Arabic Music

4Cats

Beginning of the band 1998
When the band was formed in 1998, the band members were Dalida, Chantal, Zeina, and Rula. After the unofficial release of their song "Achra, Hdazh, Tnash" (or "10, 11, 12") as a video clip which was not supposed to be released even though it was featured on their first album, Rula left the band and was replaced by Nicole. Their first official release for a video clip was "Ya Nasini" song, and their first album was called "Tick-Tick". The band was famous for singing oldies for "Akhawein Rahbani" or "Rahbani brothers". The band released two video clips for two of the album songs (the album had 8 songs), these two video clips were "Ya Nasini" and "Kan El-Zaman".

The second album
The girls ran to the studios to record their second album "Layl Nhar" ("Day, Night"). The first song to be released from this album was "Layl Nhar" which was released at the beginning of summer, 2000. The Album was released shortly after the video clip. The video clip was a special feature on the album. In November from the same year they released their second video clip from the album, it was called "Ma Ba'a Eida" ("I'll Never Do It Again").

Three members out
The third album was schedualed to be released October 15, 2001, but that never happened. Three members; Zaina, Nicole and Perla, left the band without giving any reasons to the media. The three girls were replaced with another three girls, Maya, Nisrine and Natalie. The band released their new video clip in the beginning of 2002 which was called "Tal Ntizari", followed by their third album which had the same name of the song in the summer of 2002. This album was released without having any propaganda, it was just released without any previous commercials in TV's or newspapers. The band disappeared for months, until the summer of 2003, when the band released another song from the album "Rah Hibak Alla Tool" or "I'll Always love You". In this new video clip a new member called Nada replaced Natalie in this song. They later replaced Nada with Rana Tersisi who only appeared in a few tv shows, then she quit claming she never got along with the girls.

In 2004 the band signed a new record deal with Rotana and released a new song called "Ya Antar", a new album with the same name, and got two new members to replace Nisreen and Rana. The two new members were Goyce and Perla again, then Perla left the band again and she was replaced by Raya (Dalida's sister). The band released another song from the album after only two months called "Machi El-Tofnees". In late 2004 the band released another song called "Nihna Mnsrou" ("We Steal"). This song was featured on their fourth album.

In 2006 the band came back again with a new song called "El Donya Heik", a new album holding the same name, and another member called Aline replacing Goyce.

Past members
Rula Bahnam: TV presenter, known for working in Future TV.
Chantal: Married.
Zeina: Worked for a while in Future TV.
Perla Shlala: Has her own tv show on LBC channel.
Nicole Saba: She's a famous singer and actess.
Natalie: Works in Rotana TV as a tv presenter in the tv show "Shebyek Lebyak".
Nisreen Zreik: Worked for a little while in Rotana TV as a TV presenter in the TV show "Shebyek Lebyak", then she competed for Miss Lebanon 2004 and got the 6th place, and currently a singer.
Goyce: Presenter on Rotana Tv now.
Rana Tersisi: Model in clips and ads.
Nada Taraby: Sister of Mr.Lebanon and first runner-up for the title of Mr. World in 2003, Assaad Tarabay. (Source: Wikipedia.org)

Official Website: www.the4cats.com

Abdallah Al Rowaished

Abdallah Al Rowaished was born in 1961 in Kuwait. At a young age he discovered a love for music when he started to play the lute. In 1973, Rowaished established the Al Roba'y group with three friends. The group was widely popular among the Persian Gulf countries. However, the group disbanded in 1979, since then Rowaished has focused on his solo career.

Rowaished began his solo career in the early 1980's with the release of his first album entitled "Rihalti", which was released in 1983. Rowaished worked with many famous poets and composers such as Khaled El Sheikh. His first album achieved moderate success in the Persian Gulf region. Additionally, Rowaished rendered one of the songs from this album as a music video, one of the first music videos by an Arab singer.

Rowaished continued to release albums throughout the 1980s, with increased popularity with each release. In addition to becoming a regional success, his popularity expanded to other regions of the Arab world, including Egypt. During the early 1990s, Rowaished relocated temporarily to Egypt as Kuwait was invaded by Iraq. From there he continued his music career, including a short lived project with the famous Egyptian singer Mohamed Abdelwaheb. Unfortunately, Abdelwaheb died shortly after the start of the project.

After the end of the Persian Gulf War, Rowaished returned to Kuwait and continued with his music career He released several albums during the 1990s, usually one every year. In 1995, he signed a contract with the Saudi record company Rotana, which is owned by Prince Al Waleed Bin Talal. Rotana is the most popular record label for Arab artists. Rowaished's first album for Rotana was "Lummi Bishouq," which was released in 1996. Rowaished has released an album with Rotana every year since then. His latest album, entitled "Ma Fee Ahad Mertah," was released in June 2005, and has been a big success for him. To date, he has released over 30 albums, participated in concerts in many countries, including the United States of America, and Canada. He also has opened his own music conservatory in Kuwait, and operates a store as well.

In addition to singing and performing, Rowaished also composes songs for other singers. Some of the singers he has worked with include Reem, Samar, Ahlam, Adil Al Rowaished, among others.

