“I Don't Give a Sh*t What DJ Khaled Thinks” - Anees on Cancel Culture and Zohran Mamdani

Описание: Mehdi is joined by Palestinian-Lebanese-American singer-songwriter-rapper Anees to talk about his activism on Gaza and his belief in the power of music to influence politics. Anees tells Mehdi about his winding career path of going to law school, passing the bar exam, and delivering pizzas for 10 years. After getting his big break during an Instagram livestream with superstar Justin Bieber, Anees made the leap from up-and-comer to professional musician.

Growing up in a half-Palestinian, half-Lebanese household with a father who worked in civil rights, Anees explains to Mehdi how making political music isn’t even a conscious choice for him. Though when it comes to other famous musical artists, including a well-known Palestinian (cough cough, DJ Khaled), Anees has his own thoughts as to why some celebrities choose to stay out of the political fray.

When discussing US lawmakers and Israel, the duo unpack the mixed signals coming from progressives like Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and whether purity tests on the left are helpful or harmful. Finally, Mehdi and Anees discuss the possibility of Zohran Mamdani winning the New York City mayor’s race and the shockwaves it would send to the political establishment.

00:00 - Opening montage
1:07 - Intro
2:05 - Anees’ family background
4:03 - Growing up in the DMV
5:16 - Law school
9:38 - Delivering pizzas
13:20 - Making political music
16:29 - Justin Bieber
20:52 - Bernie Sanders & AOC
22:56 - DJ Khaled
24:09 - Fear of speaking out on Gaza
28:39 - March for Gaza
31:30 - Zohran Mamdani
35:55 - Palestinian joy

This interview was published 10 days earlier on Zeteo.com. If you want early access to exclusive content and hard-hitting, independent journalism, subscribe on Substack here: https://zeteo.com/subscribe

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