Soul Fortis - صوت الروح
Wow wow wow, it’s a dream come true to announce my residency on @radioalhara , airing the first Thursday of every month.
I believe soul is a common thread which sets some frequencies apart from others. A sacred and spiritual manifestation of one of the most powerful emotions on Earth - one that transcends any language, borders, class, or identity. Something you can feel resonate through your body and that enables you to reach a higher state of consciousness.
Soul is the secret ingredient to the most meaningful things in my life.
Sout al-Rouh (صوت الروح) roughly translates to the voice/sound of the soul - let this show be a window into the depths of mine with each and every show.
Fortis emphasizes an emotional power in Latin and Soul Fortis reflects the strength soul carries in music. I hope to embody the power of soul on the airwaves of my favorite radio station on the planet.
Like Aqua Fortis, discovered by eighth century Muslim scholars of alchemy and used for everything from treating skin diseases to making jewelry, let Soul Fortis service whatever your needs may be.
Expect sounds, songs, and words that shape the world around me - yes more prose and politik, guest artists, and of course, homage to my greatest love and influence of house music. I am so grateful for this opportunity and the learning journey it will take me on. نضال
My @thelotradio set for @palestineforever.nyc is now up on YT and SoundCloud (link in bio).
Please enjoy an inside look into the depths of my heart and soul.
If there is one message I want to share with you it’s this: the greatest gift we could give to our oppressors is to give up.
It can feel so hard to carry on with music sometimes, and I've struggled more this past one year and nine months than I ever have. In the same breath, the music has given me a vehicle to act on my values and empower others.
While our road is a long one, we are already seeing the dawn of a new day. We have seen a paradigm shift on Palestine unimaginable two years ago.
I believe underground music, a tool for conveying the human condition, building community, and spiritual awakening, has never been so important. I am honored to be a vehicle for it.
I'm celebrating one year as a student of Ikenobo Ikebana. Aside from music, practicing ikebana has been one of my primary outlets for maintaining sanity in this city and in the present state of the world.
Ikebana forces me to focus on the present, be aware of the space and time I occupy, and stay connected to the natural world. It's like an antidote to hustle and bustle of NYC.
In 1462, Senko Ikenobo first appeared in historic records, and his teachings say "not only beautiful flowers, but also buds and withered flowers have life, and each has its own beauty....by arranging flowers with reverence, one refines oneself...arranging flowers and finding beauty in flowers - these are linked to a heart that values nature and cares for other people".
Through ikebana, I've been able to heal, enjoy the warmth of my elders, join a new community, embrace imperfection, appreciate the impermanence of the world, and keep my connection to Japan alive.
Last winter, I had the privilege to spend some time at the Rokkakudo temple and Ikenenobo headquarters in Kyoto, where ikebana began ~1400 years ago when Buddhism was brought to Japan from China and priests began making flower offerings at the altar of Rokkakudo.
I wanted to share with you a few photos from there and of my work, all courtesy of the guidance and correction of Noda sensei.
Ikebana is a lifelong practice, and I hope it will continue to remain part of mine wherever I am.
You can check out all my arrangements on my website ericknidal.xyz/ikenobo 💐
EP. 7
Soul Fortis | صوت الروح
The Love We Know
now online - link in bio!
We may seem weird to the status quo but the love we know makes us whole.
Artwork by Cris R Hernández
We are bound together in this global community of those who dare to care.
To see what is considered “normal” and understand that all of the difficulty we have to go through, to be ourselves, to imagine a better world, to let go of the fear of being who we are...
...is worth it.
Because when you decouple yourself from the machine, you realize the true meaning of life is so obvious, and so simple.
You realize the mirage that’s been institutionalized all around us and decide instead to reconnect to the real world.
You see that joy comes from the smallest things in life, things that often cost nothing at all. The love of people and earth. The warmth of sun on your skin and wind against your face. Or feeling the joy on the dancefloor!
It is this depth of existence that inspired this episode - while it can feel so isolating to step beyond the void, there is a depth of richness to life that makes it all worth it.
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"The Love We Know"
Bound, plastic bliss
Meets an end recarbonized
Earth Wind and Fire
The churn of ancestry, biology and fate ferments
As spiritual margins lie between the lines
A world buried in plain sight
Wave farewell to the confines
As the mind unwinds
Inertia twirls us deep into the whirlpool
Depths unknown to those above
subterranean submarinean
Allah Kareem
Wait and see
How profound this Love can be
A solar cascade bathes the soul
The iris twists
What is this?
Amongst a forest of trees
Two leaves dismount their branch
Milliseconds become eternity
Behold the miracle of serendipity
As we descend the canopy
To unite
Side by side
On the earthen floor
Blessed with the bliss of ignorance, or is it a curse?
For within the forest lies a Love only we can know
A miracle, Our Miracle
Sows roots deep in cosmic dust
Together, dreams grow of more
The depth of the sea
And the height of our stars
Spans unimagined, bridged
By what’s shared between us.
Soul Fortis | صوت الروح w: Malzof מלזף (live from Sweet Abyss) | Episode 6 (3-15-2026)
Now archived on soundcloud (link in bio) and mixcloud!
Thanks to @ericknidal of Soul Fortis | صوت الروح for hosting Malzof מלזף (live from @sweetabyss23 ) on Episode 6 on @radioalhara ! This episode speaks about Sweet Abyss as it celebrated its 3-year anniversary. It makes the connection of sharing music true to your heart and soul, as a practice of Soul Fortis, as a sonic extension from your inner strength and soul. <3
Original cover artwork by Malzof, with inspiration from the artwork created for the rest of the Soul Fortis | صوت الروح radio series.
