Samaʼ Abdulhadi
Sama Abdulhadi | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1990 Jordan |
| Occupation(s) | Techno DJ and music producer |
| Known for | Leading figure in the Palestinian techno community |
SamaTemplate:Hamza Abdulhadi (سما عبد الهادي Samā ʿAbd al-Hādī; born 1990) is a prominent Palestinian techno DJ and music producer, often hailed as the leading figure in the Palestinian techno community.
Life
Abdulhadi was born in Jordan to a family that had been displaced from Palestine following her grandmother, Issam Abdulhadi, who spearheaded a significant protest in 1969. In 1993, her family relocated back to Palestine, making their home in Ramallah. During the Second Intifada, her family experienced an Israeli Defense Forces occupation of their residential building. Prior to her music career, she was a member of the Palestinian national football team until an injury brought her athletic pursuits to an end.
Her introduction to techno music occurred while she was studying sound design in Beirut. Subsequently, she moved to Cairo where she worked as a sound engineer. Abdulhadi began performing as a DJ throughout the Arab Middle East and returned to Ramallah in 2018 for a Boiler Room performance that has garnered over 14 million views on YouTube as of June 2025. That same year, she established the Union Collective, an initiative aimed at empowering Palestinian DJs.
In 2020, although granted permission by the Palestinian Authority to perform at the Nabi Musa mosque and associated event spaces, her set was interrupted by religious demonstrators, leading to her arrest on allegations of violating the sanctity of a religious site. Her court hearings have experienced multiple postponements.
Due to ongoing political unrest, Abdulhadi's role as curator for the 2022 Palestine Music Expo was canceled. Early in 2023, she completed a month-long residency at London's Phonox club. In April 2023, she introduced Resilience, an underground music platform supported by fundraising events held in Beirut. Later that year in October, she announced the upcoming release of fabric presents SamaTemplate:Hamza Abdulhadi, a new mix compilation set for November 24.
In 2025, Abdulhadi withdrew from the lineup of the Sónar Festival following widespread calls for boycott due to the festival's association with investment firm KKR, which has been criticized for its connections to companies operating within occupied Palestinian Territories.