Quotes — Season 1

On Identity

"I've always had this funny complex of being too Spanish to be Arabic, and then being too Arabic to be Spanish."
— Sirage Saudi, EP 3

"The majority are alike... everyone has something that distinguishes them — but people focus on what distinguishes those around them and try to become the same thing."
— Eslam Gazelle, EP 9

"I grew up in a small beach town in the south of Spain, and I'm originally Arabic — I'm Libyan."
— Sirage Saudi, EP 3

On Difficulty

"Don't avoid the hard thing. The hard thing is what makes everything else easier."
— Nasr Elhadi, EP 2

"Nothing worth having comes easy."
— Nasr Elhadi, EP 2 (Billboard Question)

"90% of the work of writing is hard work, work, work, and 10% talent. Especially with books — you have to write every day."
— Ghazi Gheblawi, EP 5

On Failure

"If you don't ask, you don't get. It's just as simple as that."
— Abdulaziz Lamlum, EP 8

"If you're the smartest person in the room, you're in the wrong room."
— Abdulaziz Lamlum, EP 8

"Even the coach would tell you: don't count on it, you have to have a Plan B — because we watched the generation before us and they didn't make much money from it."
— Suleiman al-Tih, EP 7

On Loss

"The ones it comes to early are the lucky ones."
— Osama Alfitory, EP 10 (on PTSD)

On Libya

"This form of PTSD is somewhat affecting our moral compass — because you start dehumanising other people because they don't agree with your political views."
— Emad Badi, EP 4

"Gaddafi's answer, word for word, was that he stepped down in 1978."
— Osama Alfitory, EP 10 (via Mansour Dhao)

On Fatherhood

"Open your eyes, see the names, and be grateful that you are alive."
— Tariq Elmeri, EP 1 (adopted mantra)

"Be the change... If I set a good example for my brother, I'd be really happy."
— Emad Badi, EP 4 (Billboard Question)

On Work

"One hundred percent — not one person I apologised to responded negatively."
— Nasr Elhadi, EP 2

"Strike the iron while it's hot."
— Eslam Gazelle, EP 9 (Billboard Question)