North African music has long influenced Western and diaspora artists, who have drawn on its melodies, rhythms, and vocal lines. Producer Timbaland used uncredited Egyptian recordings—including works tied to music legends Umm Kulthum and Abdel Halim Hafez—on hits like Jay-Z’s “Big Pimpin” and Aaliyah’s “Don’t Know What to Tell Ya.” Newer artists continue the tradition: British-Ethiopian-Egyptian singer Alewya and Palestinian-Algerian artist Saint Levant have both drawn from Libyan musician El Shab Arrab’s obscure but influential catalog. Collectively, these examples illustrate a decades-long, sometimes uncredited exchange between North African musical traditions and global chart-topping music.