Deconstructing traditional and nostalgic Egyptian sounds, the Cairo-based artist redefines the festive meanings of mahraganat into a kaleidoscope of chaotic dance bliss.

Photo: Malak El Sawy

Fajr Soliman is an ever-evolving expert at finding the chaos within the chaos; not only within her tumultuous soundscapes but in her work as a visual artist as well, portraying the struggles of women in public spaces within Arab culture and the different psychological problems and evils within society. Shotgunning through tempos, her music reflects that discord back in crystallised slaps of Frankensteined mahraganat, darbuka, and maqsoum twisted with elements of Jersey club, dembow, and breakcore. The result is an explosive club-crunching tornado that howls in raw irritation as much as celebration.

Soliman has been building her platform as El Kontessa since 2018, with releases on ZULI and Rama’s Egyptian label irsh and finally delivering her immense debut Nos Habet Caramel on Palestinian label Bilna’es in 2023. Introspective in the most madcap manner, it’s an intoxicating blend of every sound Cairo has to offer, and then some.

  • Nos Habet Caramel - نص حبة كراميل by El Kontessa

  • Nos Habet Caramel - نص حبة كراميل by El Kontessa