In 2001, a Saudi Arabian cleric issued a fatwa against Rowaished, claiming he insulted the Islamic holy book, the Koran by putting the first chapter of the holy book to music. The cleric also wanted the Kuwaiti authorities to carry out a death sentence, as carried by the fatwa. Other clerics from Kuwait came to his defense and eventually the claim was dropped. (Source: Wikipedia.org)

Official Website: www.rowaished.com

Abdul Majeed Abdullah

Born in Al-‘Aridah, which is a village in Jizan Region. Then he moved with his family, first to Jizan city, then to Gunfuza city. Finally all the family, with the exception of his father, moved to Jeddah city.

In the school in Jeddah, his teacher discovered his talents, especially in music & theatre. He introduced him to the Radio Station in Jeddah where he interpreted, for the first time, the songs of Adulhalim Hafiz & Charifah Fadel. Among his friends, he always interpreted the songs of Talal Maddah & Abdulhalim Hafiz.

His first concert was in Al-Ittihad Club in Jeddah. He was thirteen years old & this concert was his first success.

He recorded a number of songs to the Television Station, of which “Habayb waqt ma yabgho”, written by Salih Jalal & composed by Hassan Tamraz.

He knew the composer Sami Ihsan who helped him much in his beginnings & introduced him in a good & organized manner to the public. In 1979, he accompanied Sami Ihsan to Cairo for some recordings.

In Cairo, he met with the singer Talal Madah & observed how this later treated his colleagues. In this stage, Abdulmajeed recorded 4 songs: (1) Al-sabr miftah alfaraj (2) Barig Al-thaghr “words of Ibrahim Khafaji” (3) Eish Alayna “words of Talal Sirehani” (4) Shuftak wa fi ‘Oyunak Huzn “words of Mohammed Al-Faysal”.

These songs were recorded in a cassette containing Talal Maddah’s songs. They didn’t obtain a great success because the cassette was released, by error, under the name of Talal Maddah.

In 1984, he went again to Cairo with Sami Ihsan. There, he recorded many songs, of which (Seed Ahaly), words of Ibrahim Khaffaji & set for music of Sami Ihsan. This song represented the beginning of his reputation. Generally, the year 1984 marked his real artistic takeoff.

There are three important phases in the artistic career of Abdulmajeed:

First phase
With the composer Sami Ihsan. The public knew his voice & he began de become famous with the songs: (Sayed Ahali – Al-sabr Miftah Alfaraj – Milad Hubi – ‘Umri ma Agul lak leih – La tukthir Allum).

Second phase
With the Bahraini Composer Khaled Al-Cheikh. He composed for him many of his reuted songs such as: (Tayr Al-shjan – Irja’a bissalamah – Zaman assiba – Rud assalam – Sakin Galbi – An Al-awan).

Third phase (the actual phase)
Most of the songs of this phase are composed by Saudi Composers like Saleh Al-Shihri & Mamduh Saif. The most reputed songs of this phase are: Rahib – Kaif asibak – Khafif addam – Hail Allah – Ya tayeb Al-Galb). During this phase, Abdulmajeed cooperated with many composers, but manly with those cited above.

Generally, Abdulmajeed collaborated with many coposers from the Gulf countries:

Talal Maddah – Omer Kardas – Siraj Munir – Madani ‘Abbadi – Sami Ihsan – Jameel Mahmood – Mohammed Al-Maghis – Talal Bagher – Saleh Al-Shihri – Abdulrab Idriss – Mamduh Saif – Khaled Al-Cheikh. He also interpreted one of the old songs of the Great Saudi artist Tarek Abdulhakim (Abki ‘ala ma jara ly ya hali); this was a real success for him. Equally, he interpreted some of the great Saudi artist Fauzi Mahsun songs (Subhano wa gaddaru alyk – Bashsharuni ‘ank – Ruh ahmid Allah wa bas). This interpretation contributed also to his big reputation.

Abdulmajeed as a composer
His first set to music was for Aseel Abubakar’s song A’ajibak, in the album of Aseel released in 1996.

The most distinguished poets Abdulmajeed cooperated with are: Ibrahim Khafaji, Badr bin Abdulmohsen, Abdulrahman Hijazi, Mohammed Al-Abdullah Al-Faysal, Yaseen Samkari, Najeeb Bitaich, Sari, Mohammed Al-Garni, Sau bin Abdullah, Khaled Al-Faysal & Asir Al-Shauq,

Abdulmajeed has many albums & the last one is called (Anta Al-Aziz) which contains a number of good songs. (Source: Rotana.net)

Ahlam

Ahlam started her singing career when she was a little child. She used to sing in Weddings and Ceremonies, and through this she was noticed by the Kuwaiti music composer, Anwar Abdullah. This recognition lead Ahlam to sign a contract with Funoon Al Emarat, a local Gulf-Music production company. The composer Anwar Abdullah also assisted her through the release of her debut self-titled album,(Ahlam). Ahlam received a personal testimonial from the Saudi artist, Muhammad Abdo (nicknamed Artist Of The Arabs) stating that Ahlam's voice is a Gulf voice by 100%.

Ahlam is also one of the richest Arab singers. She is believed to be one of the most highly paid singers in Rotana. Ahlam is married to a famous Qatari rally champion, Mubarak Al-Hajiri. She has a baby boy named Fahid.

