Hegazy – “Here to Stay” (video) (premiere)

Twin sisters Leila and Omnia Hegazy may share a bloodline but offer disparate musical elements in the frame of their outfit, Hegazy. Leila’s passion rests in R&B and vocal music while Omnia embraces the rebellion of rock and pop.

Having started their careers as solo artists the two women fused their talents in 2015 after the death of their father who was fond of saying that they were stronger together. You can hear the contrasts and unity in “Here to Stay”, which serves as the basis for the sisters’ new video. The track appears on Hegazy’s upcoming EP, Young, due for release in early 2018.

Within the framework of the song is a powerful message about the climate of xenophobia in 2017 America. The first generation Arab American twins say this about the tune, which directly references the #HereToStay movement centered on immigrant rights and the removal of DACA: “We grew up Muslim in the age of 9/11 and we know what it’s like to be treated as ‘the other’. We decided to take our president’s fear-mongering rhetoric and flip it on its head to be empowering. Yes, we are coming, we’re here to stay, and we are what America looks like, whether you like it or not.”