Thread: Dancing on Egypt's new 24/7 belly dance channel, El-Tet

Hello ladies,

Just thought I'd share a few of my clips from Egypt's 24/7 belly dance channel, El-Tet, with all of you. This is a newer channel that only features belly dancing, and periodically selects dancers in Egypt to be filmed and broadcasted. Needless to say, this is a great channel, and possibly the best thing that's happened to Egypt since the revolution. No joke. I'm so lucky that they chose me, and intend to blog about the whole experience soon. :)

Here are the links to a few of my clips. Enjoy! :)

"Ya Helwa Sabah"



"Esmaooni"


Tabla Solo



"Salamtak ya Dimaghi" with Egyptian singer Ahmed Salah

What a great concept and what a great opportunity for you. Congratulations!

Fabulous!!!

Thank you ladies! :)

Fabulous! I loved your dancing (and the constant confetti). Does this TV channel have a website? Do they upload all their clips to Youtube?

i've only had time to watch the first one, but I *really* enjoyed your dancing!

Originally Posted by crystalllized

Do they upload all their clips to Youtube?

When the channels were first launched, the concern was the opposite situation. (Scroll down to Caroline's posts here http://www.bhuz.com/rest-belly-dance...els-egypt.html) I don't know if their acquisition policies have changed, though.

Originally Posted by Tourbeau

When the channels were first launched, the concern was the opposite situation. (Scroll down to Caroline's posts here http://www.bhuz.com/rest-belly-dance...els-egypt.html) I don't know if their acquisition policies have changed, though.

wow I totally missed that thread! Thanks for directing me to it!

Thanks for your comments ladies. Much appreciated. :)

I just wanted to address the point about their "acquisition policies." As you've all mentioned, they seem to have lifted a few clips off of Youtube. However they did launch a "collection campaign" in Eastern Europe, whereby they basically starting collecting clips from Ukranian and Russian dancers willing to have their vids aired on Egyptian TV. That's why the overwhelming majority of the dancers featured are from Eastern Europe. I actually saw a couple of clips of some Eastern European dancers I know, and when I asked them if they knew they were being aired, they admitted to submitting their clips to the Channel.

Egyptians don't seem to get the whole concept of copyright the way we do in the west. And that's not me excusing their practice of airing Youtube clips. I'm just stating a fact. I do think they're starting to think about these issues though. Regardless, I would hesitate to call the channel staff "seedy." They are actually surprisingly professional (copyright issues notwithstanding), respectable, and friendly. Totally NOT what I was expecting when they first called me in, as most of the people in the dance business here are quite seedy.

As I mentioned to someone in a private message, I think it's really important that the dance have it's own channel. Especially here in the belly dance capital of the world. Especially since the art is dying. Especially during a time when people are getting more religious, chauvinistic, and misogynistic by the day. If anything, I applaud them for being so brave and bucking against the tide of religious conservatism. I'm not happy that the ads that finance the channel are mostly about penile & breast enlargement, erectile dysfunction, weight loss, and magic potions for this or that "problem," but it's the only source of revenue the channel's got right now. No other "respectable" companies would dare advertise on a channel that features belly dancing, so it's either keep the project alive with these ads, or shut down.

Anyway, the channel is getting more popular by the day, and many Egyptian dancers are now trying to be featured on it. Of course, there are those who would never appear on TV for fear of their families, friends and neighbors seeing them. But the number of dancers who have (and will) appeared is getting larger, and includes Dina, Randa, Aziza, Dandash, Sofia, and other lesser known dancers.

That being said, I really hope this project keeps running, and that they make it through the storm of Islamism that's turning this country upside down.

Luna, thanks for the clarification. It wasn't clear back then whether their taking videos off the Internet was a startup issue, or if the behavior was going to continue after they established themselves. I'm glad to hear they are following more ethical methods for obtaining their clips now.

Beautiful job, and congratulations on such a great opportunity. I love the constant confetti too -- it kind of looks like you're getting a flying money shower.

OMG, is that costume in the last clip a newsprint design? You are just too cool.

Thank you so much! I wish that confetti were money, LOL. And yes, that is a newspaper print costume. :P I might be putting it up for sale soon...

Let me know if you do. As a former newspaperwoman, I'm thinking, "I want that!"

Owner of Egypt belly dance Al-Tit TV arrested - Politics - Egypt - Ahram Online

OMG just read this. :*( I know Baleegh and his wife personally and they are such nice people. This is absolutely ridiculous. I'm sorry but personals ads scrolling at the bottom of the screen are exactly that. Whether we like them or not, they are not prostitution. I had a suspicion all along that the new bearded parliament would look for ways to attack this channel. What it all boils down to isn't the personal ads, but the fact that they're broadcasting half-naked women belly dancing 24/7, and beards don't like that. For Heaven's sake, can't they focus on fixing the economy? Or is economics still for donkeys, as Khomeini famously said? Just goes to show what the priorities of this new government are. :(

It's depressing news but I am so glad Baleegh set up the station. One way or another dancing is not going to die there. It might go underground but.... obviously there are Egyptians who still want it.

Baleegh was released 2 nights ago, and the channel is broadcasting as usual. As I suspected, I was told that the main issue wasn't the personals ads (which an entirely different channel is solely dedicated to broadcasting!), but the belly dancing itself. But because El-Tet is based outside of Egypt, the Egyptian government can't shut them down. :)

I wrote a blog post, with some of the comments from Luna (with her permission -- thank you Luna). I am focusing my blog posts on educating the non-bellydance public about belly dance and that includes addressing any media articles that could potentially put belly dance in a negative light. Feel free to share or repost.
Natalie Ishmael, Dallas Fort Worth Bellydance

Warmly,
--Natalie.

I love your musical interpretation Luna, classic and fresh and very captivating charisma!

And thanks for the background info... A brave concept. Happy to know the Egyptian stars are getting on board!

I have this channel on my Satellite here. We get it in the Gulf as well. I love it! I also loved your dancing. Very elegant and nice.

Wow, congratulations! You are a beautiful dancer!

Thank you so much. :)