The Camel's Hump (folklore in Oman)

by Kiera Lewis
From my first moments in Muttrah, I fell in love with the seaside and the romantic way the sun sets over the mountains. The smell of the sea air commingling with the scent of bakhoor (incense) gave me a taste of Arabia. Now, three years later, I'm back in Oman studying the intricate rhythms of oral storytelling and the ways in which a story can reveal how a society views the world; how these features are treasured as inherent elements of the culture and way of life. The salience of this kind of research is unmatched. In a world rife with violence and war, due at least in part to misunderstanding and differing fundamental belief systems about the world, it is relevant to study the underlying assumptions that guide societies around the globe. This becomes a mechanism for more effective international endeavours in government, business and humanitarian aid. Only with an understanding of the lens through which a people experience reality, can truly meaningful and respectful international relations be forged. One indirect way that a culture reveals it’s fundamental belief system is through the stories that are perpetuated to teach future generations how to be in that society.

After three months of preliminary research in Oman and Zanzibar, Tanzania (a former Omani dominion), I still know very little about the oral tradition here and the "units of worldview" embedded in the details of each tale.* Each storyteller adds and revises the story to fit the lesson or imagery that is needed for the moment. To focus the scope of my research, I began by reading Omani folktales translated into English, more than seventy to date. After identifying the major themes and motifs, I started to analyze them alongside historical and cultural documents on Oman. At this point, I have enough background knowledge to feel confident listening to storytellers share the stories in Arabic that had been passed on to them. Though I’m still at the initial stages of this process, some patterns have emerged. Specifically, the notion of sufficiency seems consistent throughout Omani folktales, daily life, and history. I will call it an Omani “principle of sufficiency” insofar as it seems to be at least one element of a fundamental belief system whereby one must act in accordance with what is sufficient to yield satisfactory results for herself and others, but need not extend beyond this point. That is to say, doing what is enough and achieving contentment. In reality, this appears in daily behaviors like taking only the food that you need or learning the skill that is sufficient to support your family, and a sense of contentment and plenty that one finds in Omanis.

Some examples of this principle come up in a few Omani proverbs, which advise one to be thankful for what one has received, not to waste resources, and to break fasting by eating simple food such as onion. By the same token, a famous folktale from Muttrah tells of a young man who receives just two dinars from his grandmother for a long journey. Throughout his trip his finds that everyone gifts him with riches, fine clothing, food and even a horse because his parents are "very kind people", and so he keeps the two dinars in his pocket, never needing
to spend them. Eventually he meets the beautiful daughter of the Sultan, and wins her love by his modest disposition and manner of eating; taking only small portions of each item placed before him; just enough to satiate his hunger. This story, then, extols an ideal way of being in this society and characterizes desirable qualities in a mate using the “principle of sufficiency”. This attribute might find its roots in the geography of the country, one of mostly arid to semi-arid desert which necessitates carrying only what is needed and exerting oneself just enough to satisfy needs. Much in the way of the camel.

If the camel is a metaphor for life here in the Arabian peninsula, then Omanis appear to be the camel’s hump; resilient, complacent and sufficient to maintain stability. But to make any true conclusions, this initial analysis calls for an an intensive investigation not only of folktales and proverbs of Oman, but also the folk speech and history of the people. As a case study for worldview studies, Oman could reveal implications for the broader geo-anthropological order on the Arabian peninsula and yield critical information that could develop stronger international ties between the United States and Arabia.

*The term “units of worldview” was first coined and published in The Journal of American Folklore,Vol 84., No. 331. Toward New Perspectives in Folklore (Jan-Mar., 1971), 93-103. “Folk Ideas as Units of Worldview” by folklorist Alan Dundes in 1971.

Kiera Lewis is a 23 year old Vermont native who is currently doing research on Omani Folklore and implications for worldview and national character. As an undergraduate she studied Continental and Analytic Philosophy as well as Arabic, Spanish and French. She enjoys learning languages and acquiring new tools for the study of human existence. Kiera plans to continue her current research when she returns to the US in the form of a documentary film of Omani folktales and also expects to return to Oman during her postgraduate work to learn more in the field of Folkloristics. Her passion is in travel and dance, as well as learning about other cultures. She is documenting her experience and lessons in Oman and beyond on her blog and you can follow her to at Criticalfindings.wordpress.net. Kiera can also be reached by email at kiera.lewis11@gmail.com 

