Arabic radio listeners in the United Arab Emirates just got a younger, dare we say, hipper, radio station: Radio Hala 95.6 FM.
There are so many fresh sounds coming out of the MENA region right now. Whether hip hop or soft rock, there's a lot of music that is not covered by mainstream Arabic radio stations.
According to Shock Middle East, the same people that brought us Heart 107.1 FM and Dance 97.8, Radio Hala will play the freshest tracks and keep its listeners up-to-date with everything that's happening in this part of the world.
There are already two shows announced; 6a.m. – 11a.m., Eesh Sabahak (roughly translated, "Live your morning") will be led by Mohammed Enaba. It will include the usual program that all successful morning shows have: light conversation, some banter, news, sports, and good music in between.
From 3p.m. - 8p.m., a show called Dardasha (meaning, "chat") will keep us entertained with host Reine Abour Jeily. This show will include lifestyle and fashion advice alongside the latest news, sports and music hits.
We hope their lineup includes homegrown talents like Egypt's soft rock band, Wust El Balad, and Lebanese Mashrou' Laila (that recently caused controversy for their lead singer being openly gay, so we aren't holding our breath with that one) and hip-hop artist Chyno, who has a cult-like following. They're not exactly mainstream, but they've got street cred.
To mark their launch the station is giving away a Volkswagen Touareg to listeners who tune in and SMS 5060 with the key word "VW Hala" until June 6.
So, there's that too.