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LOVIN MEETS: AHMED ‘AIDYPROOF’ HAMAD

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Aidy Proof

Ahmed Hamad, aka Aidyproof, is Paris-born, New York raised and proudly Sudanese. Coming from what can only be described as a legendary musical ancestry, it’s no surprise that Aidyproof lives where the music resides. Keep reading to take a look at how Lovin’ deconstructed Aidy in our recent interview with the Sudanese mastermind! 

GETTING INTO THE MUSICAL MOOD

Do you ever wonder how artists find a way to bridge the gap between our emotions and words so well? How do they manage to elegantly articulate the thoughts in our head while getting it to nod to the perfect beat with the perfect words? They’ve been doing it since forever; long before Kendrick we had Tupac, long before Alicia Keys we had Aretha Franklin and long before Koffee we had Bob Marley. Now we have Aidyproof doing the same thing, effortlessly, and letting us know how he does it.

“There’s things when you’re expressing pain that touches people and they relate to it, even if they don’t understand the words.”

In Aidy’s 20+ years of artistry, pain has been one of many things that has triggered constant inspiration for the music he makes. There’s something about the emotion that leaves artists yearning to run to their outlet. Just as you might think, alleviating the pain goes much smoother when others can relate to the burdens he feels, whether he’s rapping about them from a studio in New York or on the kitchen counter of a flat in Oxford. While we get to enjoy the upbeat music and lightweight wordplay that leaves us with a grin on our face, Aidy gives us access to music for our me-against-the-world kind of days, too. 

Hey Siri, play Fudawhurl on Spotify. And put my phone on Do Not Disturb 🎶.

THE MUSICAL LINEAGE

The eyes never lie, but the genes never lie, either. Aidyproof has years of musical genius in his DNA, dating back to one of the pioneers of the Sudanese music culture himself, his uncle, Bashir Abbas.

Abbas was famously known for his captivating oud melodies, his immeasurable contribution to the growth and sentiment of Sudanese music and his introduction of the eminent female group Al-Balabil. Some consider all of this to be unparalleled to his poetic writing, but then again, we struggle deciding which comes first with Aidy, too.

With an intention of spreading the blessing of talent, esteemed oud player and composer Asma Hamza was actually the one behind Abbas’ magical oud abilities. Google did the culture right with their celebration of her on the internet, but Aidy did it better by being the present day family representative of excellence, empowerment, rejuvenating energy and absolute bangers.

For Aidy, Google’s celebration lives on through their inspiration to him and his artistry. When asked who his top 3 favourite Sudanese artists are, it was no surprise that he chose his uncle to be on the list. We would have, too!

EXPLORING THE ARTISTRY

While his family tree and natural endowments contributed to his success and influence, Aidy still had to find other ways to navigate through his artistry. Many of us see him as part of the crown of the culture, but perhaps his receptiveness to continuous growth is part of what places him in that position. With a heart of gold and a mind of steel, Aidy powered through the struggle of achieving milestones of his own.

In 2020, Aidy released ‘Sudan’ with Maman, an exceptional artist that stimulated the more melodic Aidy we see in his 2021 EP ‘Lenses’.

Everything that I was told not to do that I wanted to do – like get more melodic and a little bit more singing – people shut that down. He’s the one that brought it out of me.

We can’t ever imagine why, but are eternally grateful that Sudanese excellence sticks together to push each other through the intrusive thoughts. As much as we must uplift ourselves and be in control of our growth, a community of caring, supportive friends and family will always stimulate development. 

We already know how many artists have been inspired through Aidy, but do you know how many have inspired him? 

 

A 249 EXPERIENCE: VOL 1 & 2 by The C!rcle

As part of The C!rcle, Aidy successfully compiled and produced a list of 41 sensational songs by Sudanese artists across the globe to bring the sounds of home and brilliance into one accessible collection.

The albums saw features from Hoosh, AKA Keyz, Bas and countless more and included a range all the way from heartfelt Sudanese revolution songs to head bops and entrancement. Aidy made sure to sequence the tracks in an audibly satisfying way to ensure listeners would want more after every song and it’s safe to say he did exactly what he set his mind to!

My goal was, if we put together a compilation that was musically and sonically tasty, then it would get people to go in and listen to something and then it would lead to hearing the next track.

This was only one of Aidy’s many stellar attempts to give Sudanese artists a platform to showcase themselves to the rest of the world. He believes that, in order to promote greater recognition for artists, those with large platforms should do what they can to spread the word. We hear music from an abundance of different genres, countries and cultures, but the music industry will never be complete without Sudan! Seems like Aidy thinks so, too:

Everybody loves to be the first person to show someone an artist they like. That’s how I felt but with the world. I felt like the world was not looking at Sudan.

WORDS OF WISDOM

As much as the established artists and producers can give a helping hand, there has to be a level of hunger and passion that will drive the upcoming Sudanese artists up to great fame and success. It’s no secret that the music industry can be tricky at times; in a field of subjectivity, many people have many opinions on a single work of art. Dodging this, Aidy is notoriously known for his real and raw approach – when he has something to say, he says it, and you can trust him to leave it all on the mic. So what can others do to escape the pressure of the industry and be as unapologetically real as Aidy?

Do what you feel and also don’t get stuck in the images and visions other people have of you. The people that you look up to that did amazing things … they’re masters of their own destiny.

 

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