Websites:
- Ahlamvoice.ws - The Official Website for Ahlam
- AhlamWorld.net

Ahmed Fahmy

Offcial Website: www.ahmedfahmi.com

Ali el Haggar

In addition to music and singing, El-Haggar family is also gifted with another sort of talent; drawing. This inborn talent enabled Ali El-Haggar to join faculty of Fine Arts. Studying various natures of Fine Arts helped him to broaden his scope of artistic knowledge. Many times Ali El-Haggar was asked a question about the relation between Music an Fine Arts and how far studying Fine Arts affected him as a singer; he answers: “While I’m singing I do imagine the music pieces as if they are geometrical shapes and lines; I can see some types of music are like straight lines, others resemble curved lines, and sometimes some music pieces reminds me of broken lines. Also, I can observe some songs of mine as complete portraits”.

During the years, Ali EL-Haggar never forgot his main artistic concern; singing. In 1977 his talent was professionally discovered by the late composer Baligh Hamdy; who introduced him publicly in the New Year Eve with his first piece of work “Ala Ad Ma Habbena” having lyrics by the late poet Abdel-Rehim Mansoor; after listening to him singing in a musical program in the Egyptian television.

Coming next is an important stage in Ali El-Haggar career path, and that was in 1976 when he got together with the late multi-talented artist Salah Jaheen. At that time Jaheen had already written his famous quartets (Robayat) a time ago, and he was searching for a highly endowed singer capable of singing those quartets. Having high confidence in El-Haggar talent and singing abilities, Jaheen decided to offer him the opportunity to sing the complete quartets which were composed by the late musician Sayed Mikkawy. Till now these vocal quartets are greatly tempting to many audiences.

Ali EL-Haggar succeeded in transforming the nature of the television serials prologues and epilogues (titres). Before that, serials prologues and epilogues were just pieces of still music; since then they started to contain an introductory song and another final song that reveal some features of the serial tale. Along with the composer Ammar El-Sherei and the poet Sayed Higab; El-Haggar performed the complete set of songs for the television serial “El-Ayam” personifying the biography of the late prominent novelist Taha Hussein. Since then, having songs in the serials intros and finals became something common. Owning a well-built dramatic voice; as many music critics always validate, El-Haggar participated and still participating widely in this songs type and now he becomes the number one singer in the dramatic songs category; whether in television serials, movies, or plays.

Another important phase in El-Haggar professional life was his first dealing with his brother the composer and singer Ahmed El-Haggar. This was in the year 1978 when Ahmed El-Haggar composed his brother’s greatest hit “Ozoriny”. As a result of the huge success that this song achieved, the name of Ali El-Haggar started to spark in the singing career since then. Consequently, El-Haggar brothers have co-operated in many other songs, Ahmed El-Haggar as composer and Ali El-Haggar as singer. Among these songs are; Bahebek, Ana Biki Ya Samra Akon, El-Ahlam, Kont Faker, Tesaaliny, Lama El-Sheta Edo’o El-Biban, Ma Tekdebish, Ergaaily, Lessa El-Kalam, and recently Ya Masria.

El-Haggar always has a faith that the artist should not separate himself from the social and political events that take place in his surrounding society. In his vision the artist must have a specific attitude towards these events, and react towards them; but yet through art. In the year 1990, Ali El-Haggar was preparing himself to release an album contains romantic songs; during this, the well-known Iraqi invasion to Kuwait took place. El-Haggar then refused to proceed with his romantic album, and he postponed it for a later time. Instead, he released another album “Lem El-Shaml” that was all about political songs that fitted the political scene at that time. Also, in his songs bank, El-Haggar has a bundle of political songs that reflect his political concerns; for example, his brilliant piece of work “Hona El-Kahira”, “Ya Masry”, and “El-Moot Ala El-Asfalt”; a collection of poems wrote by the prominent poet Abdel-Rahman El-Abnoody describing the violence taken place in Palestine, Recently, El-Haggar gave out his song “Lobnan” as a reaction to the attacks that took place in Lebanon last year.

An additional successful point in Ali El-Haggar’s career that deserves a shade of light is his duet with Placido Domingo. El-Haggar realized a great achievement when he was selected by the Spanish opera singer “Placido Domingo”; titled “KING OF OPERA” to carry out a duet song together. This was in the year 2000 when Domingo got an idea to perform a duet song with an Arab singer; Domingo was introduced to many songs for a number of Arab singers, and he chose Ali El-Haggar as he possess the most powerful and sensational voice among his peers. Domingo was highly surprised by El-Haggar’s singing abilities and consequently he gave him the name “THE GOLDEN VOICE”. As a result, the concert both Ali El-Haggar & Placido Domingo had conducted in Dubai was a successful and well-received one.

