Itās telling of his global lifestyle that Marwan Abdelhamid, better known as Saint Levant, appears on our Zoom call fresh from a morning stroll along the cold but quaint Parisian streets. Sipping a steaming takeaway coffee, and resisting any chill with a white beanie and a golden Puma track jacket, he takes a moment to reflect on his breakout year. āLife is good bro, weāre staying grounded, focused and humble,” the 22-year-old artist says, smiling. “Itās easy to get stuck on the little things but Iām grateful, especially during this holy month.ā
Saint Levant has had a lot to be thankful for since his viral track āVery Few Friendsā began amassing millions of streams by the day, now standing at over 50 million on Spotify alone. After a teaser of the track blew up on TikTok in late 2022, the glossy, romantic trilingual ballad instantly hit hearts all over the world when it was released, as he smoothly sang in Arabic, French and English: āLover Boy Levant back in the building / Viens chez moi vas y te / Til the morning / Demain soir on va tester ca.ā
Raised in the Gaza Strip before fleeing to Amman, Jordan in 2007 following the outbreak of civil war in Palestine, Saint LevantĀ was educated in an American school where he started making trap-infused diss tracks, before eventually moving to Santa Barbara to pursue a degree in International Relations. Despite having to leave Palestine, he says the struggle of his home nation will always stay with him; the cover of his debut EP, March’s ‘From Gaza With Love’, features a faded photo of him as a child petting a goat.Ā āI keep Palestine as my North Star and everything I do is for that community,ā he says today.
Given Saint Levant’s global impact, itās no wonder that his forthcoming world tour ā which includes an appearance at Londonās 1400-capacity KOKO in May ā sold out in just 15 minutes. Saint Levant is convinced this is the start of a movement, as he and his pals like collaborator Lana Lubany are determined to push Arabic music towards a global breakthrough. āI canāt wait for more people to flood through,ā he says. āWeāve broken down a barrier, thereās going to be more like us making music because they see that itās finally possible as an Arab.ā
NME: How did you cope with the overnight success of āVery Few Friendsā?
āI remember the days when I used to get all my friends to stream my shit overnight just so I can get a few hundred more streams. That song came after a year of making music every day, and doing one TikTok a day with some live shows across the US and Canada. We knew we were building something, then I made āVery Few Friendsā and posted a snippet on TikTok, I checked the next day and it had a million views. I was like, āOK, I know I need to drop the song and capitalise on it, Iām not stupidā. I turned that shit around in five days and put it onto Spotify. The demand was there and I delivered.ā
Youāre blazing a trail as an independent artist. How central has that direct to fan approach been in kicking down doors?
āItās such a vital thing. I have friends on labels that havenāt been able to put music out for six months, for example. I wouldnāt know what to do if that was the case for me. I think direct to consumer is democratic in the sense that the people chose āVery Few Friendsā. I thought there were better songs, but the people chose that, I gave it to them and they gave it a life of its own. It wasnāt the media, I wasnāt shoved down peopleās throats, they just loved the song.ā
“Itās beautiful to infiltrate these spaces and talk about what I want to talk about”
People have really latched onto your trilingual rapping. Did that surprise you considering it came so naturally to you when you first started making music?
āI donāt think itās that crazy because I grew up speaking like this. Thatās why I love Lebanon so much because they speak English, Arabic and French as well. The interesting thing is that the snippet [of ‘Very Few Friends’] that blew up online was just in English, with the line, āI wanna take you to Paris and spoil you / I wanna go to Marseille and enjoy you.ā Then people listened and they were like āWhat the fuckā ā there was a bit of intrigue, then you realise the song is also in Arabic and French and it asks questions. Now people know Iām Palestinian, French, Serbian and Algerian. Itās a beautiful reflection of immigration and multiculturalism.ā

How does it feel to be infiltrating a mainstream space as an Arabic artist?Ā
āEvery Palestinian holds a sense of responsibility to represent their people and talk about the struggle along with the Israeli occupations it has on our people and our economy. I come from a multicultural background though ā Iām not a cookie-cutter figure. I never look for acceptance within certain communities. I think thatās why people are drawn to me because they feel like that in their everyday lives too. As an Arab, itās beautiful to infiltrate these spaces and talk about what I want to talk about, but at the same time, Iām wary of labelling myself as a certain āsomethingā. Now Iām Saint Levant and Iām grateful.ā
Has your newfound success come with a sense of responsibility?Ā
āItās OK really, like āHeās the guy that sings in three languagesā or he does this or that. Thatās the start right? Tyler, The Creator was the guy that ate the cockroach in that video at the beginning, now heās directing movies and has sold a million records. On the contrary I donāt mind at all, I think itās beautiful that people are trying to understand who I am and put it into perspective. Some people get frustrated about being boxed in but I just want to thank people for listening to my music and even caring about what Iām doing in the first place.ā

What does the idea of home mean to you now that youāre rarely in one place for long?
āSo the name Levant is taken from the area in the Middle East, itās Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, itās such a beautiful region of the world and somewhere Iāll always feel at home. That being said, I find home in routine more than physical space ā I can make myself at home anywhere in the world. Right now, Iām in Paris, and Iāll go to the studio at 2pm then leave around 8pm. I feel at home on the streets of Paris, even when Iām walking along soaking in the beauty with my little coffee. I also find home in other people.ā
On that note, youāve become close friends with Lana Lubany, who will be joining you on tour this May. Do you take comfort in the parallels of your respective journeys?
āI take a lot of comfort from that friendship, especially with the first world problems of TikTok and stuff like that. Weāll discuss those things together. Sheās a huge friend of mine, we talk all the time. She grew up in Palestine and had a very similar experience to me. She was educated in English and tried to make music and was scared, then she blew up on TikTok. I love her to death, sheās going to be a superstar, Iām so inspired by what she does. She has such an aura and I love to be around her. It was a no-brainer to have her come with me on tour.ā
How important is this next chapter of live shows for Saint Levant?
āWhatās crazy about KOKO is that I went to see the Ethiopian jazz musician Mulatu Astatke there and I told the person I was with, the next time that weāre here, Iām going to be performing. Now itās six months later than that dream is happening, I manifested it. Itās so important, I love performing live. When Iām onstage I donāt think that much, I get out of my own head and itās a beautiful, elevating feeling. These people are hear to listen to my music, so thatās such a blessing.ā
Saint Levantās EP āFrom Gaza With Loveā is out now
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