IN CONVERSATION WITH NOORIYAH

interview by CELINE AZENA

Nooriyah is single-handedly transforming the music scene with her globally-inspired tracks. Her impactful message, showcased through the groundbreaking dance scene, aims to challenge and reshape the conventions of the music industry. Through her transformative sounds and focus on SWANA music, Nooriyah aims to offer her audience a familiar musical experience while also introducing them to genres they may have never encountered before. Blending various cultures, sounds, and forms of entertainment, Nooriyah unites diverse music communities by introducing them to new and vibrant experiences.

Authenticity permeates your setlists. Could you share your earliest musical introduction and which  genre captivated you the most during that time? 

Earliest memories to music is probably hearing my dad play the keyboard with one of my older siblings on his lap  on weekends. My dad was an engineer by trade, but he always had a knack for instruments and often my mum  would join him and sing. I loved all genres because my dad listened to everything under the sun, from The Beatles  to Abdel Halim Hafez. 

How do you approach the curation of your lineup? What factors or considerations influence your  decisions on what to include? 

I think about the sonic journey of the event first and foremost. I think it is possibly the largest  deciding factor for me. There’s always a story to tell or a theme to explore. The other criteria that I think should be a given is diversity and introducing new talent, which all come super naturally as there are so many incredible artists  to promote and I am always on the hunt for them and their music. 

Define your first Boiler Room experience in three words. 

Fun, sweaty, adrenaline. 

Describe the atmosphere when you began your Boiler Room set in London a year ago, accompanied by  your father. Paint a picture of the energy in the room as he serenaded the crowd with the Oud before  you began your setlist. 

A word to describe the atmosphere in that moment is loving. What I mean by that is when my dad was  introduced, the attendees were so respectful and quiet in preparation of hearing him play. Recklessly, we  rehearsed once and figured out the order during soundcheck on the day. When the set began and the room  was packed, he was sweating profusely while wearing his ghitra and thobe. When it was his turn to play, he decided to release a dead dad joke and said “Nooriyah did not tell me this was a real boiler room”. I gave him a stern look while dying of embarrassment. I  laugh every time I watch the footage back. His Oud strings kept sliding due to the heat so his tuning was all off,  but he soldiered through. He owned that moment. Attendees exclaimed many words of encouragement while  he is playing like “Aasho”, translating to “They live!” in Arabic, a phrase to indicate to someone that they’re  doing amazing. Even the way he left the room with the instrument over his head is beautiful to me. 

Arab sounds are making waves in Western music, sparking a larger discussion about Western norms and  encouraging the deconstruction of established standards. What are your initial reflections on this, and  what message do you hope people will glean from SWANA music? 

I worked on a BBC Radio 4 documentary all about why Western musical theories are considered the norm  in many ways. The biggest reason being technological advancements where the very software that allow  us to make music from the comfort of our bedrooms also prioritise Western musical theory and scales. To  incorporate other musical theories and traditions, you’d have to go out of your way as a producer to achieve that. I think beyond SWANA sounds, there seems to be a global desire to represent and celebrate  our own cultures. The message I hope people will glean from SWANA music is that it is super infectious  and deserves an equal space in the larger global musical table. 

What is the significance of Arabic music's impact on Western pop culture, especially in highlighting  South Asian and North African sounds, and how does this influence contribute to fostering musical  solidarity within your sound? 

SWANA sounds have been embedded in the fabric of Western music for many decades. The sounds live in  Western music in secret. For example, in the 1960s many Arabs immigrated to America and it brought with it musicians, which had a huge impact on various genres including rock punk. Dick Dale who plays the  famously sample Misirlou guitar licks has borrowed notes from Arabic scales. And of course there is a huge  history of classic Arabic songs samples in Western pop music from Jay Z to Brittany Spears. I love playing  Swana sounds to highlight them for what they are and to pay homage to where they come from. 

Middle of Nowhere is an event focused on SWANA genres, spotlighting unlikely musical matches. What  message or experience do you hope people take away when attending Middle of Nowhere? 

I started Middle of Nowhere in December 2021. At that point in my career, I had been championing  SWANA sounds and stories for 8 years through different mediums, like written articles, radio shows, films, and  documentaries, on top of playing them as a DJ. I reached a place where I was feeling bored of the repeated  curations and music played in events and clubs that existed in our space. I didn’t want to create  something that excluded itself by only playing SWANA music. I didn’t think something like that would  progress the narrative at all or help reshape how SWANA music was engaged with at large. 

Middle of Nowhere is a playground for me to bring the ideas and curations I wanted to see come to life. It  is also a way for me to show to the attendees how SWANA sounds deserve an equal space as any other  sound on the global music table. The aims of Middle of Nowhere are to show how infectious SWANA  sounds are, inject SWANA music in a more engaging way so that the market for artists is widened, and show how the sounds can be played alongside any other genre.

What has been the most pivotal moment of realization in your career so far, and is there a specific goal you'd like to share with us? 

I think it was when I quit my full time public health job. I used to play Glastonbury one day and go back to work the  next day. I kept my job for as long as I could, even when music paid me more, because I genuinely enjoyed it, but when  I started touring more and more, there was no time to keep it. It was then when I felt what an honour it is to do  what I love full time.

Goals, I have many. Musically, I’d just like to create great music and great moments. 

When did you first realize that your London Boiler Room set had gained significant viral attention, and  what was your initial reaction to this realization? 

It was before the full set even dropped online. I posted two mobile phone clips from it a month before it  came out that went absolutely viral. I think my initial reaction was that I felt overwhelmed, but I also  somehow anticipated it as I was working on producing and curating the night for a while, and knew it was  going to be something special in the music scene.