Moving ahead from a success to another, Ali El-Haggar was appreciated for his aggregate artistic works by receiving a prize of honor in the 15th Arabic Music Festival for the year 2006. Also, in the same year he received two prizes from two different European theatre festivals in both Germany and Italy . In addition to another prize; “The Best Singer of the Year” in Sharm El-Sheikh video clip festival for his song “El-Leil Ya Nas”

Throughout his career life Ali El-Haggar is applying a concrete belief that motivates him to present valuable art to his audiences; he constantly says; “My main goal is to present art than lasts after my departure not gets forgotten while I am alive”. Actually this notion drives him to select the most precious types of music that is appealing most to spectators; hence he prefers to deal with talented artists; composers and lyricist; who can help him in achieving this aim. For this, he dealt with giant names in the music composition field; such as; Baligh Hamdy, Ammar El-Sherei, Yasser Abdel-Rahman, Omar Khairat, Ahmed El-Haggar, Amir Abdel-Migeed, Riad El-Hamshry, Gamal Attia, Khalil Mostafa, and many others. As for the poets, EL-Haggar always believes that the corner stone in the success of any song is its lyrics; that explains his insistence on dealing with the most creative lyricist; like; Abdel-Rahman El-Abnody, Sayed Higab, Ahmed Foad Negm, Foad Haddad, Abdel-Rehim Mansoor, Gamal Bekheet, Bahaa Jaheen, Essam Abd-Allah, Hany Shahata, Ibrahim Abdel-Fattah, and many others.

His concern is not only dealing with gifted composers and lyricists, but as well with other talented singers in duets whenever possible. As per his saying; “In duets I like to deal with talented singers; as competing with clever singers motivates me to explore my capabilities to execute the song in the best distinguished manner”. During his career life, El-Haggar performed number of duets with a number of talented singers; such as his career companion Mohammed El-Helw; in songs; “Beladi" and "Khan El-Anadeel”-intro & finale of a serial carrying the same name, Hanan Mady in many television serials songs; like, “El-Likaa EL-Tany & EL-Mal we El-Banoon”, Angham in the play "Rosasa Fi El Qalb", and Hoda Ammar in “Bent we Walad” from the movie Eskendereyya New York.

El-Haggar admiration to the pioneer singers generation inspired him to reperform some of their old songs; for instances; “Gafnoho Alam El-Ghazal & Saherto” by Mohammed Abdel-Wahab, “Dary El-Oion & Rah Tewhashiny” by Mohammed Fawzy, and “El-Hob Gamil” Laila Morad famous song. When asked about why he likes to sing old songs already sung by old singers, he responses: “I want the contemporary generation who do not know much about old music to get more acquainted to it; that’s why I reperform old songs that I personally like most, but in a modern modified way that makes these songs come closer to the current youth generation keeping the spirit of the original piece of music.

Recently in the year 2005, El Haggar got certified as a professional Qur’an resiter from El Azhar institution, and by this he is considered to be the first Egyptian male singer to get this certification nowadays.

His Albums
. Ala ad ma Habaina.
. Kont fain ya Ali (for kids)
. Robaeyat “Salah Jaheen”
. Mehtajlek
. Ozoreeni
. El Ahlam
. Matsadaqish
. Fi Alb El Lail
. Ana kont Eidek
. Zay El Hawa
. Lem El Shaml
. Tegeesh Naeesh
. Rama Remsho
. Lessa El Kalam
. Risha
. Yamama
. Maktobali

Television Serials (Singing)
. Al Ayaam
. El Shahd Wa El Domooa
. Ala Abwab El Madina
. Wa Qal Al Bahr
. Al Mashrabeyya
. Abdullah Al Nadim
. Haroon El Rashid
. Omar Ebn Abdel Aziz
. Mohammad Rasool Allah
. Wajaa Al Baad
. Al sira Al Helaleyya
. Hadaek Al Shaytan.

Television serials (Singing & Acting)
. Yaseen we Baheyya
. Abul El Ela Elbeshry
. Al Baqy men Al zaman sa3a
. Al wakf
. Resala khatera
. Bawabat El Halawani
. Al Awda
. Robaeyyat Salah Jaheen

Movies
Al Meghnawati – Anyab – Al Fata Al Shereer.

Theatre Plays
. Laila men alf laila
. Zabaaen Gohannam
. Nawwar Al Khair
. Welad El Shawarea
. Menain ageeb nas
. Eyal Teganen
. Atnain fi offa
. Alahomma Egaalo khair
. Rosasa Fi Al Qalb
. Khayef Aqool Elly Fi Qalby. (Source: Alielhaggar.com)

Official Website: www.alielhaggar.com

Aline Khalaf

Since then it became clear to Aline that music and singing were her only true passion and lifetime dream. So she started to perform in big restaurants alongside some of the already known stars. When she finally found a production company to back her talent and believe in her; the Lebanese singer started working on her first album right away. Relax-in Company stood by the singer all the way and together they hit the market with Khayfa Menak.

Next to come was Bousat Al-Rih that marked another steady step forward for the singer. When Ya Zein was released, Khalaf was quite famous already and had become known in the Arab world. Wayed Wayed followed soon after and was a success just like the other previous albums. But it was her hit album La Ley Lah that made the strongest impact at the time. The main song was so popular that Aline decided to shot it as a video clip-and it was a wise decision as it was as successful as the song!

Aline's next album Azz Alaya was released later and followed by the ever-popular Law Andak Kalam. The album was a further addition to the singer's already growing popularity. Khalaf's last album was Aloulak Eh. Throughout her career, Aline has shot a number of her songs as video clips that increased her fame and popularity. Among these were Wayed Wayed, La Ley Lah, Dala'a El-Habayeb, Azz Alaya, Law Andak Kalam and Aloulak Eh.

Websites:
- Alinekhalaf.com - Aline Khalaf Official Website

Assi Helani

He started singing Lebanese songs at an early age among his family and friends. His interest in singing grew stronger so that at the age of 17, in 1987 he started his life as a singer officially when he participated in the “Art Studio” TV program for young artists, and was the winner in the popular Lebanese song category.

