Mariam Sawires was born into a large, loud and nomadic Egyptian family who inspire her music.
“I’ve always kind of started to enjoy music after listening to my father, he played the tabla, since we were really young,” the 26-year-old told SBS News.
“I started playing the piano at four, and just started to compose, sing and play the piano at the age of eight.
“I used to learn Arabic songs with dad, he used to teach us, and we used to go around the house and pretend we’d do busking, and ask for coins.”
The musician spent two years in Germany recording music independently. She’s also performed and recorded music in France, Ireland, Thailand and Egypt. She refined her sound while overseas.
"It's neo-soul in the sense that I love RnB and soul, that's what I grew up with," she said.
"But you always hear Arabic music in the background, because my grandparents listen to that, and my dad plays it all the time.
"I love Arabic music, the melodies are just incredible, so I try to fit that into a new kind of neo-soul sound.”
Ms Sawires has five siblings, each involved with the arts. Her sister, Helena, played lead actress in Australian feature film Ali’s Wedding.
"Art and music have always been a constant in this family, we just naturally dive into it, we love it, we enjoy it."
She will travel to France next month to write music, before returning to Australia to release her first official single.