Every day my love & respect grows for the path carved that allows me to stand behind two turntables. DeepDive is a place where the path gets carved, by some of the people who carved it, in dedication to the community that gives that path a purpose.
As a younger DJ, I never take for granted the huge privilege I've had in New York and Chicago to learn directly from those who dedicated their lives to building this movement. We are experiencing a rare moment in history where we can learn directly from them.
The more I've learned from my elders, read, listened, danced, and felt the music - the more I reaffirm. Reaffirm that the music, the community we're a part of, the souls who give their precious time on earth to make this possible, and the ancestral practice of group dancing, are so much bigger than any DJ could ever be.
I feel the responsibility to take this seriously (both good and bad). I want to try my best to channel its purpose while also keeping the music growing, progressing, and evolving as the experimental music it always was. As Chez Damier recently said, "Would you let a doctor operate on you who had no training? That's why the history is important.”
This set on DeepDive is a humble homage to this culture - the sorts of “holy scriptures” of music that have found their way into my life over the years. An attempt to draw linearity between soulful forms of music - whether that's jazz, hip hop, disco, or house music, none of which were called these names when they were made, and which share only an artificial border between them.
I was introduced to the DeepDive family by my sister @djtaranyc on a day she took the decks and reminded me of the highest aspirations music seeks to achieve. I can’t put into words how much love I have for DeepDive and the people who’ve put their soul into it - it gives me hope that there are still people in the world who care about what makes us human.
I’m thinking to write something longer about how I’ve been feeling and what I’ve learned, but all I can say is New York is in a very special place musically right now. You can check this set out in my bio or on DeepDive’s Mixcloud channel.
Before getting too far into 2026, I wanted to highlight my favorite record of 2025, Joaquin Claussell's remix of Deodato's cult classic "Whistle Bump".
I didn't think the original could get any better but was blown away by Joe's mix. This might end up being my favorite record of all time - I'd sleep with this thing under my pillow if I could!
Ep. 4 of soul fortis | صوت الروح "Guiding Light" - New Year all vinyl special up now. Originally aired Jan 1st.
Artwork courtesy of Cris R Hernández
When looking ahead at 2026, I wanted to make this episode an ode to the tool which helps guide my life, the music. “Guiding Light”, is therefore a tribute to my deep love for the music - and for the humanity it represents.
The music is more than just sounds, it is a compass for me. It draws me closer to who I am inside by opening up the deepest parts of my soul. It encourages me to live, without fear, by my values. It has allowed me to find and bring the people into my life which dream of a better world. It has given me the community I have always dreamed of. Some of those members which you'll hear from on this show in the year ahead.
You see, music at its best contains the soul of humanity, which is the inspiration behind this residency. It lives within our bodies and in nature around us, as a reminder that beauty is the most natural thing in the world. I hope that in 2026, I can do my small part in being a guardian of that spirit, and sharing it with you.
In the year ahead, I look forward to continuing to welcome you onto the airwaves of Radio Alhara and I am humbled to welcome more guests onto the show in the coming months.
A huge thank you to @moehecan for blessing us with the latest episode. Next up is my sibling @jmal_malzof
for @sweetabyss23
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"Guiding Light"
Oh my dear, my guiding light
How you've given me something when I've had nothing
Where if all that was left was the birds to sing
You'd still be there to lift my wings
How blessed I am that you came into my life
Returned the stars to my night's sky
You taught me the meaning of love
No tunnel too long to reach the other side
So long as I'm with you
Dear God I've found my purpose
The guide to my life's path
No matter how hard the master tried
To take you away
No force is stronger than the skin of the drum
The clap of the hands
Or the melody in our heads
With you I am always free
Sati Samati Panya
You, my dear, my guiding light
You helped me realize the difference between existing and being alive
Peace ✨ Listen back to our 22nd livestream featuring @ericknidal . In this mix Erick takes us on a meditative journey of spiritual jazz, 70’s soulful funk & late 80’s house. Link to our Mixcloud is in the linktree in our bio
Last week's episode of Soul Fortis on @radioalhara is now up on the cloud ☁️
Special thanks to the team at the station and to my homie @ericknidal for warm welcome to host the show! 🫶
I had a lottt of fun making this one and took the time to put a lot of extra goodies in there. Because I couldn't record this one in a proper booth I whipped this hour long show in Ableton but the exhilaration of making an hour long radio mix and your laptop possibly crashing at any moment. 📻
You can listen on soundcloud & find the link in my 🌴 in bio.
✨ As salamu alaykum fam! I was invited by my bro @ericknidal to host the next episode of Soul Fortis on @radioalhara 🥲
Since I became a radio head in the last years and especially since I discovered that @radioalhara broadcasts from Bethlehem, Palestine. I honestly couldn't wait for the chance to transit my energy & art through the airwaves from there one day. 🫶
I may never be able to step foot in Falasteen but my mix will be transmitting live tomorrow. Thurday, February 5th from 11:30 a.m - 12:30 p.m, 🍉 time! So you could say for a brief moment in time i'll feel like i'm in Falasteen. 👤
Special thanks to the team at Radio Alhara for all of their incredible work and with connecting all of us comrades around the world through a shared love for music. 🙏
And a big thanks to my bro @ericknidal for the trust to take over and letting me do my thing. I took a ridiculous amount of time preparing for this show so I really can't wait to hear what y'all think. 😘
📻 Tune in live tomorrow on Radioalhara.net 💻
Peace ✨ Sunday at DEEPDIVE we welcome @ericknidal live-streaming from 7P-9P / As always, join us at DD or watch from our Mixcloud page, link in our linktree