He studied music for five years, from 1985 until 1990, at the Higher Institute of Music in Lebanon and specialized in playing the Oud (oriental guitar) and in singing techniques.

He has starred in many concerts and festivals including the Jarash festival, the Carthage festival, and in a number of concerts around the Arab world, Europe and America.

He has released 13 albums and is firmly established as a major star in the Region. His most popular songs include “Wani Mareq Mareet”, “Ahebbak Gedan”, “Amshi Lihali”, “Mali Saber”, “Ahla Al Oyounv”, “Shoag El Sahara” and “Kayed Ozzalak”, all of which are included on his new ‘Best of’ compilation which spans his entire career to date.

Following the success of “Kayed Ozzalak”, “Shoug El Sahari” and “Ahla El Oyoun”, the Lebanese superstar is back with a new and varied album, a new beautiful “Howara”, Spanish style with “Meshta’a La ‘Oyounak”, strong poetry with “’Ater Al Mahabah”, and many other songs in a wonderful album which includes 12 tracks as follows:

‘Ater Al Mahabah, El Wafa ‘Anwan, Telly, Dayem Doum, Khaleeny Haddek, Sam’ani Kalam, Meshta’a La ‘Oyounak, Admantu Hawaki, Seebouni Atkallem, La Tsadeg, Howara, ‘Oyoun El Shou’a.

Websites:
- AssiHallani.8m.net

Amal Hejazy

Amal Hijazi has however strongly refused to be compared to them, saying she does not rely on her outer looks and seduction techniques to gain popularity, but rather focuses on her feelings to send out her message to people’s hearts. Hijazi added that not once throughout her singing career has she acquired such measures as her colleagues like making sexually intimidating music videos to reach popularity and has solely depended on her talent to sing and her self respect.

Currently one of the most active Lebanese singers, Hijazi has given a number of concerts throughout the world and has made countless TV appearances. She is also well known for her support in charity projects and is also a distinguished Panasonic brand ambassador.

She currently has four blockbuster hit albums to her name and this young star has witnessed ground breaking success. She is currently one of the most popular Lebanese singers ever. She has gone on countless tours throughout the globe and has found success in many Arab countries, extending towards Europe and America.

First Singles and Zaman
Her first single was called "Halan" ("Right Away")in 2000, it was followed by her second single "Rayyah Balak" ("Put Your Mind at Ease") one year later, for which she also shot a music video. On the same year her debut album Akher Gharam including the hit single "Rayyah Balak" was produced by Dilara Master Production and distributed by Music Master.

Hijazi's next single called "Einak" ("Your Eyes") released 2002 was again produced by Dilara Master Production, was a great duet with the Raï star Faudel. The song was played heavily on the radio and the music video was broadcasted all over the Arab Satellite Channels. It is considered to be the video that made Amal the popular Arabic singer she is today.

Zaman
Amal then followed up that huge successful single with her blockbuster hit album, Zaman (Long Ago). The album broke sales records; critics and fans were thrilled alike.

The title track, Zaman went on top become one of the biggest hits ever in the Middle East and to date is still considered her best song amongst her fans. Another single 'Romancia' was also a big hit for Hijazi, continuing the streak of hit singles off of her second album. The music video for 'Romancia' was one of the most popular of 2003.

Betdawwar A Albi and Bayaa El Ward
After the huge success of Zaman and Akher Gharam, Amal's career took another turn for the better when she was approached by the Middle East's largest recording label, Rotana. It is owned and headed by Saudi Prince Al Walid Bin Talal and has offices in Dubai, Beirut, Cairo and most recently Tunisia. An agreement between the parties was made, and this young popstar was now part of the "Rotana Family of Artists".

Work on a new album began immediately. Expert poets, writers and composers were enlisted to work on Hijazi's upcoming album, Bedawwar A Albi which was to be release in 2004. The album contained 11 songs and the singles, Betdawwar A Albi and Mestani Eih became one of the greatest hits of 2004. Although Bedawwar A Albi didn't become as famous as Zaman, the singles were great hits and Mestani Eih became one of the most marketed songs of 2004.

In 2005, after a long absence from the scenes, Hijazi planned on releasing a new single, Ba'ad Sneen (After Years). The video tells the story of a young girl suffering for many years when her lover didn't return to her she finds it hard to accept his wish to come back to her after all what she endured. The single was later included in her latest blockbuster hit album, Baya al Ward.

Hijazi has won huge acclaim from both fans and critics by the release of her latest album,"Baya al Ward" (The Florist). The music video of the single was heavily criticized and caused huge controversies that she was promoting homosexuality. Hijazi denied the allegations but critics argued that, the T-shirt she was wearing in the mucic video had several symbols imprinted on it, which belonged to a garment manufacturer that specializes in clothing for homosexuals. At a press conference she held in Dubai to announce the launch of her album, Hijazi clarified that she did not know what the symbols on the shirt meant or that she never thought to find out when she chose to wear it.

Critics argued that Hijazi had gone to the extreme and cut her hair shorter than that of an ordinary woman. They accused the video of being unorthodox because Hijazi cuts her hair off and drowns herself at the end out of depression over the guy who left her.

