When you really think about it, it’s actually quite impressive what people were able to get away with before the internet became so widespread. Résumé lies were a skill in themselves, cheating on your partner was an art-form, and stealing someone’s work? That was just called being clever and resourceful.
No receipts, no accountability, and no limits to what you could do to climb the ladder— back then, no one cared about how you made it, as long as you did. But then the internet came along and put an end to all the shadiness, making it impossible to fake your way to the top anymore—at least not without getting exposed. And for those who managed to pull it off back then, well, good luck. Today, there are entire pages dedicated to calling out anyone who, let’s say, didn’t put their own spin on things before taking full credit for them. Enter Tornadown, an Instagram account that chronicles how one song can take on a life of its own—inspiring spins across various languages, regions, and cultures—without always being properly acknowledged.
With a community of over 350,000 followers, the page’s formula is quite straightforward. Against an ocean blue backdrop, what we assume is an A.I generated character introduces a first song, putting its national flag beneath and its release year on top. The moment the video kicks off, that first song will start playing for a few seconds before moving onto its reinterpretation, continuing the pattern of flag, year, and snippet as the reel progresses.
With most songs being plucked from the late 1990s and early 2000s, Tornadown’s focus is on how these tracks became hits beyond the confines of their own borders, reimagined, reworked, and often picking up new influences along the way—sometimes without even recognizing their roots.
And Arabic songs weren’t safe from this remix culture either —several beloved tracks from the region have surfaced on the page, revealing just how far (and wide) the “borrowing” really went. 13 of them, below.
El Alem Alla — Amr Diab
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Ya Rabb — Marwan Khoury & Carole Samaha
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Didi — Cheb Khaled
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Ana Mahma Kbert Soghayr — Amr Diab
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Yalla Ya Shabab — Ragheb Alama
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Bint El Shalabiya — Fairuz
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Ya Rayah — Rachid Taha
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Tamally Maak — Amr Diab
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Mashkalni — Rashed Al-Majed
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Ah W Noss — Nancy Ajram
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