Euphoria by Rami

In the past month, I’ve started checking out different singer/songwriters and have asked friends to send me their favorites too.  A few weeks ago, I was doing a search for musicians from both the United States and abroad. And through one of my random searches, I started to look at music related to the crisis in Syria. As I dug a little bit more, I came across a Syrian musician, Rami who is based in Brooklyn, New York.

Several months ago, he created an EP, ‘Common Ground,’ dedicated to the over one million refugees who have survived the civil war happening in Syria. As Rami has said, “suddenly music became a refuge from all sense of powerlessness and helplessness that I and many Syrian friends have felt. It became a gateway from all the negativity in the news and provided an opportunity to channel my energy into something positive…” 

Beautiful, and yet again, music as a healing force comes up, even in the most tragic of times. I’m featuring Rami’s song, ‘Euphoria’ in this blog post. As you’ll read in my interview with him, he wrote this song as a dedication to the beginning of the Arab Spring in the Middle East. The song is powerful in its message and exudes love and self-realization, 

“I took to the street in euphoria

As my heart beat…

And ever so loud

Ever so sweet, the thunderous beat…”

Below is the interview and his song. Side note:  his project is called Tristame, and when I asked him of the significance, one thing he mentioned was that ‘ame’ means ‘soul’ in French. It was to “emphasize the word “soul”; music coming from the soul.” I love how I’m discovering these soul singers throughout this whole process...doesn't seem that random!

Thank you, Rami…for your words, for your hope, and for your music:

1. How long have you been playing music?

I started playing music when I was 13 or 14 years old. I attended a music school for a few years then continued playing and learning on my own. Shortly after, I started composing my own songs in hope of releasing them at some point in the future.

2. Where are you from?

I was born and raised in Damascus, Syria, then moved to New York when I was 17 years old in 2002. I've been living there since. 

3. What prompted you to release an EP in support of Syrian Refugees?

I was compelled by the millions of Syrian refugees and displaced inside and outside of the country. The situation quickly deteriorated into a civil war and the ones who suffered the most are the civilians who lost their livelihood, homes, and in many instances their lives. I thought that despite all the differences and charged emotions among all the parties involved, helping refugees would represent a common ground, hence the name of the EP. 

4. Who are your greatest musical influences?

I would say the two bands that had the most influence on me musically are The Cranberries (Ireland) and The Gathering (Netherlands). There are many other bands and artists that have and still influence me spanning different genres, but if I had to name two, it would be those two mentioned above.  

5. Tell me a little bit about the song, 'Euphoria.' There's a beautiful sadness to it. What's the intention of it?

"Euphoria" is a song about transformation, internal one to be exact. The song started as a vocal line a few years ago before the beginning of the Arab spring in the Middle East. While working on an EP for Syria, I picked this idea, added a new verse that reflected the general positive and hopeful atmosphere that was around at the very beginning of the Arab spring. As I continued working on the song I reverted back to the original idea of the song. In its earliest versions, the song was called "Revolution Within". It is about the process of finding one's voice and worthiness and having the moral courage to stand up for what's right in spite of all the negative thoughts and false beliefs that were instilled in us as we were growing up. It's about the euphoria of finally realizing that we can and deserve to live as we choose,

6. How does love connect to your music?

Romantic love isn't a theme that's explicitly present in the songs so far. Songs generally have a melancholic feeling to them, and in many instances nostalgia and longing of what's gone and what will be is a main theme. For example, the song "Inertia" from my first album "Unraveling Horizons" revolves around the theme of a lost love where one person moved on and the other is stuck in a state of inertia. It's probably the most nostalgic and personal song I've written so far. However, in general terms, the love of music as a means of self-expression through melodies and lyrics is what compels me to compose and record every time I pick up my guitar and start singing. 

Do you want to learn more about the situation in Syria? Here are a couple of resources to get you started:

1.   “Crisis in Syria,” The New York Times, http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/countriesandterritories/syria/ 

2.   “Syria’s War,” Al Jazeera, http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/spotlight/syria/