Despite of the heavy controversy behind the video,"Bayaa al Ward" is considered Hijazi's finest album both by fans and the casual listeners, although it is not as famous as Zaman. Despite of her fame, Amal, however, still remains an underrated artist at Rotana and has previously complained about the second-rate treatment she received from them. (Source: Wikipedia.org)

Amr Diab

Early life
Amr Diab was born in Port Said, Egypt into an artistic family. His father, Abdul Basset Diab, worked for the Suez Canal Corporation where he was working as a well-known porter in the marina and part time sheep herder. He possessed a fine singing voice and encouraged the young Diab to sing and dance at the mawaled (street festivals) in this early age.

When Diab was just six years old, his father took him to the July 23 Festival at Port Said where they visited the local broadcasting station and Amr made his first singing appearance on Egyptian Radio performing the National Anthem Bilady, Bilady, Bilady. He was praised by the Governor of Port Said who awarded him with a guitar as a prize.

Career overview
In due course, Diab began his musical studies at the music department of the Cairo Academy of Art and from which he graduated in 1986. His first album Ya Tareeq followed shortly and was an instant success. There have been, since then, 16 top selling albums in a prolific recording career which has established him as the super-star of Egypt and the Arab world.

Diab has toured widely throughout his career organizing galas and performing concerts in Australia, Canada, Europe and the United States.

In 1990, Diab was chosen to represent Egypt at the 5th Tournament of African Sports where he sang in English and French as well as Egyptian Arabic. This concert was televised by satellite throughout the Arab world and highlighted on CNN. He became the first Egyptian artist to make a video clip and in a parallel career, has acted in several films including Deahk We La'ab (Laughter & Fun), a film which opened the Egyptian Film Festival in 1993. In this film, directed by Tarek Al Telmasani, Diab played opposite the world famous Egyptian actor Omar Sharif. In the film Ice Cream fi Gleem directed by Khairi Bishara, Diab played the role of the main hero. The singer has already been the subject of three biographies – Amr Diab, the owner of my heart, The Rebellious and Amr Diab, Star of the 20th century. He is nicknamed the Rebellious due to comparisons made with his contemporaries, in his clothes, hairstyling, the performance and execution of his music, the melodies he composes and his many appearances at parties.

Diab became known for the new 'style' of his music which people throughout the Middle East and the Mediterranean world came to call "Mediterranean Music" referring to its blend of Western and Middle Eastern/Egyptian rhythms. He was named, by most satellite and TV stations, as the Best Singer in the Arab World throughout the nineties and continually sets new sales records with successive album releases.

Nour El Ain
In 1996, Nour El Ain (Light of The Eye – Sight) was released, becoming a tremendous success not only in the Middle East but throughout the entire world. The song was composed by Nasser Elmezdawy, lyrics were written by Ahmed Sheta and it was arranged by Hameed Elshaery. The title track, and its English version "Habibi", was an international phenomenon, becoming a massive crossover hit in countries such as Brazil, Pakistan, India, Iran, Afghanistan, Argentina, Chile, France and South Africa. It was even more prominent when it was featured as a track in Brazillian telenovela O Clone. The song was remixed by several top European arrangers and has become a big pull on the dance floors of Europe. The video clip, also produced by Alam El Phan for the song "Nour El Ain", was one of the most lavish and expensive productions in the field of Egyptian song, and set a new standard for his contemporaries to aspire to. Nour El Ain has become the best selling album ever released by an Arabic artist.

In 1997, Amr Diab won three Awards at the Annual Arabic Festival (for Best Video, Best Song and Artist of the Year). In the following year, he received a Triple Platinum Award for the sales of Nour El Ain, and received a World Music Award in Monaco on 6 May 1998, under the patronage of H.S.H. Albert II, Prince of Monaco, and attended by such International luminaries as Gloria Estefan, Céline Dion, Mariah Carey, The Backstreet Boys, Steven Segal and others. This award was the first of its kind for an Egyptian artist, emphasising that his appeal is not just confined to the Middle East unlike the majority of his contemporaries.

Awedooni
His follow-up studio album entitled Awedooni was released in July 1998, and as for Nour El Ain it was produced with Hamid El Shary and recorded in Cairo, Egypt. The first video from the album, the title track "Awedooni", was shot by the river Nile in Egypt and directed by Tareq Al Aryan. Like its predecessor, this album was a huge success for Amr and reinforced his popularity in the Arab world and abroad.

The Best of Amr Diab released in early 1999 contained a brand new song "Maham Kibirt Sugheir" recorded as a tribute to the Legends of Arabic music such as Umm Kulthum and Abdel Halim Hafez that have influenced him. A strong ballad with a spectacular video of the concert footage inspired by Puff Daddy (whom he met at the Monaco Awards) it became another big hit for Diab. The album also contains a previously unreleased European remix of "Habibi", and the most popular songs from Amr's albums of the 1990s.

Diab released his July 1999 new studio album Amarain, (two moons) which is hailed as the best work of his career to date. Amr is working on eagerly anticipated duets with the France based international Rai superstar, Khaled of "Didi" fame, and with the Greek singer, Angela Dimitrou, whose crossover smash "Marguerites" was a huge hit across the Middle East in 1998. The title track Amarain is the first video to be broadcast and the album seems certain to confirm Amr's position as the leading and most innovative artist from the Middle East.

