Medina

Medina is a Swedish duo consisting of Sam-E (Sami Daniel Rekik) and Alibrorsh, also known as Alibi (Ali Jammali), who grew up in Stockholm and Östersund respectively and share Tunisian roots.
They met in 2002 at a concert in Knivsta, and their first studio collaboration resulted in a full mixtape, marking the official formation of the band, whose name means “city” in Arabic.

Both have been musicians since their teens, citing diverse influences such as Jay-Z, Magic System, Cheb Khaled, and Swedish House Mafia.
They crafted a unique style they dubbed “Haffla Music,” a blend of reggaeton, hip-hop, raï, house, pop, and dancehall, with the word “Haffla” meaning “party” in Arabic.

Their career began in 2003 with the single Magdansös, followed by their debut album Fullblod released by the label Devrim (Warner Music).
In 2007, they founded their own production company, State Crown.
The album Hayat was released in 2012 and charted; the single Där palmerna bor was certified double platinum there, the same year as the release of Sann romans.

In 2013, they released the single Miss Decibel from the album Sista Minuten, chosen as the summer hit, and in 2014 the track Se på mig nu entered the Swedish charts.
The duo split up in 2018 before reuniting at a later date.

After their return, they participated in Melodifestivalen 2022 with the song In i dimman, written with Dino Medanhodzic and Jimmy Thörnfeldt, qualifying directly for the final where they finished third.
That same year, they also wrote the song Bluffin for Liamoo, who placed fourth.
They participated again in Melodifestivalen 2024 with Que Sera, co-written with Anderz Wrethov and Jimmy Thörnfeldt, and placed second in the final, behind Marcus & Martinus and their song Unforgettable.
A third participation in Melodifestivalen 2026 is confirmed with the song Viva l'amor, qualifying them directly for the final from the third semi-final.