Egyptian Rap Trailblazer Afroto and Indian Icon Shreya Ghoshal Release New Single as Part Of Coke Studio™ 2023
[JOHANNESBURG] (August 4, 2023) – Rapidly rising Alexandrian rapper and songwriter, Afroto, releases a brand-new single, “Sunn Beliya,” with Indian icon of song and screen, Shreya Ghoshal, as part of the already impressive Coke Studio™ 2023 lineup of releases.
This unlikely combination brings together Afroto’s boundary-pushing sense of melody and beats with Shreya’s globally renowned vocals and phrasing.
Afroto leads a new generation of Egyptian hip-hop stars, coming from a humble beginning of waiting tables and beatboxing on the streets of San Stefano before exploding onto the scene. Afroto now has close to 150M views of his work on YouTube, and over 100M on streaming platforms, as well as selling out headline tours and playing alongside artists such as WizKid, Afrojack and R3HAB.
“Such a wonderful opportunity to get to meet Shreya and collaborate with her on this exciting project,” said Afroto. “It was super fun and I hope we can do more in the future.”
Shreya Ghoshal is the definition of a modern vocal icon, with over 20 years of experience in the music industry. She has recorded over 3000 songs in 20 languages and has won numerous awards for her contribution to the Indian music industry including 4 national film awards.
Speaking of her collaboration with Afroto, Shreya said, “I am very excited to have done a global collaboration like this for the first time ever. Creating this beautiful song with the immensely talented artist Afroto from Egypt was truly a unique experience. It’s beautiful to see the confluence of two different cultures, languages, styles happening so seamlessly. Without understanding each other’s words, we connected through our music and emotions. I am eagerly waiting for the world to hear this amazing creation called “Sunn Beliya.” Thank you, Coke Studio, for making this collision happen.”
Coca‑Cola's 'Real Magic' brand philosophy celebrates the magic of human connection and the belief that our differences make the world a richer and more interesting place. It is a celebration of the real-life moments and the magic, that happens when people come together.
The release of “Sunn Beliya” follows “Be Who You Are (Real Magic),” this year’s COKE STUDIO™ anthem by Grammy-award-winning American musician, Jon Batiste featuring NewJeans, J.I.D, Camilo and Cat Burns. This release was succeeded by NewJeans and J.I.D’s “Zero (J.I.D Remix),” an Imagine Dragons and the Inner City Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles version of “Symphony,” original songs by Shae Gill and Evdeki Saat, Zack Tabudlo and Nasty C, as well as a new version of Sam Smith’s “Perfect” featuring Jessie Reyez and Cat Burns. More tracks will be released to global music fans on all music platforms this coming August.
“Collisions’ are central to COKE STUDIO™ and are all about bringing incredible musical talent together across genres and cultures, to create fresh new sounds,” said Joshua Burke, Global Head of Music & Culture Marketing, Coca‑Cola™
16+ of the biggest breakthrough music artists of the moment have been brought together from the US, UK, Canada, South Africa, Colombia, Egypt, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Turkey, China, Korea and the Philippines for COKE STUDIO™ 2023:
- Afroto (Egypt)
- Nasty C (South Africa)
- BNXN (Nigeria)
- Camilo (Colombia)
- NewJeans (Korea)
- J.I.D (US)
- Cat Burns (UK)
- Imagine Dragons (US)
- Sam Smith (UK)
- Diljit Dosanjh (India)
- Evdeki Saat (Turkey)
- Inner City Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles (US)
- Jessie Reyez (Canada)
- Shae Gill (Pakistan)
- Shreya Ghoshal (India)
- XIN LIU (China)
- Zack Tabudlo (Philippines)
- YUNGBLUD (UK)
The COKE STUDIO™ platform is a space for true borderless creation and collaboration amongst emerging and established music artists globally. Curated in collaboration with Universal Music Group, the world leader in music-based entertainment. It offers the rare opportunity for artists from all over the world to collaborate creatively and experiment with sounds from different cultures, fuse genres to create new music and reach global audiences - whether bringing Punjabi music to the US or South African beats to India.
Content from the COKE STUDIO™ global platform is available for fans to access on https://www.coca-cola.com/cokestudio
About The Coca‑Cola Company
The Coca‑Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is a total beverage company with products sold in more than 200 countries and territories. Our company’s purpose is to refresh the world and make a difference. We sell multiple billion-dollar brands across several beverage categories worldwide. Our portfolio of sparkling soft drink brands includes Coca‑Cola, Sprite and Fanta. Our hydration, sports, coffee and tea brands include Dasani, smartwater, vitaminwater, Topo Chico, BODYARMOR, Powerade, Costa, Georgia, Gold Peak, Honest and Ayataka. Our nutrition, juice, dairy and plant-based beverage brands include Minute Maid, Simply, innocent, Del Valle, fairlife and AdeS. We’re constantly transforming our portfolio, from reducing sugar in our drinks to bringing innovative new products to market. We seek to positively impact people’s lives, communities and the planet through water replenishment, packaging recycling, sustainable sourcing practices and carbon emissions reductions across our value chain. Together with our bottling partners, we employ more than 700,000 people, helping bring economic opportunity to local communities worldwide. Learn more at www.coca-colacompany.com and follow us on X, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn.
About Universal Music Group
At Universal Music Group, we exist to shape culture through the power of artistry. UMG is the world leader in music-based entertainment, with a broad array of businesses engaged in recorded music, music publishing, merchandising and audio-visual content. Featuring the most comprehensive catalogue of recordings and songs across every musical genre, UMG identifies and develops artists and produces and distributes the most critically acclaimed and commercially successful music in the world. Committed to artistry, innovation and entrepreneurship, UMG fosters the development of services, platforms and business models in order to broaden artistic and commercial opportunities for our artists and create new experiences for fans. For more information on Universal Music Group visit www.universalmusic.com
About Afroto
Ahmed Mohamed Abdelmageed, also known as "Afroto” is an Alexandrian rapper and songwriter. At 26 years old, he started his artistic career by beatboxing, while listening to a variety of rappers that encouraged him to begin writing songs himself. Despite his family objecting his path, he wrote & recorded his first single, Ahmed Ala Esm Geddi - this was just the beginning for Afroto's rise in the industry.
About Shreya Ghoshal
Shreya Ghoshal is a versatile and renowned Indian playback singer with over 20 years of experience in the music industry. She debuted with the soundtrack of the film "Devdas" and has since worked with several iconic music composers. She has recorded over 3000 songs in over 20 languages and has won numerous awards, including four National Film Awards and seven Filmfare awards. Shreya is known for her voice quality, expression, and incredible ability to master pronunciation. She is also a philanthropist and has done special performances to raise funds for young children with cancer. She is an inspiration to millions and has a massive fan following on social media.