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Saint Levant delivered a heartfelt speech dedicated to the people of Palestine during his performance in Sydney.
The artist is widely celebrated for his deep connection to his Palestinian heritage — a heritage as richly layered as his music. Born to a Palestinian-Serbian father and a French-Algerian mother, he spent his early childhood in Gaza before relocating to Jordan in 2007. That duality runs through everything he creates, weaving modern hip-hop with traditional Middle Eastern rhythms into something entirely his own.
His work has long extended beyond the stage, amplifying both the Palestinian liberation movement and a broader conversation around Arab identity on a global scale.
That spirit came through clearly in Sydney, where he told the crowd: “Art has played a very important role in portraying Palestine, the Arab world and the Global South as subhuman. Today, I am here as representation of the Global South.”
Many attendees wore the keffiyeh and held Palestinian flags – the traditional scarf a recognised symbol of resistance, unity and pride. Saint Levant was visibly moved by the show of solidarity, noting the significance of a society shaped largely by Western culture rallying behind a cause so central to the Arab world.
Born Marwan Abdelhamid – a name chosen in honour of his paternal grandfather, who was displaced from Palestine in 1948 – he has carried those inherited stories with him his entire life. “I was eight years old when I left Gaza,” he shared. “The stories that you hear, I’ve heard them all my life.”
Yet alongside the weight of that history, there is warmth. Saint Levant speaks about Arab culture with genuine tenderness and pride. “To anyone who thinks that Arabs are not human, you clearly have not been to an Arab household,” he said. “I invite you to come one day and experience our hospitality.”
And, with characteristic sincerity: “To anyone who says that we are not human, we are much more. We are lovers, we are fathers, we are mothers, we are teachers, and we are caregivers.”
