Zeid Hamdan has undoubtedly been one of the most important figures in the Middle East music scene over the last few decades. Named as one of eight “Leading Lights in Lebanese Culture” by CNN, he is an incredibly diverse artist and producer who first started shaping the Middle Eastern music scene in 2001.

Musically, he has successfully blended his Middle Eastern roots with a spectrum of influences including punk, electro, and folk. His work with Soapkills in the early noughties not only pioneered a regional independent scene in the Arab world by brilliantly marrying rock and electronic music, but also launched both his career and that of bandmate, Yasmine Hamdan. His own bands, The New Government and Zeid and the Wings, channeled his unique brand of indie/alternative rock and continued to push musical boundaries in the region through his imprint, the Lebanese Underground.

Hamdan’s incredible music diversity has established him as an in-demand producer, affording him opportunities to work with several cutting-edge artists like Egypt’s Maryam Saleh and Lebanon’s Remie Akl, among others. Hamdan has equally impressive credits as a film & TV composer, having scored music for dozens of films, television series, documentaries, and global advertising campaigns. In 2019 he produced the music for Nadine Labaki’s Capernaum, a film which highlighted the plight of Syrian refugees and was nominated for an Oscar in the Best Foreign Film category that year.