Protest song is considered a key dissident figure whose poetry in colloquial Arabic gave voice to the underclass in Egypt, and inspired protesters. He teamed up in the 1960s with composer Sheikh Imam Eissa who gave music to his verses, the partnership lasting for twenty years. Lines from Negm's poem "Who Are They, and Who Are We?" were chanted at Tahrir Square in 2011 during protests against President Hosni Mubarak. Music played a key role in mobilizing the 2011 protests at Tahrir Square against President Hosni Mubarak which led to the Egyptian revolution. "Ezzay," meaning "How come?" by Egyptian singer and actor
Post-coup unrest in Egypt (2013–2014) (10 July – 7 August), prime minister Hazem al-Beblawy threatened to disperse the ongoing Pro-Morsi sit-ins in Rabaa al-Adaweya square and al-Nahda square. The government crackdown of these protests occurred in a violent dispersal on 14 August 2013. In mid-August, the violence directed by the army towards the protesters escalated, with hundreds killed, and the government declaring a month-long nighttime curfew. Protests against President Hosni Mubarak in early 2011 led to his resignation and trial after the Egyptian military switched its allegiance to the demonstrators. Mubarak's downfall was only the second revolution in the Arab world of the revolutionary wave