Mohamed Mounir
| Mohamed Mounir محمد منير | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Mohamed Mounir Mohamed Aba Zeed Gebriel Metwaly |
| Also known as | The King (Al King) |
| Born |
10 October 1954 Aswan, Egypt |
| Genres | Nubian Music, Pop, Blues, Jazz, Reggae |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, Actor |
| Instruments | Vocals, Bendir |
| Years active | 1977–present |
| Labels | Sonar (1977 - 1987) Sound of America (1989 - 1994) Digitec (1995 - 1999) FreeMusic (2000 - 2001) Mirage (1 Album) Africana (1 Album) Alam El Phan (2 Albums) Arabica Music (1 Album) |
| Associated acts | The Wailers, Amira, Dalia, Anoushka, Hamid Al-Shairi, Hamid Baroudi |
| Website | www.mounirofficial.com/ |
Mohamed Mounir (Arabic: محمد منير) (born October 10, 1954) is an Egyptian singer and actor, with a musical career spanning more than three decades. He incorporates various genres into his music, including classical Arabic Music, Nubian music, blues, jazz and reggae. His lyrics are noted both for their philosophical content and for their passionate social and political commentary. He is affectionately known by his fans as "The King" in reference to his album and play "El Malek Howwa El Malek" (The King is The King).
Born into a Nubian family in Aswan, Mounir spent most of his early childhood in the village of Manshyat Al Nubia, where he shared his father's interests in both music and politics. As a teenager, he and his family were forced to relocate to Cairo when his village was lost in the floods that followed the construction of the Aswan Dam. It was here that he studied photography at the Faculty of Applied Arts at Helwan University. During this period, he would often sing for friends and family at social gatherings. His singing voice was noticed by the lyricist Abdel-Rehim Mansour, who would go on to introduce Mounir to the renowned folk singer Ahmed Mounib.
Following his graduation, he was called up for military service in 1974, during which he continued his professional musical career by performing in various concerts. He performed his first such concert in 1975. Although the public were initially critical of Mounir for performing in casual attire at a time where Arab singers were expected to wear suits, they eventually warmed to his laidback image.
After completing his military service, Mounir released his 1977 debut solo album Alemony Eneeki on the Sonar record label. Mounir went on to release five more consecutive official albums and featured on one soundtrack album under the Sonar label. To date, Mounir has released a total 20 official albums and featured on six soundtrack albums under a number of different record labels.
Mounir's single "Maddad" from this album caused controversy, as its lyrics could be interpreted as a call for intercession from the prophet Muhammad. Among Muslims, there are differing views as to whether the prophet can provide intercession between Allah and his believers. This resulted in the music video being banned from Egyptian television for a time. Mounir responded by saying "it is this fight against rigid thought that makes something out of you".
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Wikipedia