Remy Munasifi has been creating videos on his "GoRemy" YouTube channel since 2006. His songs about growing up Arab, rap videos, and comedic sketches have been viewed over 97 million times.
Remy's first video, "MACACA BLUES," centered around a controversy in the 2006 Virginia Senate race, in which the incumbent Senator referred to his opponent's staffer as "Macaca." The video was written up in The National Journal.
Following up his first video, Remy released "Two Percent Milk: The Rap," the first of several rap videos to follow. "I probably enjoy the rap songs the most," says Remy. "I love the energy and you can fit a lot of fun jokes in."
Since starting in comedy, Remy has also strived to combat stereotypes prevalent across media. "When I was growing up, the only Arabs you would see on TV or movies were always terrorists. I thought I would caricature the caricature." His first release along those lines, 2007's "A-R-A-B: The Rap" went viral among first-generation Arabs in the United States and in the Arab world.
The popularity of such songs as "Hey There Khalilah," "Hummus: The Rap," and "Tabbouleh," allowed Remy to perform across the United States and the Middle East and in 2010 he became the first Arab-American to have a release on Comedy Central Records. "The Falafel Album" reached #10 on the iTunes Comedy Chart in the US. Remy has been involved in benefits the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), the Arab American Institute, as well as student groups.
During the first ever CNN/YouTube Presidential Debate, a video question submitted by Remy was aired to the candidates, including future President Barack Obama, future Vice-President Joe Biden, and future Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. "It was one of the coolest things that I've ever gotten to do," says Remy. "You know when people say 'oh, I can tell my grandkids...?' Well, I am going to tell my grandkids!"
Remy moved to Arlington, Virginia in 2009 and made a video about his new town. The song, "Arlington: The Rap," went viral in the area. "The nicest thing about that video was how many people I got to meet."
Remy does not post videos on his channel as often as he used to but is still involved in comedy. He performs private events in the United States and Middle East, as well as at the annual "Legends of Arab Comedy" show at Gotham Comedy Club in New York. He also occasionally submits videos to ReasonTV, including the rap "Raise the Debt Ceiling"
In 2016, Remy co-starred in the Netflix show "Brown Nation." Remy plays the role of Hyder, a Lebanese businessman with many wild business ideas.
Remy currently resides in Virginia, USA with his wife and three children.
