Sol Band (), sometimes known as just Sol, is a Palestinian band from the

Gaza Strip The Gaza Strip, also known simply as Gaza, is a small territory located on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea; it is the smaller of the two Palestinian territories, the other being the West Bank, that make up the State of Palestine. I ...

, established in 2012. They are best known for their 2022 song "Raweq wa Haddy".

History

Sol Band was founded in late 2012, in the wake of the Israeli offensive on Gaza that November, by a group of youths who had met in 2011. Shortly after, they started sharing their music on

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and

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. In 2016, the band opened the "Sayed Darwish Music School" (named after the Egyptian singer) in

Gaza City Gaza City, also called Gaza, is a city in the Gaza Strip, Palestine, and the capital of the Gaza Governorate. Located on the Mediterranean coast, southwest of Jerusalem, it was home to Port of Gaza, Palestine's only port. With a population of ...

. The students included Nana Ashour, who became known as "Gaza's first girl drummer", and singer Rafah Shamaly, who joined the band in 2018. In 2019, they collaborated with the Falastini TV channel to record a number of Arab folk songs. At the end of the year, most of the band relocated to

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

, Turkey. Five members returned to Gaza in August 2023 to record an album, but the outbreak of the

Gaza war The Gaza war is an armed conflict in the Gaza Strip and southern Israel fought since 7 October 2023. A part of the unresolved Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Israeli–Palestinian and Gaza–Israel conflict, Gaza–Israel conflicts dating ...

halted their plans until they were evacuated to Qatar in April 2024; vocalist Hamada Nasrallah denounced an IDF soldier for

stealing Theft (, cognate to ) is the act of taking another person's property or services without that person's permission or consent with the intent to deprive the rightful owner of it. The word ''theft'' is also used as a synonym or informal short ...

a guitar he had been gifted by his late father, who was killed by Israel in the

2014 Gaza war The 2014 Gaza War, also known as Operation Protective Edge (, ), and Battle of the Withered Grain (), was a military operation launched by Israel on 8 July 2014 in the Gaza Strip, a Palestinian territory that has been governed by Hamas since ...

. The following June, Sol Band appeared on a track from

Saint Levant Marwan Abdelhamid (; born October 6, 2000), known professionally as Saint Levant (; ), is a Palestinian singer-songwriter and rapper. A multilingual artist, he is best known for his song "Very Few Friends". Early life and education Abdelham ...

's debut album ''

Deira Deira ( ; Old Welsh/ or ; or ) was an area of Post-Roman Britain, and a later Anglian kingdom. Etymology The name of the kingdom is of Brythonic origin, and is derived from the Proto-Celtic , meaning 'oak' ( in modern Welsh), in which case ...

''. The group's repertoire includes patriotic songs about resistance and livelihood in Palestine, as well as music from historic Arab artists like

Umm Kulthum Umm Kulthum (; 31 December 1898 – 3 February 1975) was an Egyptians, Egyptian singer and film actress active from the 1920s to the 1970s. She was given the honorific title (). Immensely popular throughout the Middle East and beyond, Umm Kul ...

Mohamed Abdel Wahab Mohamed Abdel Wahab (), also transliterated ''Mehammad Abdelwehab'', (March 13, 1902 – May 4, 1991), was a prominent 20th-century Egyptian singer, actor, and composer. He is best known for his Romantic and Egyptian patriotic songs. He wa ...

Wadih El Safi Wadih El Safi (, born Wadih Francis; November 1, 1921 – October 11, 2013) was a Lebanese singer and composer. Born in Niha, Lebanon, Wadih El Safi started his artistic journey at the age of sixteen when he took part in a singing contest hel ...

and

Fairuz Nouhad Wadie Haddad (, ; born November 20, 1934 or November 21, 1935), known as Fairuz (, ), is a Lebanese singer. She is widely considered an iconic vocalist and one of the most celebrated singers in the history of the Arab world. She is pop ...

. They have performed at local and international events, including at the

French Institute The ; ) is a French learned society, grouping five , including the . It was established in 1795 at the direction of the National Convention. Located on the Quai de Conti in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, the institute manages approximately ...

(Gaza, 2015;

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

, 2020), the Palestine International Festival (2018), the Palestine Music Expo (

Ramallah Ramallah ( , ; ) is a Palestinians, Palestinian city in the central West Bank, that serves as the administrative capital of the State of Palestine. It is situated on the Judaean Mountains, north of Jerusalem, at an average elevation of abov ...

, 2019), the EU-sponsored Rooftop Festival (Palestine, 2018), the Arabesques Festival (

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, 2021), the Copacobana Festival (

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, 2021), the

Jerash Festival The Jerash Festival for Culture and Arts is an annual event held in Jerash, Jordan. It is part of the Jordan Festival, which aims to enrich cultural activities in Jordan. Founded in 1981 by Queen Noor, it features several shows performed by Jor ...

(Jordan, 2023), and the Maite Zaitut Festival ( Basque Country, 2025). In June 2025, the group played in

Bilbao Bilbao is a city in northern Spain, the largest city in the Provinces of Spain, province of Biscay and in the Basque Country (greater region), Basque Country as a whole. It is also the largest city proper in northern Spain. Bilbao is the List o ...

( Basque Country, Spain) at the closing ceremony of a protest organized by for the right of self-determination of the Basque people, as well as "in solidarity with other peoples in their struggle for liberation".

Reception

Sol Band gained a significant following since its establishment, but some conservative figures in Palestinian society have been critical of a mixed-gender band performing in public and its members reported having faced severe restrictions by the Hamas administration of the Gaza Strip.

Discography

Albums and EPs

* ''Sol Band'' ()EP, 2022

Singles

* "Rafei Rasi" ()2018 * "Khaleek" ()2019 * "Alooli" ()2019 * "Ghazza al Helwa" ()2019 * "Wein al Malayeen" ()2019 * " Zahrat al-Mada'en" ()2019 * "Wein a Ramallah" ()2020 * "Shaddu al-Himma" ()2020 * "Muntasib al-Qama" ()2020 * "Laji Sammuni Laji" ()2020 * "Nehna Mish Irhabiyeen" ()2020 * "Ana Betnaffas Horriyi" ()2020 * "Ounadikom" ()2020 * "Ashiq min Filastin (A Lover from Palestine)" ()2021 * "Dal'ouna" ()2021 * "3aros al Falasteniya" ()2022 * "Hikayat Madina" ()2022 * "Raweq wa Haddy" ()2022 * "Shili" ()2023 * "Ala Mad al Shoof" ()2023 * "Eftah Aza Yalsan" ()2023 * "Ma Hal Helalek Ghazzetna" ()2024 * "My Children Are Birds in Heaven" ()2024 * "Let's Build" ()2024 * "Ma Dal Haki" ()2024 * "Palestinians" ()2024 * "Metghreb" ()2024

Band members

Current members

* Rahaf Shamalyvocals * Hamada Nasrallahvocals * Fares Anbarpercussions * Said Fadelpercussions, keyboards, oud * Abdelkader "Abood" Abuqassimkeyboards * Ahmed Haddadguitar * Samir Albornosound engineer

Past members

* Mohammed Shomanguitar, bass * Majd Antardrums * Reem Anbaroud

References

External links

* * * * {{authority control Palestinian musical groups Folk-pop music groups Arabic-language musical groups Mixed-gender bands Musical groups established in 2012 2012 establishments in Palestine