Sep 11

Sep 11 A Palestinian you should know: Laila Fakhoury

Palestine in America, You Should Know, Print Issue, Music Edition

A Palestinian you should know: Laila Fakhoury

The following was originally published in Palestine in America’s 2020 Music Edition. Order a print copy or download a digital copy today!

What’s your name?

Laila Fakhoury (she/her)

Where do you live?

Gainesville, Florida

Who are you?

First and foremost, I identify as a proud Palestinian woman. Secondly, I am a floater between the worlds of music and service, working to create a synthesis between art and community.

How has your experience been in the music scene there?

I am lucky to live in quite a transient city. New people and ideas are constantly flowing in and out of Gainesville. This has given me the opportunity to meet some deep music lovers who are constantly developing new projects and spaces to create and share music. Although we have a wealth of creativity and sounds coming out of Gainesville, we are truly an island in Florida and far abstracted from the heart of the music industry. Furthermore, Gainesville lacks a strong, mainstream Hip Hop culture. Years ago there was a vibrancy around Hip Hop, RnB, and Soul music but events and venues that make room for these genres and artists unfortunately became less and less available in the city.

Despite the limited diversity in Gainesville’s music scene, I cannot deny that I have loved immersing myself in the music that I did not explore until I moved to Gainesville. My knowledge of music has become much more well-rounded thanks to the innovative creatives making space for themselves to share their art in this city. Creating connections with those in Gainesville’s music scene has been a joy and a motivation. I am constantly learning from this city and this has helped my friends and I, who founded our record label in Gainesville, identify our role and goals in the scene.

How did you end up running a label?

I met my business partners in 2018. I was in an astronomy class at the University of Florida with Jahi and met his brother Khary shortly after. Jahi, Khary and I bonded over the fact that we were all avid music lovers. Our friendship grew with each playlist we shared and every concert we attended.

Jahi and Khary are fascinated by all things entertainment. They are truly artists. They have mastered graphic design, animation, photography, videography, and other creative skills. Me, on the other hand, I am passionate about service and activism. I have been an organizer, specifically for Palestine, since middle school. Although we focus on different areas of creativity, we knew that we all made a fantastic team and wanted to build a project together to intertwine our paths. Using music as our intersectional interest, we set the goal to build a record label from the ground up and implement each of our strengths into this entity to establish a unique, impactful company. From there, Dion Dia was born. Dion Dia is a full-service, fully independent record label that serves as a platform for change. We are a record label that stands for something. Through our label, we work to create a synthesis between extraordinary art and social good. Our focus is on elevating unheard voices.

Firstly, we represent local artists that we are building and striving to break. Florida, despite raising phenomenal artists, is quite removed from the general music industry, making it inaccessible to many of the talented people throughout the state. We are working to give our Florida artists a passageway into the music industry and fulfill their goals of using music as a sustainable career.

Secondly, we implement programs in our community to create positive change through music and art. For example, we are starting recording programs within the hospital to record the music of adolescents living with chronic illness, as a means to preserve their legacy and push their messages into the world. Similarly, we are developing a recording project in several prisons within Florida. While prisons still exist, we work to amplify the voices and beautiful art of incarcerated people who are often silenced and disconnected from our communities. As we grow, we hope to expand overseas, to areas like Palestine, in order to elevate the music of these artists.

Thirdly, we curate events. Have you ever heard of a silent disco? It is a unique party experience in which bluetooth headphones are provided to attendees, giving them the opportunity to change through several stations of music being played by multiple DJs who are transmitting their music to the headphones. We started hosting silent discos in Gainesville because of how special these events can be. Silent discos differ from any other nightlife experience because they’re completely autonomous and choice-based events. As an attendee, you get to choose through several stations of music, you choose how loud you want it to be, and you have the opportunity to take off your headphones and actually have dialogue with people. We founded a series of events called “Disco for Good,” in which we partner with a community organization or nonprofit and curate a silent disco to raise money for their cause. We have raised money for mental health facilities, cystic fibrosis foundations, endangered elephant conservations, financial literacy groups, Black, Brown and Queer liberation groups, and many other impactful causes. We host the largest silent discos in Gainesville and help other groups host their own.

