Part of what makes music so powerful is that it can take on a new perspective based on who is doing the singing. The 1965 The Beatles tune, “Drive My Car” is transformed into a female empowerment anthem when sung from the perspective of a Saudi Arabian women who previously was unable to legally drive.
This reworking of “Drive My Car” by Nano and the 6-2-4 is a project of students of Berklee College of Music in Boston. It was arranged by cellist Naseem Alatrash and featured lead vocals in both Arabic and English by Nano Raies. Raies is a Syrian refugee and Alatrash is from Palestine.
When translated into Arabic the tune becomes “Rahsoul Say-arah” which translates as “I will drive the car.”
Alatrash made the following statement about the significance of the lifting of the driving ban: “I’ve never in my life experienced freedom before coming to the US and experiencing what it feels like to be able to drive somewhere without being stopped and asked for certain documentation. And driving a car is a basic thing to live in dignity. Some obstacles in the Middle East, they are coming from outside influence. But, some are problems that we have to face and we have to solve on our own. And it always starts from within. So I believe that it’s a very important and very big moment for Saudi Arabia and hopefully for the entire region.”
The 6-2-4 in the ensemble’s name is a reference to June 24, the date that Saudi Arabian women could legally drive.
Back when McCartney and Lennon composed the tune they probably had no way of knowing that 53 years later that it would become an empowering freedom anthem.