Some of The Best Arabic Dance Songs of All Time
Compiled by Arab America
It is wedding season, which means Arab Americans can hear similar playlists of Arab pop music at each joyous celebration. By blending the sounds of traditional Arab instruments with keyboards and guitars, Arabic pop music has evolved to become one of the most popular genres in the world. Unlike in American pop music, where song lyrics focus on the wild tales of partying and experimenting with drugs, Arab singers are making the world dance to their songs about longing, love, and personal strife.
Arab pop music has origins nearly a century ago in the 1920s when stars like Oum Kulthum captured the attention of the Arab world. During this time, it was normal for songs to be 30 minutes long and feature musical improvisations.
By the 1950s, songs became shorter and sounded more Western, with the introduction of non-Arab instruments into the industry. Singers like Fairouz rose to fame during this period of cultural reinvention in the Arab world.
During the 1970s, people all over the world were dancing to disco, including Arabs. This period in Arabic pop music sounded more like the work of the Bee Gees and ABBA, with the sound of electric keyboards taking over every song.
Arabs continued to play with the electric keyboard into the 1990s, where Arabic pop music truly defined itself by its mix between old and new instrumental styles. From the 1990s through today, Arabic pop singers like Nancy Ajram, Amr Diab, and Fares Karam made names for themselves.
Scroll through this list of only some of the best Arabic dance songs that have remained Arab American favorites for decades.