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Chicago-Muscat-Pemba

Chicago is the nickname of a once notorious neighborhood over the mountains in Amrat. It's official name is Medinat al-Nahda, but it acquired the name Chicago after an ambitious and rich city planner moved thousands of Omanis (many of them newer arrivals from East Africa) from al-Ghubra where they lived in makeshift dwellings (often tents) to government tenements over the mountain in the wilayat of Amrat. "The New City" became a center for drugs, crime and thuggery, although it is hard to discern that anything ever happened there now. In fact it is quite a lovely area. I drove there at night, from Wadi Adai, passing to pick up my friend's son and his friends. We drove past donkeys grazing on the roadside, and everything was quiet, dark and still. It seemed sleepy and very remote. We reached my friend's house; I could smell BBQ. I had been invited for mishkak, the Omani version of a BBQ, and a favorite weekend activity in Muscat. I sat with S. at a long table in the front part of the courtyard, with women around the fire further back, and S's uncle in the back BBQ-ing. A group of parrots chirped and sang in their green cage next to the table; in another green cage a group of small chickens pecked at each other. Kids ran around playing with each other. The atmosphere was totally peaceful and a pleasing and cool breeze came off the mountains as we talked. S's brother walked in and joined our conversation, with me talking broken Swahili, mixed with Arabic and English. Older children brought us lemongrass tea and Omani halwa. S and I talked of his childhood in Pemba, of his father's decision to leave Pemba, of life in Pemba after the revolution. I found myself thinking of his house as an extension of the kind of life in Pemba he had grown up with. Then the mishkak was brought, and they served me long skewers of tender meat on beds of greens. I dipped the meat in honey and wolfed it down. Afterwards we took a tour of the garden of trees and plants, that again evoked the distinct flavor of a Pemban shamba--jasmine bushes, cassava trees, lemon trees, frankincense trees, cardamon, and the "mti wa arobain", so called because it cures 40 different types of diseases.

I left that night with Zanzibar on my mind, and as I drove down the mountain, I thought of the heroic efforts of the Zanzibari diaspora to recreate home in Oman. The Swahili have a proverb, "You always return to where your umbilical cord is buried." Though some may never be able to go back, or don't wish to, they enact their own kinds of metaphorical return through organization of space and place.

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Music in Oman - Panel at CCAS Georgetown University

Music in Oman from Georgetown CCAS on Vimeo.

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Tippu Tip's family tree

Put this together a while back. Feel free to save, use and revise if you find it useful.

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Omani Proverbs (Ongoing Series)

From time to time we drop some Omani jewels on ya.....here ya go.

اذا كان المتكلم مجنون يكون المستمع عاقل

Meaning: "If the speakers is mad, the hearer should be wise." This proverb points to the necessity of caution on the part of a hearer in believing what he is informed and in acting upon it. Sound advice, especially in the age of the internet.

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SNK TV: Oman's talents

Sultan and co. are back with these dope short spots about the diverse talents of Omani youth. This is one of my fave! Definitely check SNK TV out on Youtube, Just search for "playsnkmore".

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Omani Proverb(s) of the Day

As a new feature of the site, I will post some Omani proverbs in Arabic culled from the web as well a book in the Sultan Qaboos Library's Omani Room. Hope you enjoy them:

For these two I owe Ayna from the Sabla Forums

ماعندها جدر تطبخ وثوبها من الزّري يرطخ

Translation: She doesn't have a pot to cook with, but her dress sparkles with crystals.

ثيابه مصقولة وجيوبه منخولة

Translation: His clothes are fresh and ironed. His pockets are empty.

The connotations of both Proverbs are the same.

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Reality in Oman (Word Press Blog)

This sister over at Reality in Oman has a great blog about religion, racism, women, and just life in general in Muscat and surrounding.

In the piece I read most recently, she took on racial classes in Oman, but she has also discussed young people meeting through the internet, Islamic tolerance, marriage and dating and a lot of other interesting topics. Check it out!

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Travels in Oman: Reflections from a Hip Hop Activist

International Developer, Hip Hop Activist, and Social Entrepeneur Michael Henderson Reflects on Hip Hop in Oman

Dear Readers, a dispatch is a report We are very pleased and honored to have as a guest blogger Mr. Michael Henderson, a dynamic young social entrepreneur and a recent graduate of Howard University. Among other things, Mr. Henderson was the brains behind a series of conferences at Howard exploring China’s relationship with Africa. Recently he returned from a research trip to Oman and the United Arab Emirates. He has agreed to share with us his thoughts on the Omani hip hop movement, a subject that is near and dear to me. Please welcome him to the Azanian Sea.