Dion Dia is much more than a record label, it is a platform to create change through art and it stands on the pillars of artists representation, community projects, and events.

What do you do within that scene?

Within Dion Dia, I am the director of marketing & promotions, I curate our events, and I lead our community work. Within Gainesville’s music scene I am known for these roles. I am someone that people come to when they want to create a unique event and I am someone that people come to when they want to use their resources to make beneficial change. Gainesville is small, so I have been lucky enough to really connect with the forces behind our music scene.

As a label, we collaborate with different venues and groups regularly, but I have also become an independent resource to people in our community who simply want to create beautiful things. I have become someone that up-and-coming artists send their unreleased music to for advice and I have become someone that club owners ask to run their opening night events.

As a label, Dion Dia is known in the scene for truly working towards reviving and recultivating Gainesville’s Hip Hop, RnB, and Soul music culture. We do this by hosting hip hop networking events, bringing together Gainesville’s gems who often do not have an accessible stage to perform on. During our networking events we hold room for cyphers, rap battles, and performances. There have been some beautiful collaborations that came from local hip hop artists identifying who in the community they can relate to with their music. Similarly, we curate public hip hop shows to give our artists on the label and our friends in the community a platform and audience that really appreciates their music. Since our conception, we have been throwing Gainesville’s largest hip hop events, bringing together hundreds of people for a night to vibe to a very special genre of music.

Who's on your roster? And what type of artists do you look for?

Currently, we represent two incredible hip hop artists.

The first artist we took on, Casey Jones II, is a lyrical rapper from Gainesville, Florida. Casey has such a special sound. His voice is powerful, his lyrics are clever, his style is on point. He is vintage by design, often rocking classic jerseys and colorful coogi sweaters. He is inspired by every era of music. In his music you can hear the influence of old RnB singers like Boys to Men, Donny Hathaway, and Teddy Pendergrass; 90s gangsta-rappers like Tupac, Biggie, and Nas; current artists like Kendrick Lamar, J. Cole, and Joey Bada$$.

The second artist we signed, FARO, is a backpack rapper from New York, but was raised and is living in Gainesville. FARO has it all: an impeccable musical talent and a charismatic, magnetic personality. He has lived through incredibly difficult experiences while growing up in the South, facing racism and hate. He shares these struggles in his music and uses his experiences to express powerful, relevant messages through his craft. FARO is a huge fan of artists who are changing the status quo and moving outside of the hip hop music box. He is inspired by JPEGMAFIA, Earl Sweatshirt, Lil Uzi Vert, and others. He has a deep appreciation for classics like Jay-Z, Wu-Tang, Ghostface, Dipset, and more.

We are lucky to have a really talented in-house producer named Alex Backman. Alex wears many hats. He makes his own beautifully strange music, inspired by Chicago house music. He is a talented pianist and is constantly learning new instruments like violin and clarinet. He keeps the label moving by recording our rappers and providing them with his one-of-a-kind beats that challenge them to adventure outside of their musical comfort zone.

We’re grateful to be the home for our very special resident DJ named HILT. HILT is originally from Trinidad and Tobago and his earliest memories all revolve around music. He was raised by Caribbean music as his home was always filled with sounds of the steelpan drum. HILT is a staple DJ at all of our events as he masterfully mixes deep house and hip hop to give our audience a listening experience they would not find anywhere else in Gainesville. Aside from DJing, HILT also makes his own unique, original music.

Being one of the only resources for hip hop culture in Gainesville, we work with many other artists who are not signed to the label as we believe in giving local talent a platform to share their voice and message. We are always looking for new artists who are building from the ground up, just like how we started, and who have a valuable message to share with the world.

What are the dream collaborations that you're trying to manifest?

Sama’an maaaan, I literally don’t even know where to START! One of our goals as a label is to be at the intersection of music / entertainment and every other industry associated with it. Even in our current branding, we intertwine a number of street cultures into our label that we are all equally interested in such as fashion, skating, cars, and other cool stuff. Looking at our social media, like instagram, should make that apparent. With that being said, some dream collabs would be with Pink Flamingo, Off-White, Bone Soda, Illegal Civ, Filthy. There is a youtube fashion and streetwear series called PAQ. They have episodes styling musicians like Lil Baby, Cuco, and Amine. It would be a beautiful thing to watch them style one of our artists in the future, mostly just because I want to meet all the folks that run the show. An interview with Nardwaur sounds life changing. An interview with Rick Ruben sounds super zen. Then of course there are a million music collaborations I’d want us to be involved with. A real dream would be to witness a music collab between our artist and MF DOOM or Beach House.

