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Hayat Selim (b.1990) is an Egyptian singer-songwriter, media composer and voice recording artist, currently based in London.

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Hayat writes and sings in various genres and languages, foremost combining Western cinematic and classical music with world music influences.

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Hayat started her path with music while attending the german school Deutsche Schule der Borromäerinnen (DSB) in Cairo. Starting off from choirs, theater and playing the piano, Hayat started her first footsteps into the art. In 2009 her passion for poetry writing growing a passion for poetry writing and songwriting which led to her first steps towards composition.

 

From 2009 to 2014 Hayat completed a Bachelor of scienece in Digital Media Engineering and Technology at the German University in Cairo in parallel with private studies in classical and pop/musicals singing and composition. She was one of the first members of the GUC Music Ensemble and second generation member of Fabrica Compnay for Musical Theater, performing in different venues in Cairo. She studied composition privately with Egyptian composers Ramz Sabry Samy and Khaled Shokry and singing with Dr. Neveen Allouba and Sherif El Dabaa.

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In 2015 Hayat started pursuits in media music after receiving a scholarship to MediaSoundHamburg, the international summer academy for film music, game music and sound design. 2015-2017 she became the go-to composer in the rising Egyptian indie video game industry.

 

In 2016 Hayat received a first prize in the 'Young Talent Award Game Music' competition for her musc for 'Initia Elemental Arena' in Hamburg, Germany. In 2018 she was profiled in Meagan Marie’s book 'Women in Gaming: 100 Professionals of Play' celebrating women working in the gaming industry. Her VR soundtrack 'The Great Red Spot'  was broadcast on BBC Radio 3 for the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11.

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In 2016 Hayat received a scholarship from the Royal College of Music and the Noel Coward Foundation, supported by the Clifton Parker Award and the Henry Wood Trust to do a masters in composition for screen at the Royal College of Music in London and graduated in 2019. She studied film music with Emmy nominated Maurizio Malagnini, Enrica Sciandrone and Howard Davidson.

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Upon completing her masters in London, Hayat was endorsed by the Arts Council England and received a Tier 1 Exceptional Promise visa to be able to stay in the UK and continue pursuing her music career internationally. ​

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Hayat's song 'Mirage' for the short film by Lena Srinivasan was nominated in the 'Best Song' category of the Jerry Goldsmith Awards 2019 which opened doors in Middle Eastern and ethnic singing. She sang'The Way To Try', the end credit song of the English version of 'The Knight And The Princess', Egypt's first animated feature film.

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In 2020 Hayat was commissioned by Sonuscore and Steinberg to be the singer of 'Ethnic Vocal Phrases' virtual instrument library which opened doors for her voice in the international scene; incl. 'Age of Empires IV' (2021) and 'Chivalry 2' (2022).

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