My days in the Sultanate of Oman are triangular. In the morning I wake at 7:00am and an associate and driver take me to (OCIPED) the Omani Center for Investment Promotion and Export Development. My driver who lives a few doors down works in the export division. After work my day shifts from suits and loafers to jeans, shades, and t-shirts. As of spring 2006 I help to manage and consult the growing Omani hip-hop movement. I meet aspiring artist and dancers who wait patiently to hear my advice. Currently, I have a theme track under the auspices of music for Omanis’ made by Omanis’ (which is weird considering, I am American); my role is like the invisible hand.

So the song is about a young guy liking a girl and vice-versa, but the culture makes it rather difficult for the relationship to blossom outside of the internet. Thus, the relationship comes alive through technology i.e., face book, chat rooms, email, and text message. Side note: life does imitate art because we can’t seem to finish the song being that the Omani rapper and singer cannot leave her house to record without her brother. (who is on vacation) On the other hand, the other song is a collaboration of all the best rappers in Oman! We are the world: Arab style! I imagine this is a creative way for 1) to increase the fan base of all involved 2) Encourage the rappers to foster a working relationship and perhaps a structure like an independent record label will flow from this initial introduction.

The third piece of my day is spent relaxing, laughing, making noise, and chimpanzing around with my younger brother Fahad, cousins, and his friends he is about 20 years old or so. Most of his friends are mixed Arab and African, so they, like many Omani Swahilis, tend to be a bit more ‘cosmopolitan’ in their outlook. Sometimes they dance “Zaire” and speak Swahili, break-dance, listen to rap, talk about ladies, watch videos, smoke cigarettes, and play music till 4 or 5 in the morning! I would not trade this experience of all these Omani young people in the same hotel room for the world. It is my base, my ear to the streets, and my way to stay close to the heart beat of pop-culture in Oman. This is my diary of the Omani hip hop movement, from the inside.

Of the many b-boy crews in Oman, Serve and Knock (SNK) was the first, and is currently the most respected and well known. I produced a documentary on them a few years back and helped them to perform in the United States for the Arab Cultural Festival, at the Kennedy Center in 2008. Last night I attended the launching of a new cell phone company called Hala Foni which is one of three main mobile companies in the Oman. Hala Foni’s marketing strategy is toward a youth audience, thus the hip hop movement is a key marketing tool for them. The entertainment industry and marketing in Muscat, Oman is big business; more Omanis work in marketing or entertainment than in the U.S. per capita, although Hala Foni is itself a Lebanese company. SNK performed at Halal Foni’s launch and received a standing ovation.

The day before the show what is called a tech rehearsal. SNK was late because many of the dancers were young and did not have transportation so we carpooled. The assistant stage manager yelled, “Get on stage!” when SNK arrived. While they were warming up and stretching she tells them to perform, so, I told her diplomatically “hey these are professional dancers, they will need 5 minutes to warm-up as to not hurt themselves” she responded: “They are late!”

The event was under the guise of an Omani version of American idol, so the audience was filled with maybe 2000 screaming young Omani fans. My overall goal for attending was to foster a relationship with the cell phone company and to gain sponsorship for the Hip-Hop movement. As a direct result of Arab communications patterns and family like social structure, I was able to meet with the CEO of Hala Foni and several of her colleagues. It was a cool set-up, nice couches, sweets, drinks, a waiter, and tucked back stage. We sat and I informed them that 60% of the population in Oman is under the age of 25 and in a country of 2.8 million people with many years of purchasing power ahead of the any marketing strategy must involve youth, and that’s my network! Sponsorship can come in many forms: money, access to logos, introduction, and in this case access to specific resources that are mobile phone based.

Currently, my good friend and the leader of the SNK reportedly have a list/database of 2000+ names, emails, and cell phone numbers of past show attendees. We plan to send mass text messages to inform them of events and ultimately fill any venue with people at a moment’s notice. The underlying factor is the rapid ability to mobilize large groups of Omanis. This can all happen through instant text messages, being that most every person in country has a mobile phone. This is the next stage of the game of course. We will see.

