By Huda Al-Shair

RIYADH —Four young women from Riyadh are doing something no one expected: turning the Najdi dialect into the language of Saudi rock and finding audiences ready to listen.

The word “artist” often implies a responsibility to push boundaries. Seera, Saudi Arabia’s first all-female rock band, hasn’t just stepped into that role, they’ve expanded it.

Seera — meaning “story” or “journey” in Arabic — is a psychedelic rock band of four young women from Riyadh whose dedication to music has propelled them into a new space of self-expression and cultural experimentation.

The band is a convergence of four distinct personalities.

Noura, the lead singer, speaks with the same textured eloquence that shapes her lyrics.

Haya, the lead guitarist, is sharp-witted and soulful, her thoughts spilling naturally into every riff.

Meesh, the bassist, is quiet yet unmistakably grounded, her basslines carrying a weight that makes listeners pause.

And Thing, the masked drummer, is the band’s pulse, the one who pushed them to take the leap and play their first concert, which they laughingly describe as a disaster.

Despite their differences, one truth becomes obvious quickly: Seera is not just a band, it is a bond.

“We're like a family, honestly,” Thing said. Meesh added, “Music is a language on its own, and connecting with these people through it is what makes this all special.”

Their stories didn’t begin on a stage. Sisters Noura and Meesh found music in very different ways.

Noura’s classical upbringing opened the door to an eclectic taste that eventually led her to rock. Meesh, meanwhile, discovered her passion through the Wii game Guitar Hero.

“I wondered why I kept playing the plastic guitar when I could buy a real one,” Meesh said, laughing. “But I didn’t like using a pick, so I switched to bass.”

Noura still remembers watching Meesh play years ago, “not knowing we were into the same music.” Those early moments led them to jam together, and soon after, Haya messaged Meesh on Instagram after seeing a Doors cover. At the time, Noura was still working in a restaurant while the band slowly came together.

Haya, then a psychology student, had also reached out to Thing, who had been drumming for a decade.

“We all shared the same goal,” Haya said. “But our backgrounds were so different Thing studied interior architecture, Meesh is a computer scientist, Noura is a linguist and a multidisciplinary artist, and I was training to be a psychologist before realizing music was right for me.”

Seera’s first official show was at The Warehouse in Diriyah. Since then, they’ve taken the stage at Balad Beast, Soundstorm, Bohemia, and XP, finding larger crowds each time.

Their musical identity blends traditional Arabic melodic scales with classic Western rock. Their influences range from The Doors and Nirvana to Fairuz and Oum Kalthoum, a fusion that has become central to their sound.

“It just comes naturally,” Thing said when asked about their process. “When you like a song, you subconsciously incorporate notes or chords you’re drawn to. Your style mixes with the style you’re influenced by. It doesn’t feel like work — it just flows.”

Although their sound is shaped by Western rock, Seera made a deliberate choice to write and sing in Arabic specifically in their Najdi dialect.

“There’s something really beautiful about Arabic,” Noura said. “It’s poetic, limitless. Our roots as Arabs are in poetry and percussion, and we wanted to show that.”

“Rock barely existed in the Najdi dialect,” Haya added. “We wanted to hear ourselves in our music.”

Meesh summed it up simply: “If the representation you want doesn’t exist, create it.”

What feels exciting about Seera is the image of Saudi women they carry onto international stages. Their music has crossed borders, taking them on their first European tour in October, ending with a performance at Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank Centre in London — organized by the Music Commission.

“Seeing Swedish kids with colorful hair dancing to our music was incredible,” Thing said. “And watching adults in Germany connect to songs in a different language — feeling every note — was overwhelming.”

“The London show was the highlight,” Haya added. “Even though not everything was perfect — Meesh’s guitar was lost at the airport and I got really sick — the crowd knew every word. It was emotional.”

On November 27, Seera will release their second EP, Sarab (“Mirage”).

“It’s about growing up and getting stuck in adulthood,” Thing said. “Losing that childlike curiosity until the truth feels far away — like a mirage.”

The EP includes: Shams a search for hope, Zaman a reflection on what it feels like to be a young Saudi woman today, Athr an experimental track showing their range, and Akhir Sarkha a song about endangered species, featuring real animal recordings in partnership with Earth Sonic