By: Yomna Walid
&ldquo;I am from Al Abbasseya in Egypt.&rdquo;
With that statement, Egyptian-Australian singer Isadora captured the attention of audiences across Egypt, proudly embracing her roots and speaking openly about her connection to the country.
Born in Egypt and raised between Australia and New Zealand, Isadora has developed a distinctive artistic identity shaped by two cultures. Her music blends Arabic and English influences, mixing trap-inspired production with traditional Arabic melodies to reflect her dual cultural experience.
Throughout her career, Isadora has frequently drawn on memories of Egypt that continue to shape her both emotionally and creatively. From growing up listening to artists such as Amr Diab to now remixing some of his music, she says Egyptian culture remains central to her sound. Food, family memories and Egyptian-inspired aesthetics also continue to influence both her identity and visual style.
In an exclusive interview with NileFM, Isadora spoke about her global journey, her connection to Egypt, her upcoming Arabic-language music and the next chapter of her artistic career.
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You were born in Egypt and later raised between Australia and New Zealand. Can you tell us more about your journey and how these different cultures shaped you as an artist? To be honest, like a lot of diaspora, I&rsquo;m stuck between the feeling of having many homes and no home at all. Being born in Cairo, raised abroad and visiting every year exposed me to a stark cultural dichotomy. But I&rsquo;m proud to say it&rsquo;s created duality in my music and duality in me. I embody so much of my Australian upbringing but deeply connect to Egyptian culture. Just like my music, one moment you&rsquo;ll hear a trap-style 808 and the next an oud melody.
<a href="https://ibb.co/Zp5kFvVD"><img src="https://i.ibb.co/wFVxP8Rm/1.png" alt="1" border="0" /></a> How does being Egyptian influence your musical choices and the style of music you create today? I grew up listening to everything from Fairuz to Amr Diab. My teta and mum were also musicians in Cairo, so Egyptian influence is naturally sprinkled throughout my music. Some of my songs feature Arabic-inspired percussion, scales and key changes, as well as traditional instrumentation. Sometimes I even incorporate Arabic and French lyrics, reflecting the languages I grew up with at home. My next single, Shahid, meaning &ldquo;Witness&rdquo;, is my first fully Arabic song and includes live nay accompaniment. I&rsquo;m nervous but excited for people to hear it. You often share videos of yourself practising Arabic. What motivates you to keep learning the language, and how challenging is it when writing or singing Arabic songs? It&rsquo;s honestly been such a journey. I went through phases of giving up after trying and being laughed at, by family and strangers who probably meant well, but it still hurt. No matter how many times I wanted to stop though, something kept drawing me back. The language feels familiar and comforting, and it helps me connect to my family in Egypt. Despite people telling me I&rsquo;ll never sound Egyptian or truly be Egyptian, it&rsquo;s always been a dream of mine to sing and write in Arabic.
<a href="https://ibb.co/p6g3FCZm"><img src="https://i.ibb.co/BHmgM8j1/2.png" alt="2" border="0" /></a> What is the most memorable comment or feedback you have received from Egyptian fans? Despite all the controversy that sometimes gets attention, I see so many people supporting and encouraging me for staying connected to my roots and representing where I come from. I hear it from diaspora communities in the West all the way to people born and raised in small towns across Egypt. I also love hearing Egyptian girls say I&rsquo;ve made them feel confident and seen. Is there something in Egypt you are still hoping to experience or try for the first time? So much. Although I&rsquo;ve travelled around Egypt, I&rsquo;ve only scratched the surface. My aunty used to take us to the White Desert and promised that one day we would camp there, it&rsquo;s still on my bucket list. And everyone tells me the North Coast is the place to be in summer, so I&rsquo;m hoping to visit later this year. Your makeup and visual style often reflect Egyptian aesthetics and culture. How did you develop this unique look and turn it into part of your artistic identity? I&rsquo;ve always been fascinated by Pharaonic art, style and makeup. Whenever I visit an Egyptian museum or exhibition, I&rsquo;m drawn to displays of jewellery, stones and charms. My signature Eye of Horus look really became part of who I am last year, but the inspiration dates back to 2018 when I saw a runway design featuring it on a male model. It stayed with me ever since. In 2019, I recreated the look for my song Call Me Habibi, but it took years before I felt confident enough to fully embrace it as part of my identity. It&rsquo;s more than makeup, though. My name comes from Isis, the ancient Egyptian goddess of healing and protection, and mother of Horus, which is where the Eye of Horus symbol comes from. When I wear it, I feel powerful, protected and connected to my roots.
<a href="https://ibb.co/27yCXk4w"><img src="https://i.ibb.co/DDtv3R2N/3.png" alt="3" border="0" /></a> You sometimes remix English songs with Arabic elements. What challenges do you face when blending these two musical worlds? Blending those two worlds can be challenging. Musically, it&rsquo;s difficult finding artists and producers who can create contemporary pop and R&amp;B while also understanding the nuances and scales of Arabic music. Luckily, I&rsquo;ve found incredible musicians from different backgrounds; Egyptian, Algerian, Australian and Spanish, who can bring those worlds together with care and respect. It&rsquo;s important to me to do both styles justice and not treat Arabic fusion as a passing trend. For me, it&rsquo;s not a trend at all; it&rsquo;s identity. Socially, I also face criticism whenever I lean too far into either world, but the reality is I can&rsquo;t please everyone, and more importantly, I don&rsquo;t feel the need to. Can you tell us about your upcoming projects or any new music fans should look forward to? I&rsquo;m currently working on my debut album, writing and recording between Sydney, London and Cairo. It&rsquo;s a world I&rsquo;m excited for people to step into, exploring the diaspora experience and everything that comes with it; the highs, lows, passion and heartbreak. My next release will be my first Arabic song on 29 May. It&rsquo;s an Arabic version of my previous track Witness. I felt it would sound beautiful in Arabic and, with the help of Egyptian singer-songwriter Layal, I think it really does. This feels like my moment to prove I can sing in Arabic. Even if it&rsquo;s imperfect, it still carries the emotion and heart of an Arabic song.
<a href="https://ibb.co/G4G9jh0J"><img src="https://i.ibb.co/Vcbx8KtN/4.png" alt="4" border="0" /></a>&nbsp;
When you are in Egypt, what are some of your favourite foods, places or experiences that make you feel connected to the country? My mum always laughs at this, but every time I land in Egypt, I go straight from the plane to eat koshari. It&rsquo;s a must. One of my favourite places to eat is a small spot in Abbasseya, hand on heart, they make the best falafel in the world. I could talk about food all day, honestly. But what makes me feel most connected is seeing my family, my gido, aunties, uncles, cousins and friends. That&rsquo;s what makes me feel most at home. If you could collaborate with an Egyptian artist in the future, who would it be and why? My favourite artist right now is Tul8te. I&rsquo;d love to collaborate with him one day. What advice would you give to singers who dream of building an international career like yours? I think the first thing you have to do, and this applies to all areas of life, is make sure you really know who you are and what matters to you, otherwise someone else will define that for you. Love yourself and be confident enough in who you are that nobody can bring you down. Once you have that, you&rsquo;re unstoppable.
<a href="https://ibb.co/35JJPYrH"><img src="https://i.ibb.co/mrxxPFD7/5.png" alt="5" border="0" /></a> Photo Credit: Isadora&rsquo;s official page

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