How does the influence of Arabic or Palestinian music / culture find its way into your label?

Well Arabic and Palestinian music / culture influences every aspect of my life. My general love for service and community organizing is inspired by my Palestinian roots. I learned from a young age that as Palestinians, we have constant work to do. My goals all start and end with Palestine.

My favorite character trait of Palestinians is our undying hospitality. I love that Palestinians create community through welcoming people into their homes, sharing meals, and looking out for each other’s well-being. I have used this lifestyle internally within Dion Dia. I built a home studio to give our artists a specific comfort while they create. We take breaks from working to share a home cooked Arabic meal. When there is any kind of creativity block, I try to teach them how to play Tawla (Backgammon). Our label is a community, NAY...a family. Without my experience of witnessing the beautiful hospitality of my Palestinian peers, I don’t think our label would be as close and connected as it is now.

In terms of music, I give my DJs Arabic playlists to study for events. Nowhere near Gainesville can you dance to or listen to Arabic music. Our events are the only place you’ll be able to experience the vibrancy of the tabla or the liveliness of zaghrouta. My DJ is also working on sampling some Arabic records for his music.

What kind of future would you like to see for diaspora Palestinians in music?

I view music as an opportunity. It gives artists an opportunity to craft and package valuable messages that they can share with the world in a beautiful, digestible way. It is always special to see Palestinians gain a large platform, because it gives them the chance to use their influence to teach their followers the truth about Palestine.

My hope is that more Palestinian artists within the diaspora are given a chance to build their musical platform and eventually use it to speak about Palestine. I know that I’ll always be a resource for Palestinian artists. I hope to gain enough resources to really help Palestinian creatives get deeper into the music industry. I cannot wait to see more Palestinian musicians make it and use their opprotunity to help Palestine.

What's the best career advice you've ever received?

My favorite business advice that I’ve received is to always be generous. You get more when you give more.

Chinua Achebe, the Nigerian author, wrote one of my favorite quotes: “until the lions have their own historians, the history of the hunt will always glorify the hunter.” On a side note, I don’t quite agree with all of his perspectives on post-colonialism and imperialism, BUT the first time I read this statement, I was deeply impacted. I have used the essence of this quote to drive my work. When it comes to Palestine, the world is attempting to rewrite and completely erase our history by claiming that we are “an invented people,” “a people that fell from the sky.” They try to say our ancestors' hands weren’t the ones that harvested the aged olive trees. They try to say that the iron keys our grandparents pass on to us won’t open the doors of our confiscated homes. Creating a label, a platform, allows us to amplify our history. It will be written, recorded, and televised everywhere. The career and life advice I interpreted from this quote is to do things that preserve and push out our history. My career goal is to give myself and others who stand for justice a voice to share their stories.

In the near future, Palestine is free, we're throwing a big party there to celebrate, and everybody gets to play some music, what records (not your own) are you bringing to play at the party?

Ahhhh maaaaan, I’ve dreamt about this scenario too many times. I’m just waiting to be handed the aux after the revolution. I’m bringing a song called “Detroit is Black,” by Tiff Massey. Random, I know. Of course, the Black and Palesitnian struggles are connected but aside from that, I’m playing that song because it just screams REVOLUTION. There is also a line from it when she yells “people live here, people live here, PEOPLE LIVE HERE.” Now that hypes me up. Other than that it’s one of my favorite songs to dance around to.

Other songs (in no particular order and honestly probably not in the same set lol):

Basically every diss song but especially, Hit Em Up by Tupac.

Chin Check by N.W.A.

Payback is a Dog by the Stylistics

Celebrate Good Times by Kool & The Gang

The Revolution Will Not be Televised by Gil Scott-Heron

Fight the Power by Public Enemy

Get Up, Stand Up by Bob Marley & The Wailers

Changes by Tupac

Jesus is the One by Zack Fox

If you don’t know why, skip to 1:58:

And of course, Mawtini