We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Norhan. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Norhan below.

Norhan, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Are you happier as a creative? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job? Can you talk to us about how you think through these emotions?

This question is one I ask myself a lot. Short answer is that art makes me happy. Creating is a beautiful process that is freeing, healing and makes me very happy. However, the process and journey of trying to make my art become my career, is something I question a-lot. Don’t get me wrong I want to be able to make a living off of what i love and be able to put in all of my time towards art, however, the stage in between is a very stressful time and it has me doubting my choices a lot and often leaves me feeling lost. I miss out on spending time with friends and family because when I am not working my 9-5, I am rushing the studio, or doing a photoshoot or play/short film, or filming content, then editing that content. To make my art become my career, I have to treat it as one. Meaning I need to put in another 30+ hours a week. Aside from all of the moments I miss out on because I over book myself, I always wonder if this is even a lifestyle I am going to want. Being successful as a singer and actor usually means you must be “famous”. Some might want that, however I am terrified of becoming under the public eye and not being able to reverse it. Whenever i have a video do well in numbers, there is always alot of hate that comes along with it. I think about that being my lifestyle permanently and start wondering if it is worth it. Overall, I love art so much that it would be a dream to be getting paid to keep creating, however, it’s difficult to not get lost and wonder if the joy will vanish once it becomes a career. I often wonder if I should just stick to my 9-5, get married and start a family like most of my friends do at my age, however I can’t imagine not putting in all my time right now to pursuing this professionally. All i know is that it makes me happy right now, and It’s probably the one thing I could never get tired of chasing.

Norhan, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I was in kindergarten when I wrote my first song. I had a song book and my sisters and I would write goofy songs about each other and that is all it was then. In 4th Grade I joined band as a clarinetist and that is when my love for music really started to flourish. In middle school i joined the musical, highschool I joined choir and then later joined a-cappella groups and talent shows. I just kept wanting to do more and more. I took some guitar classes, taught myself piano and continued to sing everywhere simultaneously as i got my civil engineering degree. I never imagined to pursue music and the arts professionally until one day after I sang the national anthem at the state farm center for the Illini Mens Basketball team, I realized that my heart lies within this. The excitement and joy i felt on the court singing in front of 15,000 people was a feeling I never felt before. Nothing at this point in my life has made me feel happier and more excited.. I wanted ten million more of these moments in my life and that is when I knew that I should shift my career focus. That week I had a record label reach out to me and wanted me to start making my own music. It was perfect timing for me because I was also going through a-lot so i just started spilling it all in my writing. It felt amazing. I chose civil engineering because growing up as a Muslim Egyptian women, i was never really encouraged to pursue something “crazy” like music. I had to either be a doctor, engineer, or some kind of stem major. After this experience i started to post on tiktok and do everything I could to build my own platform. I started doing some comedic skits or “acting” i guess you can say on my account and posting my personality on there and was able to grow my following to 70k in a bit over a year. I have several songs out on all platforms and music videos on youtube and have been getting into acting more by booking some lead roles in short films and plays. My goal now is to create art that heals people the way it healed me as well as create to make people feel happy, and not alone in their tough times. I also really hope I can inspire other Egyptian girls like me to find their voice and continue to pursue their dreams and find a way to do it with their own style, without bending their beliefs.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

Short answer- be yourself. I tried posting singing videos in styles that are trending or doing challenges and those videos always took so long and also never went viral for me. The videos that did well for me surprisingly were the videos that i just felt like posting. My vlogs, my own humor, my singing videos that also showed my own style. My advice is be consistent. Post the thing you weren’t going to. Many times it was a post I wasn’t going to put out that ended up being a post gaining me thousands of followers. Just be you but don’t stop posting! It may get discouraging when things don’t do well but you never know which post will be a life changing one.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

My goal is to be happy while creating while simultaneously making others happy. I want to connect to people on a level that only art can express. I want someone to be able to listen to my song and say “wow its like i wrote it” because of how relatable it is. I want to build a community around art and make my art a safe space for me and others to feel like they aren’t alone. I want my art to uplift people, make them feel confident as well. I just want to make the world a better place with my art. It sounds crazy, but a good song or moving movie can take someone a long way. I know because some songs or movies have saved me from some of my darkest moments. That and of course my relationship with God.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @norhanofficial_
• Youtube: @norhanofficial_
• Other: Tiktok accounts: @norhanofficial_ @norhan_official_

Image Credits
Momosgallery Momokhan