LAFAYETTE, La. (KLFY)– Festival International De Louisiane kicks off Wednesday, April 24 and continues on until Sunday, April 28, with an array of diverse musical acts. This annual 5-day cultural celebration brings Downtown Lafayette to life through the different rhythms and sounds from local groups and artists beyond the stateline.

One of those groups is the Chicago-based duo Arab Blues, with Karim Nagi and Rami Gabriel. The two combine Arab tradition with Chicago blues to create an electro urban sound. The duo uses a range of historical and contemporary instruments to musically expound on rhythms and melodies, and in turn, create an original form of expression that showcases their immigrant artistry.

Nagi is an Egyptian native and Gabriel is of Lebanese-Egyptian descent, and both of them bridge the gap between tradition and innovation, using their Middle Eastern heritage and passions for Chicago’s jazz and blues scene. Gabriel plays guitar, oud and buzuq, while Nagi plays riqq, tublah and drum set.

With the help of a research fellowship at the Center for Black Music Research, two Illinois Artist grants and a decade of experience as a jazz and blues musician in Chicago, Gabriel established the Arab Blues. Nagi has been recognized as a two-time beneficiary of the Doris Duke Building Bridges grant for Muslim Artists and TEDx speaker. Both are involved in education, with Gabriel being a professor of psychology at Columbia College and Nagi being a teacher who has performed at more than 500 school assemblies with Arabiqa.

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Gabriel invited Nagi to perform with him in a concert after Nagi moved to Chicago, and from there, the duo blossomed with musical stylings that “embody the call of tradition and the response of the diaspora.”

The group originated when Gabriel invited Nagi to perform with him in a concert after Nagi moved to Chicago. From there, the duo’s musical dynamic blossomed, and they expanded from their normal bar and concert settings to also performing in school residencies and educational programs, sparking the youth’s interest in Arab music.

Nagi and Gabriel have released two albums titled “The Arab Blues” and “Layl.” The duo will take the Scène Wellcare Lafayette stage on Saturday, April 27 from 1:15 p.m. to 2:15 p.m.

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