Tamally Ma'ak
Diab made revolutionized Arab music when he issued Tamally Ma'ak. He introduced the Spanish guitar in his song "Tammaly Ma'ak" and in other songs. The clip of this song was made in the Czech Republic with much success. The album contained songs like "Al'alem Allah", "Ba'terf", "Sa'ban Alaea" and "We hea Amla Eah".

Aktar Wahed
On 1 August 2001, and after a great anticipation by the huge number of fans, Aktar Wahed was released. The album's name is a short for one of the songs "Aktar Wahed Beyhebbak". It contains 10 tracks and a bonus oriental remix for the song "Wala Ala Balo". "Wala Ala Balo", a well-studied mash up of both Trance/Techno rhythms and Oriental Arabic Music. The song featured the rapper SandMan. The video on the other hand was shot in London in a discotheque. An even newer style for Amr Diab, he received a number of Platinum Awards for the sales of the album, and received his second World Music Award in Monaco in 2001 for best selling album for middle-eastern singer, the album contains a good number of significant songs like "Adeeni Rege'telek", "Ya Habeeby La", "Sadda'ni Khalas" and "Ba'edd Ellayali".
Allem Albi
Later in 2003, Diab released Allem Alby (Teach My Heart). The album's release date was arranged to be with the debut broadcast of Alam El Phan's (Allem Alby's Production Company, Owned by Mohsen Gaber) music channel "Mazzika".

The album was a great success, with the release of the video "Ana Ayesh" which was directed by Stuart Gosling. The video was intensely broadcasted on Mazzika . The album contains other songs, like the album-titled "Allem Alby" which is a solid R&B influenced hit. Others that tend to be more oriental like "Kolohom", "Law Ash'any" and "Alli El Wada'".

Rotana
In between 2003 and 2004, and after a long successful career with Alam El Phan, Diab officially announced the termination of his contract with Mohsen Gaber (owner of Alam El Phan). Rumors were spread around about the tense situation going on between Gaber and Diab. Then other rumors circulated that Saudi Prince Waleed Bin Talal (owner of Rotana) has lured Amr with offering a better deal.

In the second half of 2006, unconfirmed news have been reported saying that Amr Diab will no longer be working with rotana, and that he has secretly signed a blockbuster 3 albums and 2 films contract with Cairo-based film production company Good News for Film and Music owned by his friend Adel Adeeb
Leily Nahary
In late summer of 2004, Diab's first album with Rotana was released, titled Leily Nahary (My Nights, My Days). The album's cover was from the promotional photo shoot of Pepsi. The video "Leily Nahari" directed by Casey Cameron which provided aid to give Amr his space in the record-exclusive music channels. It was still criticized because of its similarity to his previously unreleased video for "El Alem Allah" from the album Tamally Ma'ak.

Kammel Kalamak (Keep Talking)
Diab's latest album, Kammel Kalamak is the long anticipated follow up to Leily Nahary. It was rumoured to be released in the summer of 2005 but was pushed back to Eid. The album took a reported $4M to record, and is Rotana's biggest album of 2005.
Amr album.JPG Full album releases appeared on many websites prior to its official release, which is speculated to be the reason why the album's release date was suddenly shortened to a few days prior to the previously mentioned release date.

The love ballad "We Malo" was released as the single of the album, Kammel Kalamak. The music video was shot in London and was released on a late notice after the release of the album. Rumors surfaced in late 2005 and early 2006 stated that Amr is considering terminating his contract with Rotana due to the poor promotion of his latest album, Kammel Kalamak.

El Leila De (Tonight)
The album was originally set to be released after Ramadan 2006. However, it was pushed back several times due to Diab's repeated changes in the musical producers he was dealing with. Diab attributes the changes to the producer's lack of new and strong styles. In early 2006, Music Arranger Fahd was supposed to work on this album; however, later that year Dr. Tarek Madkour joined Amr Diab, and they started together to work on it. On 25 March 2007, Madkour's official website announced that Amr Diab and Madkour had decided jointly to skip the collaboration on the album due to the lack of time and conflicting working schedules. Fahd and a new producer called Hasan Al Shafei are elected to produce the music in the album, which is supposed to hit the markets in July 2007, also the name Khaleek Ma'aya is changed, El Leila De is the current suggested title, after the release Amr will shoot a new Pepsi advertisement in Europe. On June 21, 2007, two of the biggest sites(AmrDiabWorld.com & AmrDiab.info) for Amr Diab announced that the album, now entitled El Lilady, would hit the market on July 7, 2007. The album would contain 10 tracks; AL Shafei and Fahd shared the production Al Shaei 7 songs & Fahd 3 Songs. Before releasing his album, Diab traveled to Portugal to shoot the new Pepsi ad choosing "Rohy Mertahalak" song from his upcoming album El Leila De as the ad music. Amr then traveled to the USA to film the music video for his upcomming album.

