felukah

Biography

Felukah, born Sara El Messiry (also spelled Sara El Missery or Sara Elmessiry), grew up outside Cairo, Egypt, attending an American school in a musical family where she wrote poetry, read extensively, and took dance lessons from an early age. Encouraged by a high school teacher to pursue studies abroad, she moved to New York City at age 17 or 18 (around 2017) with her brother to study creative writing at The New School and later Hunter College, marking her transition from literature to music amid the city's vibrant rap culture.[1][2][3][4][5][7][9]

In New York, Felukah adopted her stage name—after the traditional Egyptian Nile boat—symbolizing her heritage and 'ride the wave' mentality, and made her debut at the Nuyorican Poets Café. She released her first EP 'Yansoon' in 2018, followed by the album 'Acid Battery' that same year, and her sophomore album 'Citadel' in October (year unspecified in sources), blending neo-soul, boom-bap hip-hop, indie R&B, and Arabic-English lyrics reminiscent of Lauryn Hill and Erykah Badu. Working with Egyptian producers via Instagram, she records in a home studio while juggling jobs like babysitting, tutoring, and waitressing, rebelling against cultural norms and political climates through her tomboy aesthetic and confrontational lyrics.[1][2][3][6]

As a pioneering female voice in Egyptian and Arab hip-hop, Felukah navigates cultural duality, empowering Arab women and redefining Arab identity with genre-defying sounds incorporating Arabfuturism, Afrofuturism influences, and samples of Arab greats. She plans collaborations with Egyptian women artists and aims to inspire confidence in self-expression, positioning herself to bridge markets with bilingual rap while maintaining strong ties to Cairo.[1][2][5][6]

Fun Facts

• Renamed herself Felukah after the traditional Egyptian Nile boat to embody her heritage and 'ride the wave' mentality.
• Performed her first show at Nuyorican Poets Café and returned to her Cairo high school to rap songs mentioning her friends' names, coming full circle from past insecurities.
• Self-published poetry chapbook 'Other Beating Wings' giving equal space to Arabic and English poems, exploring multicultural identity.
• Juggles music with day jobs like waitressing at Morandi’s, babysitting, and tutoring English, while rehearsing in a bedroom studio walled by books from Cairo.

Musical Connections

Mentors/Influences

• High school teacher - Encouraged her to pursue creative writing degree abroad (N/A) [High school years, pre-2017]

Key Collaborators

• Unnamed Egyptian producers - Provides beats reached out via Instagram, paid for production (Albums including Citadel) [2018-present]
• Upcoming Egyptian women artists - Planned collaborations on next album (Next album (post-Citadel)) [Post-2020]

External Links

• Spotify
• MusicBrainz

Tags: #blood-orange, #contemporary-r&b, #gorillaz