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A Chicago music duo has created a unique sound to celebrate their Arab roots. They’re mixing the music of the Middle East with good old Chicago blues.
Music can make you feel at home. When Rami Gabriel and Karim Nagi play together, they mix music from their Arab homelands with the blues of Sweet Home Chicago. Gabriel is from Beirut, and Nagi is from Cairo.
“The blues is the music of Chicago,” Gabriel said. “We take it in, and we respect it, and we have integrated it into where we’re coming from.”
They call themselves The Arab Blues. Gabriel and Nagi play a mix of traditional and contemporary instruments.
“We both have this love for music that expresses intense feelings,” Nagi said.
They practice in each other’s homes, and perform all over the country.
“We’re representing Arab culture with our music, but we’re representing individuality in Arab culture and we’re also representing Chicago, because this happened here, and may have not been able to happen in any other city other than Chicago. It’s very specific to this life that we’re in,” Nagi said.
Their biggest stage was Millennium Park last summer.
“We opened up for the late Zakir Hussain, the most well-known Indian musician,” Nagi said.
If the duo ever doubted how Chicago would receive their music, that likely ended after a standing ovation from 10,000 people at Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park.
“It was humbling. It was humbling to get that kind of response here in our hometown from people who didn’t expect to see us,” Nagi said.
Their music might have origins in the past, but they transform the sound of tradition, blending their roots with rhythm and blues.
“I feel like our music is vibrant, alive, and new,” Gabriel said.
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