El Waili's Score of Ramadan Series ‘Ekhwaty' is a Nod to White Lotus
Ever since the beginning of Ramadan, there has been a feverish conversation all over social media about the undeniable similarities between El Waili's score on the Egyptian Ramadan 2025 series 'Ekhwaty' and the theme song of the iconic HBO hit 'The White Lotus'.
And, as a loyal member of the #WhiteLotus fan community, I had to go watch 'Ekhwaty' myself to hear with my own ears that diabolical rumor. Turns out, it wasn't too far off. The creeping melodies, the almost imperceptible dissonance and that unsettling undercurrent that's become synonymous with Cristobal Tapia de Veer's White Lotus compositions in the first and second seasons, it's all there. However, there were no clear indications of such accuracy.
So, instead of feeding into the already rowdy narrative on the Twitter-verse, we decided to do a little investigation and end the yapping with a word from El Waili himself. 'Definitely, the White Lotus soundtrack was a significant influence on the music direction, in line with Director Mohamed Shaker Khodeir's vision.'' El Waili tells SceneNoise, 'The idea was to develop an Egyptian sound and identity in the realm of music making that is influenced by the environment and focuses on combining the noises of the cityscape, as White Lotus is the most known in this genre.'
Led by El Waili, the theme song of 'Ekhwaty' is a collaborative project with the composer and theatre director Salam Yosry and a group of producers and musicians, includinug Ahmed Bahaa, aka BOB, 5mastashr, and Amr Hamama, with support from Aly El Din Omar, Donia Wael and Tariq Anwar. The group combined recordings of human voices, noise textures and instrumentals to create a distinct sound that reflects the bizarreness and suspense of the series while being deeply connected to Egyptian culture. It's like El Waili asked himself, 'What if the 'White Lotus' was a family drama in Downtown Cairo?' (minus the boat).
Directed by Mohamed Saker Khodeir and written by Muhab Tarek, 'Ekhwaty' is a gripping mystery thriller with a generous dash of wit, that follows the story of four sisters whose lives are turned upside down by a mysterious crime. The series brings together a powerhouse cast led by Nelly Karim, Ruby, Kinda Alloush and Gihan El-Shamashergy.
From the subtle subliminal tension woven into the soundtrack and the aesthetics of the cinematography, you almost expect Jennifer Coolidge to swan in, clutching a hibiscus cocktail, saying 'Yoo-hoo', only to find the four sisters Nahed, Soha, Ahlam and Nagla laying Rabe3's lifeless body on the kitchen table.
One could say, El Waili has planted his own little 'seed' of discord, musically speaking.
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