At the moment there is not a leader, structure, or any real focus to the Hip-Hop music craze in Oman. The idea of an independent record label is a revolutionary idea here. It may be my calling at the moment—like Alain Locke blowing in the wind until he found or bumped into the Harlem Renaissance. Oman is in a renaissance! A renaissance of politics, art, culture, in every way since the ruler Sultan Qaboos took power in coup from his father in Salalah, Oman on 1970 at the age of 35.

The unique aspect in reference to the Hip-Hop movement is that it seems to evolve organically from one person’s passion, to small groups, then the underground and finally widespread/mainstream acceptance. The movement started with a vacation trip to Malaysia where an Omani martial artist was amazed at this thing called b-boying, and brought footage from b-boy performances back to Oman. In four years, b-boying has spread like wild fire along with other elements of hip hop culture. I personally met 20 rappers who produce and share their own beats, write songs daily about subjects like reaching one’s goals, their mothers, and tributes to Michael Jackson.


This movement is impressive because it is currently mostly organic and not corporate driven. The growing music scene here mirrors that of both Bongo Flava from Tanzania and Chopped & Screwed from the great state of Texas. In reference to Bongo Flava music, while doing research on Tanzania, I met a television personality who worked in the Embassy in Washington D.C. She explained the history of the movement and how many street kids would sit on wooden logs all day and smoke marijuana, just wasting their lives. So she convinced the television and radio stations to host talent contests. At the talent showcases, Mr. Nice and other musicians where discovered and became internationally acclaimed artists. Ironically, the artists only sing and or rap in Swahili, but sell out concert halls in the United Kingdom!

When I grew up, the most popular rappers either hailed from New York, (Wu-Tang Clan, Busta Rhymes, Notorious BIG, and NAS) or California (Snoop Dog, Tupac, Dr. Dre, Ice Cube) and being from Texas we did not have any Hip-Hop artist other than the Ghetto Boyz go nationwide. Many of our local artists worked in grocery stores and car washes, were high school or college students, or sold drugs. Many did not work. They would ride around the neighborhoods day and night playing their music loud, shaking hands, showing love, and free styling. These artists sold music out of their car trunks. They came with their own slang, car modifications, Styrofoam cups, and bald-fade haircuts. When out-of towners came we played our music. Now many famous rappers are nation/world wide (Chamillionare, Pow-Wow, Lil Flip, Slim Thug, and of course Pimp-C and Bun-B).
Oman has the same potential to develop its own unique regional cultural scene, rooted in the diverse cultures and languages of Oman’s past and present. Lastly, some artist to watch out for are “AKD” Alwayz Keep It Deep, “NBS” Natural Born Singer—Joey Jo, SG, and Dan Zak.

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Omani Music and Poetry from www.jalaan.com

Here's a sample of 'traditional' Omani music from Dhofar; peep the drumming patterns!



Also check this link to an Oman poetry site:المجلة الشعر العماني

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Passing Time by Making Lists in the Airport

The Best Things about Oman

1. The attitude of the people. Its so different than in the United States in terms of people's willingness to be open and helping...for no reason at all. For instance, me and a friend were stranded in a patch of deep sand at night, and two guys pulled over and helped push us out. This was just one instance of many. This cultivation of caring has been almost totally lost in the United States at least.

2. The Adhan. Its easy to measure your life by the calls to prayer, and there is a masjid virtually any place you go, including the mall and the airport! Praying was never so easy.

3. Its not Dubai. There are no tall buildings, and life moves at a more relaxed pace--i.e. it does not seem as if you are living in a giant construction site.

4. Somehow the Omanis cultivate both a healthy sense of piety and the openness to allow other cultures to be themselves and practice their religion.

5. Al-Jazeera International. Not unique to Oman, obviously. But anyone who watches it for a few hours will be absolutely astounded at how little of what is truly news actually gets reported on the major US networks.


The Worst Things About Oman

1. Some people cannot drive. And Omani drivers will tail you and flash their lights repeatedly if you are going slower than them on the freeway (even if you are going more than the speed limit). Seriously. I am lucky to be alive.

2. Taxi drivers will rob you absolutely blind (like one who asked 5 riyals for a 500 baisa fare) if you 1) are obviously from America or Europe or 2) don't know the usual fare or don't ask for it ahead of time.

3. Occasional moments of what may be termed 'cultural exaggeration'--i.e. Those people who claimed Omanis 'invented' Swahili to communicate with Africans.

4. The treatment of Bengalis, Pakistanis, Phillipinos and other house and farm labor is really low (though there are exceptions).

