Rolling Stone MENA - Music, Film, TV and Political News Coverage

Binge Therapy

Binge Therapy: 24 Titles to Stream in MENA This April

Rolling Stone MENA’s monthly streaming guide to the films, TV series, and documentaries available across platforms in the MENA region.

By Yasmina Bitar

Decolonized Self

Nene H’s Primal Techno Rebirth on Second Skin

Turkish producer Nene H opens up about grief, club politics, and finding liberation through techno on Second Skin.

By Bhanuj Kappal

Raï & Wrong

Faudel: The End of Exile and the Price of Politics

After a Sarkozy performance derailed his career, Faudel reflects on exile, backlash, and the politics artists can’t escape.

By Dounia El Barhdadi

AIstanbul

CES Is Making Istanbul Look Like Itself

How photographer-turned-AI artist CES built a viral aesthetic from Turkish street culture, and why he thinks the critics have it all wrong about AI and art.

By Arnaud Pessey

Second Thoughts

No Clear Way Out: How Iranians View U.S. Intervention Six Weeks In

How six weeks of war, economic strain, and escalating threats have reshaped Iranian sentiments on U.S. intervention in Iran.

By Shirin Hakim & Diba Mohtasham

Future Radar

Rolling Stone MENA Future Radar 2026: 25 Artists to Watch

By Reda El Mor

Lonely War

The Lonely Road to America’s Riskiest War

By Steven Barrow Barlow

In Bad Taste

(Ma) Bdna Nrou

Against a long history of political and protest music, Salma Mousa asks why Arab pop today insists we chill when we should rage.

By Salma Mousa

Syrr, Spilled

Maryam Saleh’s Syrr Is the Revivalist Album We’ve Been Waiting For

Maryam Saleh’s Syrr is the revivalist album Arabic music has been waiting for – intimate, effortless, and deeply felt.

By Ammar Manla Hasan

MUSIC

“Ghannaki Al Qalb”: A Triumph and Turning Point in Arabic Opera

There is more to “Ghannaki Al Qalb” (“My Heart Sings to You”) by international tenor Amine Hachem than is apparent…

By Ethan Stone

Ino Casablanca is on tour. Extasia is available on all platforms. (Photography by Toxine)

No Labels

Ino Casablanca Is Next: Whether You Know It Or Not

Ino Casablanca steamrolls genres, stereotypes, and labels, clearing ground for a sound as singular as it is inherited.

By Sami Bennani

North Stars

Native, Not Disruptive: Three Voices from North Africa’s New Wave

Emerging indie trailblazers Rita L’Oujdia, Koast, and Zad are charting a new path forward for North African music.

By Dounia El Barhdadi

Israel's Eternal Darkness

Israel Jeopardizes Truce by Launching ‘Eternal Darkness’ on Lebanon

The Israeli bombardment campaign has resulted in 70 confirmed deaths and over 200 injuries.

By Rolling Stone MENA Staff

Winners & Losers

Trump’s Iran War Has Clear Winners and Losers

After weeks of intensive strikes, Iran is emerging from the war with potentially more sovereignty, fewer sanctions, and a weaker opposition.

By Ammar Manla Hasan

Hell & Cold Water

The Complete Hell-ification of Israeli Prisons for Palestinians

A new Israeli law permitting the execution of Palestinian prisoners adds to a brutal system officials themselves have called “hell.”

By Naqaa Hamed

Noose Politics

Noose Politics: What the Death Penalty Means for the West Bank’s Future

A new Israeli law mandating executions in military courts could reshape the conflict and close one of its last political channels.

By Ahmed Amin

The South Remembers

A Looming Occupation on the Shores of the Litani

Amid fast news rounds and more noise than clarity, Israel is reviving its historic plans to annex southern Lebanon up to the Litani River.

By Ahmed Amin

Hustlers & High Ratings

Heroes, Hustlers, and High Ratings: The Mohamed Samy Era of Egyptian TV

A look back at fifteen years of Mohamed Samy’s directing during the most prolific production era in Egyptian television.

By Youssef Ali

Egy Ma3lesh

Egybest Sacrifices Its Original Story on the Altar of Eid Cinema

A promising piracy drama slips into formula, as Egybest trades a rich story for safe, trope-heavy Eid entertainment.

By Ammar Manla Hasan

Law & Wasta

A Solid Second Season: Sahbek Rajel Continues to Explore Police as Workplace

Sahbek Rajel turns the police into a workplace comedy, exposing power, class, and street influence inside the institution.

By Youssef Ali

Slow Decay

Hekayet Narges Refuses the Easy Villain

A well-rounded and textured Ramadan drama, Hekayet Narges looks past the crime to the society that made it possible.

By Ammar Manla Hasan

Oops, AI Did It Again

Beyond the Backlash: What Do We Do About AI in Ramadan TV?

This Ramadan’s AI controversy isn’t hysteria. It’s a demand for clarity before standards quietly erode.

By Ahmed Amin

(Sub)Culture

5 Entrepreneurs Redefining Success in 2026

Success looks very different in 2026 than it did even a few years ago. Today’s most influential entrepreneurs are no…

By Chris Gallagher

(Sub)Culture

Sovereign Diversification and the Ambition Economy Rising Across MENA

The Middle East and North Africa are no longer emerging markets. They are acceleration markets. Across Dubai’s financial corridors, Riyadh’s…

By Anthony Burr

(Sub)Culture

Beyond the Graft: The 5 Pillars of a Modern Hair Transplant Standard

In recent years, hair transplants have changed significantly, moving beyond the old way of just transplanting hair follicles. Today’s hair…

By Chris Gallagher

Cultural Frequency

How Qatar Turned the Arab World’s Biggest Football Night Into a Song the Region Could Hear

On Qatar’s approach to transforming global sporting moments into platforms for shared Arab cultural expression.

By Rolling Stone MENA Staff

Books Without Borders

Amazon Launches The Digital Arabic Library with 38,000+ Titles

Arabic books go global as Amazon launches the Digital Arabic Library, bringing 38,000+ Arabic titles to readers worldwide.

By Rolling Stone MENA Staff

TECH

How the Hint App Repositions Astrology as Emotional Insight, Not Fortune Telling

Across digital culture, astrology and symbolic systems have returned to everyday use. This time, the focus is not on predicting…

By Matthew Kayser

TECH

Intelligence and Aesthetics for Growth with MyIQ

Intelligence seems to have become an aesthetic. While dark academia styling trends handle appearance-based intelligence, what books you’re reading, by…

By Ethan Stone