The Ones Who Played Their Cards Right ... Maghna Khan

By: Ahmed Mansour

If ever there was an Egyptian “spiritual-healing” band, it would have to be Maghna Khan. Starting underground back in 2004, their dream was to serve as the “psychiatrists of the Egyptian people.” In May, 2011, at their first appearance at Al-SawyCulture wheel, they took audiences by storm with their original tracks, which they were confident would grab the attention of Egyptian listeners, youth in particular. The ten-member Maghna Khan attempts to be unique while composing tracks, trying hard to swim not with the current but against it. “We’re 100% unique contemporary Egyptian music,” says Mahmoud Faisal, the band’s mandolin and harmonica player. Bona fide they might be, and so unique that most may find it hard to understand what they’re getting at. As with other indie breakthroughs, the message behind their tracks is not always easy to fathom; they always leave it up to their audience to decide the meaning of their lyrics. Most of Maghna Khan’s songs tackle the everyday emotions of Egyptian people. That’s when the ‘psychiatrist’ bit comes in, and the musicians start to give solutions on how to conquer the negative emotions Egyptians are feeling and enforce the positive ones. Even though they do have political songs in their repertoire, they don’t consider themselves a political band. “These songs that involve political views are made so the public understand our views regarding the incidents that are taking their toll on all of us as Egyptians, but we do not offer solutions to these problems. They’re merely a wake-up call for those who need to be awakened,” explains Faisal. True to their underground ethos, Maghna Khan is in the music business not for the money, but for the love they give and receive from listeners. Faisal says they refuse to sign on with any recording agencies because “We want to be able to say anything that we want to say. Having sponsors or producing companies will have us on a leash.” They credit their success to their innovative music, meaningful lyrics and support of their fans. et