Meet MC Abdul: Young Palestinian rapper who echoes the agony of occupied Palestine
At an age when Abdul Matin should perhaps play football or videogames, he is witnessing war, living amidst deadly threats and using his pen and microphone as the only means to speak out against the oppression of his people.
Abdalrahman's Alshantti aka MC Abdul Matin, a 13 year-old young rapper from Gaza, who has already witnessed four accounts of the deadly war, has been shedding light - to the poverty, violence and the immense losses of people in occupied Palestine - through his songs.
Through his powerful lyrics, Abdul tells the world about the times his younger brother and sister shriek at night from the loud bangs of the rapid bombardments in Gaza, and their mother's attempt to comfort them saying its nothing but fire crackers. He recounted how his grandparents were coerced to flee from their homes and enter a refugee camp in 1948 with the foundation of Israel. His family has been trapped in Gaza ever since.
Gaza has been under the Israeli blockade since 2007, yet it could not hamper the musical talent and drive of the young boy, born in 2008.
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Abdul asks the world to "imagine" what it feels like "being kicked out of the only home you have ever known".
In 2021, Abdul collaborated with Cork Beatmaker and released his first official debut single "Shouting at the Wall", at the age of 12, which became viral instantly and garnered over 2.7 million views within two days of its release.
Celebrities including DJ Khaled and Bella Hadid shared the song on their social media handles.
The rap was written and voiced by Abdul while his father recorded the video. The music of the tack was produced and mixed by Cork producer Garry McCarthy (GMC beats), who has been training the young talent since 2019.
The video portrays Abdul walking by massive destructions and bombed buildings around his neighborhood in Gaza as he raps about the agony of its people.
The emotionally charged rhythmic lyrics of the songs scream the cruelty of the oppressors who are devouring the freedom of the Palestinians and never hesitate to commit heinous crimes like killing innocent children.
"How could they be so evil, making martyrs out of children and innocent people, we expect the bomb not knowing where next, my dad risks his life outside to supply bread."
The young kid bravely expresses how he is telling his sufferings to "the wall' and nothing's going to change despite all of his attempts.
"I want freedom for the population, two million people living in this location, shouting at the wall but nothing's ever changing, that's life under an occupation."
Earlier, Abdul has released Palestine (Freestyle) where he urged the world to see "the pain" on the "faces" of his people. He expressed how children including his baby sister are discriminated against based on where they come from.
Abdul has also collaborated with popular Palestinian rapper Taher Nafar on the song "Beat never goes off" which premiered on 21 September 2021 on Tamer Nafar's Youtube channel.
For the unversed, Tamer Nafar is another Palestinian rapper whose group gained fame in 1999 by performing in the occupied West Bank and refugee camps.
The little lad also proudly rap covers of his favourite songs on the streets of Gaza. Abdul has also penned lyrics about George Floyd, the African-American man who was murdered by a police officer in Minneapolis, and stood against racism.
During an interview with TRT world, the young rapper from Gaza shared how he ventured into rapping. "I started to rap and I figured out I have the talent. Ever since then, I was writing original songs, besides memorising new cover songs."
Abdul's cover uttering his own lyrics at school in Wiz Khalifa's "See you again" tune went viral.
He said 'Tupac Shakur', Eminem, DJ Khaled are some of his idols.
Abdul's lyrics filled with strong messages are garnering praises from people all over the world. One of the comments on his song read, "This is what rapping should be and not spewing trash talking about smokes, drinks , drugs and women....use your lyrics to pass a message of hope, love, courage and an end to crisis."
Though Abdul feels he is shouting at the walls but he is adamant to make people listen to his words.
"My message talks about peace and I want to convey it to the largest number of people and I want to show how life is in Gaza, I want to show how we, the children, live here and do not have the life of other children living in 'America' or other parts of the world."