5. The heat. Self explanatory.

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Hip Hop in Oman

The tourist brochures in Oman promise plenty of Orientalist action; their glossy interiors replete with opportunities for camel riding, authentic Arabian dress, 'experiencing' the desert, and listen to the sounds of the oud as you relax beneath the stars.

But beyond this marketed image of an essentially static, ancient and unchanging Oman lies a more complex reality which the youth of Oman are giving voice to through a unique medium: hiphop.


The history of hiphop's birth and development lies in the Bronx, NY parties Jamaican immigrant DJ Kool Herc used to throw, but today's hiphop has come a long way from those backyard parties. Its a global, multi-billion dollar enterprise, and every marketer wants a piece of the action. Here in Oman, Red Bull now sponsors an annual festival called Lord of the Streets, a massive exhibition of X-games sports, music, and energy drinks. This year's festival attracted a record crowd of young people. I went, pen and tape recorder in hand, to find out if this was merely the product of the mind of a marketing genius or an authentic indigenous expression of hiphop culture.


For marketers in general, Oman has a vast potential. With a brand new infrastructure, steady economic growth, and a ballooning youth population, its no wonder that Red Bull chose to stage a festival here. Hiphop is a global culture, and the history of Oman exemplifies this global flavor: in the parking lot two guys perform freestyle battle raps in Swahili. Malikah, an up and coming female MC from Lebanon, delivers spitfire lines in Arabic to the eager crowd of Swahili, Pakistanis, Indians, expatriate Europeans, and myself. "Raise your hand if you love Red Bull," yelled the host. In the parking lot, Ali Hamed Al-Lawati and his friends explained, "We love hip hop, you know we just try to represent to the fullest extent. Ali heard R&B and started to write lyrics. I joined together with my brother and we formed a group. Big Pun is one of my inspirations as well as Tupac, Notorious BIG."

Qassim, Ali's brother, added, "I am originally from Sur, but I work in Muscat. We knew about hip hop now 7 or 8 years. At that time I was in deep shit.I met with my niggas over here all the way from Wadi Kabir. I thought I was the only one who was doing this, but accidentally I found out my neighbor loved hiphop." Eighteen year-old Kita Rise Up from Bling Boys crew told me, "I love Eminem records on the TV. I used to draw….I didn’t have time to draw so I just wrote something one day and I rhymed it."

I asked a number of people in the crowd how hiphop and Islam 'fit' together; did they see any contradiction. "I think the leaders of Islam are totally against it, and if they could stop it they would. But me I am not an extremist, I have my limits. There is deen and there is dunia," opined Nawaf, 23, from Muscat. Added Qassim, "Sometimes it doesn’t fit but we try to fit it. We don’t believe rappers have to sell weed or anything. We don’t have tattoos or none of that. Its hiphop its bringing the whole nation together." Sultan Khalfan, the co-founder of SNK crew, one of the original Omani b-boy crews, agreed, "Hip hop didn't change who we were, except to make us more athletic and fit. We pray, and we try to show Oman a good image of this artform."

Kita, who has his own crew known as Rise Up Bling Boys, had his opinion on hiphop in the Middle East in general, "Hiphop is strange for us as an Arabian people, so everyone has their own style. For me, I dream that hiphop can be better than this. In the US its like perfect, here its like less than bad. I know people that spent 18 years on this rap music. We need change and we are Muslims, so the music must be clean."

And what is the attraction of hiphop? "Its always about giving opportunities for kids to express themselves," added Malcolm Marquez, who has lived in the Middle East from three years and is originally from Australia. Marquez, a talented and energetic MC who placed second in the Freestyle Rap Battle, also b-boys and paints. He felt hiphop was a 'cleansing' force: "Kids need a way to cleanse aggression. They need to be given a chance to say whatever they want from their heart and mind...we gotta see the bad and the ugly."


The event, which was held in the parking lot of Muscat's largest mall, was coordinated by Ahmed Deek, a Lebanese businessman living in Dubai. "We are changing the mind of Arab people about hiphop," he explains. "The event actually started in Dubai in 2006. We started with sports like BMX, inline skating, and then we saw potential for b-boying. We brought it to the b-boys we knew and asked them, what do you need to do hiphop?" According to Deek, although many people were originally hesitant, shy, or scared to support, the vision for the festival kept growing.

Although Deek emphasized that they had no problem with the local authorities, the festival came grinding to an abrupt halt in a "thats-so-hiphop" moment" involving the police inquiring about the permit for our site. Apparently there had been complaints. But the party did not stop. We moved on to the Holiday Inn for the Freestyle battle finals in rap and b-boying.

