How to Turn a Playlist into a Movement

Egypt, singular name, spent years stewing on an idea, a passion really, while she arranged flowers into vases. In between moments of stem cutting and petal pruning, Egypt grilled her coworkers on an ever-growing playlist not realizing she was planting the earliest seeds of something bigger. Fast-forward to July 27th, and that same passion filled a room at Silence Please, where JBW sponsored a night of Listening Is Fundamental but Egypt's story starts much earlier, in that flower shop where curiosity was quietly taking root.

Egypt, Founder and Host of Listening Is Fundamental

"When I was a florist, I'd spend my downtime digging for samples and buying records every Friday from the shop next door," she recalls. "I'd quiz my coworkers just to pass the time—not realizing I was planting the earliest seeds of Listening Is Fundamental." The original card concept lived buried in old mock-up files from 2020–2021, illustrated by her roommate Krystal, a gifted artist whose early mock-up would prove key.

It wasn't until Egypt got laid off in 2023 that the idea resurfaced; suddenly, she had the space to revisit what had been gestating for years. After five years in New York, she knew exactly what she wanted to create: "Something that celebrated the music I love, created space for real connection, and made you leave with more than you came in with. Not just Uno and small talk—but music that sparked friendships, conversations, and curiosity."

The first version was simple but intentional. "The mission was always clear: create space for conversation and share music facts in a way people could actually digest with a wholesome game night." She invited every person she'd met in those five New York years, just word of mouth, and 70 people showed up in the rain to experience her idea.

What started as that rainy Brooklyn night with hand-cut Bingo-music cards has grown into something that travels across borders and time zones. After seven months of monthly events, Nina's Daughter, a Toronto nonprofit, reached out after seeing her TikToks. "I didn't think much of it until I landed and saw the temperature in Celsius and realized: I'm not in Brooklyn anymore. I'm in another country because I kept showing up for an idea I believed in."

But growth doesn’t come without challenges. "The biggest challenge? Doing the job of many people as one person," Egypt admits. "At first, it was frustrating. But it taught me how to delegate, how to trust myself, and how to build a team when the time comes." What keeps her going are her friends, "They remind me how far I've come when I'm too focused on what's next to notice" and her "writer's room," the people she trusts to keep her story honest and exciting.

Egypt's relationship with music is expansive and intentional. "All genres feel like home to me, it’s just different rooms in the same house," she explains. Lately, she's been acquainting herself with Mndsgn, Venna, Paris Texas, Planet Giza, and Kelis. "The balance comes from centering Black artists–past, present, and future–and using the game as a way to put people onto new music while honoring the foundations." That expansive approach to genres connects to how Egypt thinks about music's relationship with time.

For Egypt, music operates as a time machine. "Time marks where we are in life," she reflects. "I recently went to Tyler, the Creator's Don't Tap the Glass party, and it transported me back to 2017, me wandering solo into a part of Brooklyn I didn't know, just chasing a good time. Back then, everything felt more present. Now, moments become memories the second we finish recording them. Time lets us revisit, reflect, and reconnect with versions of ourselves through music."

That connection between music and memory creates the most powerful moments at her events. Recently, during an event in Chicago, one of the sample answers featured Donell Jones' "Where I Wanna Be," prompting the entire room to sing along together. "In that moment, it wasn't about the game—it was about shared memory, energy, and love for a song that means something to a city. That's why I started this." 

For Egypt, it's not just those transcendent moments when barriers dissolve and strangers become connected; it's what happens after people leave the room. "Attendees frequently share that they experience music in a new way following my events—and that means a great deal to me." It's validation that her mission is working: not to change how people experience music, but to deepen their engagement with it. That’s the point of Listening is Fun. And it’s caught on. 

Now, as she plans her 42nd event in D.C., Egypt feels the convergence of everything that has come before. Her time at a membership club taught her that "being personable was a skill—not everyone has it." Getting laid off gave her space to hang out at Somewhere Good, where she met Kyle, someone who believed in the idea and encouraged her just to host something. "Now I'm planning my 42nd event in DC. That feels… right on time."

Looking back, Egypt sees the through line clearly: "Absolutely. Everything led to this." Her mission crystallizes into something both simple and profound: "I don't want to change how people listen to music—I want people to question it. To ask where their favorite songs come from, and who they belong to. That curiosity helps keep artists immortal and part of the conversation."

Or as she puts it more succinctly: "Listening to music to engage, entertain, and educate—all while building connection through curiosity."