fifth day of a Test five times since the start of 2016. It is an alarming departure for a side who had apparently erased regular collapses from their resume. “The only thing I can say, it’s not a mitigating excuse at all, but that’s a young batting line up, obviously trying to find their way,” said Mickey Arthur, Pakistan’s coach.
The verdict Test matches in the UAE are known for speeding up on the last two days, but this was extreme. The first two innings of this Test took 11 sessions to complete. The remaining two were done in less than four. The nature of Pakistan’s capitulation at the end showed just how difficult the transition is going to be in the post Misbah-ul-Haq era.
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
The alternatives
• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.
• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.
• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.
• 2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.
• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases - but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.
Read more about the coronavirus
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
ONCE UPON A TIME IN GAZA
Starring: Nader Abd Alhay, Majd Eid, Ramzi Maqdisi
Directors: Tarzan and Arab Nasser
Rating: 4.5/5
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
match info
Athletic Bilbao 1 (Muniain 37')
Atletico Madrid 1 (Costa 39')
Man of the match Iker Muniain (Athletic Bilbao)
The five types of long-term residential visas
Obed Suhail of ServiceMarket, an online home services marketplace, outlines the five types of long-term residential visas:
Investors:
A 10-year residency visa can be obtained by investors who invest Dh10 million, out of which 60 per cent should not be in real estate. It can be a public investment through a deposit or in a business. Those who invest Dh5 million or more in property are eligible for a five-year residency visa. The invested amount should be completely owned by the investors, not loaned, and retained for at least three years.
Entrepreneurs:
A five-year multiple entry visa is available to entrepreneurs with a previous project worth Dh0.5m or those with the approval of an accredited business incubator in the UAE.
Specialists
Expats with specialised talents, including doctors, specialists, scientists, inventors, and creative individuals working in the field of culture and art are eligible for a 10-year visa, given that they have a valid employment contract in one of these fields in the country.
Outstanding students:
A five-year visa will be granted to outstanding students who have a grade of 95 per cent or higher in a secondary school, or those who graduate with a GPA of 3.75 from a university.
Retirees:
Expats who are at least 55 years old can obtain a five-year retirement visa if they invest Dh2m in property, have savings of Dh1m or more, or have a monthly income of at least Dh20,000.
The%20specs
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GIANT REVIEW
Starring: Amir El-Masry, Pierce Brosnan
Director: Athale
Rating: 4/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Stormy seas
Weather warnings show that Storm Eunice is soon to make landfall. The videographer and I are scrambling to return to the other side of the Channel before it does. As we race to the port of Calais, I see miles of wire fencing topped with barbed wire all around it, a silent ‘Keep Out’ sign for those who, unlike us, aren’t lucky enough to have the right to move freely and safely across borders.
We set sail on a giant ferry whose length dwarfs the dinghies migrants use by nearly a 100 times. Despite the windy rain lashing at the portholes, we arrive safely in Dover; grateful but acutely aware of the miserable conditions the people we’ve left behind are in and of the privilege of choice.
