‘I will get my Grammy eventually’: Emirati singer Alya on Beyoncé and ‘Dhurandhar’ rapper Flipperachi

Dubai: "I will get my Grammy eventually," declares 21-year-old Emirati-British singer Alya at the Gulf News studios in Dubai.

There's no nervous laughter or awkward backtracking. She says it with conviction, as though winning music's biggest honour is simply a matter of time.

And why not? Beyoncé is her idol, global pop stardom is the goal, and she's not interested in being told what an Emirati singer should look or sound like.

Her latest single Lemonade blends pop, R&B, K-pop influences and Arabic rhythms.

"I want to do pop music at the same level as artists in the U.S. and the U.K., and be an Emirati woman doing it. I want to take my music global and bring exposure back to Dubai's music industry," Alya tells Gulf News during our conversation for the Dubai Success Series.

She's certainly aiming high. But this isn't a sudden brush with ambition. Alya has been writing music since she was 14 and knows that a catchy single alone won't guarantee a place in the big league.

"I've always hustled. I've been hustling for forever," she says.

Seven years of making music, experimenting and learning the ropes have given her a clearer idea of what she's getting into.

"I feel like I've discovered myself and been through difficulties and lessons through all of that time to get me to the point that I am now to have the right mindset and know how to handle myself in the industry that I'm in."

Alya is half British, proudly Emirati and quite happy being a product of both worlds.

"Of course I'm Emirati. I'm half British too, and I think that I'm just like a kind of mixture of both, and that's what I am. And I'm the newer generation of Emiratis, I think."

And if you're wondering why Lemonade doesn't immediately scream Arabic pop, listen a little closer.

"If you did listen to Lemonade a bit harder, you can still hear like Arabic drums and things like that. I still want to infuse in my music to still have a part of home in it."

She also has an interesting take on the changing ambitions of young Emiratis. There's no reason, she reckons, why a woman from the UAE shouldn't aspire to the same international stages as her Western counterparts.

"Someone's being an astronaut one day, and then we have a female pilot, and like now we have an Emirati pop star, so it's okay. We have something different every day."

If you're expecting a Bollywood-style tale of disapproving parents and a rebellious daughter fighting to pursue music, Alya's story doesn't follow that script.

Her mother sings, music was a constant presence at home, and her family had a pretty good idea of where this was heading.

"It's always all I've ever done: singing, dancing, singing on the balcony, dance on the balcony, teach myself, always singing on the stairs, here, there, everywhere."

Those childhood performances have since graduated to a New York studio warehouse, where she filmed the visualiser for Lemonade with two dancers.

"We had three hour rehearsals for two days to get the choreography done. Then did the music video and it was a long day, but I'm very excited."

And before you ask, no, Lemonade isn't a deliberate tribute to Beyoncé's celebrated album, although Alya is thrilled by the coincidence.

"I'm the biggest Beyoncé fan ever," she says.

Alya's musical tastes are anything but predictable.

"If you listen to Beyoncé or Ariana Grande, or maybe even a bit like K-pop as well. If you like K-pop, I kind of dabble in that too."

She's particularly fond of BLACKPINK's Lisa and fascinated by K-pop's hold over younger audiences. Her eight-year-old sister and her friends, she says, are completely hooked.

As for defining her own sound, she's not keen on putting a label on it just yet.

"I'm mixing it up so that different people can resonate with my music without putting a specific genre on it. Like I'm kind of genre free right now."

And with Beyoncé moving from R&B to country, Alya reckons there's no reason for artists to stick religiously to one genre.

"You don't have to be a specific genre these days."

One artist who clearly understands the appeal of mixing things up is regional rapper Flipperachi, who features on a remix of Lemonade.

Alya is excited about the collaboration. The two have already appeared together on Virgin Radio and filmed promotional content.

"I'm so glad to have such a cool rapper from the region feature," she says.

What appeals to her is his ability to weave Arabic and English into his music without making it sound forced.

"I think he has a bit of Arabic, he has a bit of English, and like obviously, I resonate with that a little bit."

She's equally enthusiastic about regional artists experimenting with Afro sounds, Brazilian funk and Egyptian music.

Her own Arab music playlist includes Hussain Al Jassmi and Miami Band.

For someone with Grammy-sized ambitions, Alya is surprisingly unfazed by the prospect of fame.

"I don't really do this for the whole fame aspect. It's never been like, oh, I want to be famous."

She insists the real attraction is being able to sing, perform and make music for a living.

"If I get to do that every single day and live my life doing something that makes me happy, then that's like the everything to me basically."

Of course, today's aspiring pop stars also need to understand the Instagram game. Alya certainly does.

She believes social media has made it easier for musicians to find their audience without depending entirely on record labels.

"People can create their own music and create their own fan base now without labels and without any of the other stuff that goes into it."

But with visibility comes scrutiny. And in an industry where everyone has an opinion, how does a newcomer prepare for the inevitable criticism?

Alya barely blinks.

"If you're doing something right, you're going to have haters, so that's okay."

Spoken like someone who's already made peace with the comments section.

She also credits Dubai's multicultural environment with preparing her for the personalities she has encountered while travelling to America for her music. Growing up around different nationalities, she believes, has helped her navigate the industry.

Alya may come across as laid-back, but she's been doing her homework.

She's watched Ariana Grande's tour documentary and Beyoncé's Homecoming, studying what happens behind the scenes when the glamorous costumes come off and the hard work begins.

"It really isn't, and it does take a lot of hard work and a lot of patience and a lot of determination. And you have to keep going because if you lose momentum, then it is not. It's not great."

She has more music recorded, an EP hopefully on the way and a wish list that includes attending the MTV Video Music Awards and the Grammys.

So we throw her a slightly wicked question.

Would she rather have a commercially successful song that makes her serious money or win a Grammy?

"I can get a Grammy later on," she replies.

And then comes the line that sums up her ambition.

"I will get my Grammy eventually, and if the song does well, then they'll probably give me one too. So it's okay."

There's something rather infectious about Alya's conviction. She knows the music industry isn't an easy place to break into, but she's not allowing the odds to dictate the size of her dreams.

"I'm not too too scared. I'm just more excited and determined, and more like locked in and focused on where I'm going."

For now, she's got Lemonade, a collaboration with Flipperachi and plenty of music still to come.