The energy and talent on display was truly impressive, and the conversations continued long after the show ended at 3:00 in the morning. I sat down with three b-boys to get an idea of the history of Omani b-boy culture: Zillahunt Cyphaz,B-Boy Balong, and Sultan Khalfan.



"First of all, explained SNK member Zillahunt Cyphaz, "its called b-boying, its not breakdancing, that was the name Hollywood gave it. You start with rhythm, flavor, and foundation…from there you make up your own style and your own flavor. that’s how you make your name in the scene. Me I b-boy because I love it. Before some of us were doing football, martial arts, streetball and other different athletics."

Hiphop in Oman according to various SNK members, has enjoyed a fantastic growth. Since 2006 there have been major changes; From three serious crews there is now triple that. Even young kids are doing it. All this from a DVD that one of the crew, Abdu Salaam, brought from Malaysia in 2001. In Malaysia Abdu Salaam had been exposed to the growing b-boy movement; he brought back with him the DVD of Battle of The Year 2000, the World Cup for breaking. Says Sultan, "We watched the video and we saw flips, windmills, head spins, and we said, we HAVE to try this!"

Sultan and Abdu made copies of the DVD for their circle of friends and in no time they and three others were practicing all the time, trying to imitate the moves in the DVD. One of the crew members studied at the French Institute and gave SNK its performance debut at a talent show for the students there. After the show, according to Sultan, they were approached with many other offers to perform. A couple shows later, and some were suggesting the fledgling (and nameless) crew could get paid to perform.

The name SNK stands for Serve and Knock; the moniker originally came from the video game company. "I used to win at every videogame I played," remembers Sultan, "especially SNK games." At the end of 2002, Sultan told the crew he wanted to name them SNK. They finally had a name to add to their growing reputation.

After four years of doing shows locally and adding to their reputation, 2005 saw SNK breakers enter their first b-boy competition, in Dubai at a Motor Show. They placed second. The following year they traveled to Bahrain and won 1st place in the "Bring It On," freestyle battle.
"The Bahrain competition really put us on the map because we represented Oman and people back here were very excited and happy to see us doing so well." Back in Oman, they started to get publicity from Omani magazines like The Week, Hi, and several major newspapers. At the end of 2006, they even caught the eye of a BBC producer who saw their frontpage spread in The Week. The BBC wanted to interview the crew but were concerned about copyright issues surrounding the SNK logo, and asked Sultan about the origins of the crew's name.
"I basically came up with Serve and Knock at that point," he remembers, "because the BBC wanted us to flip our shirts over, and I and to convince them that we were not copying the company logo."


So what is the future of hiphop in Oman? B-Boy Balong was optimistic, "So far its going the right way, if it keeps going like this, then it can become very known, like having events like every few days."
Added Zillahunt, "Oman is going the right way. Over in Bahrain, people know about hiphop but they don’t know the real hiphop; its just commercial. In Oman b-boying is the strongest element…if it wasn’t for some underground MCs and the bboys, hiphop would have been dead for real…like Rakim, up to now he is still holding it down."

Next SNK has their sights on becoming a truly global b-boy crew. After a visit from Howard University Alum Michael Henderson, SNK met with the famous choreographer and dancer Debbie Allen, who subsequently invited them to audition for an Omani cultural showcase at the Kennedy Center in March 2008. They will be the first dancing group traveling to the United States to represent Oman.

SNK had not been without their doubters in some circles. Some people inevitably saw their activities as un-Islamic. Indeed, they were not originally invited to audition for Debbie Allen's show, but after they finished the other Omanis were shocked to discover that they too were Omani. But the attention has been mostly positive after seeing how SNK conducts themselves—clean living, praying regularly, and encouraging each other in the spirit of brotherhood.
"No offense but the government looks at sports that never bring positive results but never notice the sports that are putting these countries on the map. Nobody knows the dancing team but they are raising Bahrain’s name up. Now in Korea they have meetings with the ministry about doing diff events across the nation. They really take care of hiphop," said Zillahunt.

He added, "We are not going to go in a negative way but we will just be positive because hiphop doesn’t bring enemies. Hiphop is peaceful, like religion it brings us like brothers. Hiphop is in the blood. Through bboying respect comes between nations. Its not peaceful its superpeaceful. We are always brothers."

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