The 10 tracks included in El Leila De are finalized and set in the following order on the upcoming album: 1. Ne Oul Eih 2. El Leila De 3. Toul Ma 'Ana Shaifak 4. Hekayat 5. Inta El Ghaly 6. Rohy Mertahalak 7. Aletly Oul 8. We Fehmt Einak 9. Dekhet 10. Khalik Ma'aya

The album master copy was given to Rotana, Amr Diab's cd production company, on the last week of June to meet the 07/07/07 release date he had planned earlier. Rotana however has delayed the release of the new cd for a couple of days for unknown reasons. The album has also been leaked but Diab's increasing fan base have impressively not allowed the leaked copy to be distributed on the internet although later on sadly, it got actually leaked. The album was officially released on July 11th, 2007. The album has already become a huge hit in Egypt and all over the middle-east. The album sold over 1,000,000 copies in only 5 days of release. The video clip has been slated for a July 27th release. The song Amr chose to flim was N'eoul Eih, which is unique with the new style of Techno mixed with oriental arabic music. The video clip was filmed in Los Angeles. El Leila De has once again proved that Amr Diab is the middle east's top singer. On July 27th, Rotana News announced that "El Leila De" has sold over 2 million copies in less than two weeks in the middle east, which gives the album a good chance to surpass "Kammel Kalamaks" 3 million copies in one month. The album is currently avaliable to buy on many websites.

Future
After the release of "El Leila De", Amr Diab's contract has now officially ended with Rotana. Rumours have been spreading that he will sign with Good News 4 Music, while Rotana tries to re-sign him to another contract. Although Rotana's 20 Million offer is higher than Good New's 18 Million, Amr Diab will probably sign with Good News, after the very poor promotion for his previous album with Rotana.

Endorsements
Amr Diab has taken part in an internationally known Pepsi commercial featuring four other pop musicians; Beyoncé Knowles, Pink, Jennifer Lopez, and Britney Spears. In the US version, Enrique Iglesias takes the role of the Cesar. But in the pan Arab version, the four American singers were maintained but the male figure was replaced with Diab. This was not the first Pepsi commercial Diab has done; he also filmed one using his songs "Ana Aktar wahed", "Allem Alby" and "Khad Alby Ma'aa". Diab also appeared in a commercial along side Jennifer Lopez, singing The Troggs hit "Wild Thing". The latest Commercial by Amr Diab was filmed in Portugal, and was officially released on August 4th, 2007. Amr Diab used the song "Enta El Ghaly" from his "El Leila De" album in the commercial.

Personal life
Amr Diab has four children. His oldest daughter, Nour was born in 1990 from his first wife Sherine Rida; his twins, Abdullah and Kenzy were born in 1999; and his youngest daughter, Jana was born in 2001. Amr's second wife, and mother of his three youngest, is Zena Ashour. Amr Diab currently resides in Cairo.

Discography

El Leila De (Tonight) (2007)
Kammel Kalamak (Keep Talking) (2005)
Leily Nahary (My nights, My days) (2004)
Allem Alby (Teach My heart) (2003)
Aktar Wahed (The Most One) (2001)
Tamally Maak (Always with you) (2000)
Amarain (Two Moons) (1999)
Awedony (They Make Me Used To) (1998)
Nour Alain (Light Of The Eye) (1996)
Rag'een (We're Returning) (1995)
Weylomony (And They Blame Me) (1994)
Zekrayat (Memories) (1994)
Ya Omrina (Our Lifetime) (1993)
Ayyamna (Our Days) (1992)
Ice Cream Fe Gleem (Ice-cream In Glym) (1992)
Habiby (My Darling) (1991)
Matkhafeesh (Don't Be Afraid) (1990)
Shawwa'na (Excite us) (1989)
Mayyal (Susceptible) (1988)
Khalseen (We're Even) (1987)
Hala Hala (Welcome) (1986)
Ghanny Men Albak (Sing From Your Heart) (1984)
Ya Tareek (Hey Road) (1983)
Unreleased singles

"Allah Aleeha"
"Wehyat Eneik"
"Ana Mahma Kbert"
"Ya Nasee Wa`dak"
"Rooh Alby"
"Elly Bene We Benak"
"Bahabak"
"Sebtak"
"Salemtelak"
"Ana Delw`te"
"Steen Million Fedai'"
"El Qods Di Ardena"
(Source: Wikipedia.org)

Official Website: www.amrdiabworld.com

Angham

Beginnings
Angham (Arabic for melodies) comes from a musical family. Her father Mohammad Suleiman is a renowned Egyptian composer. Her uncle, Imad Abdel Haleem, a singer, was married to the famous belly-dancer, Nagua Fouad, but died at the age of thirty. Angham, affected by the death of her uncle, whom she loved very much, released later an expressive and angry song called "Leih Ya Donia Hazzi Ma'aki Kida?" ("Why is My Luck Like This?"). Angham has two siblings: her sister, Ghinwah, and her brother, Khaled, who is also a young musician. Her first contact with an audience was at the age of seventeen with her Mother's Day song "El Gannah Taht Akdamik" ("Paradise is Beneath your Feet").

Angham's success started with her first album Fil Rokn El Baeed elHadi (In the Far Distant Corner) in 1989. Its success inspired her to improve her musical abilities. She studied in the Conservatory of Music in Cario, and excelled in playing the Oud.

The 80's
Angham's following albums concentrated on classic melodies with poetic lyrics and an oriental flavour. She released many albums in Egyptian Arabic. Albums like Khally Bokra La Bokra (Keep Tomorrow for Tomorrow), Betheb Meen (Who Do You Love?) and Ella Ana (Except Me) gained much success in Egypt. Angham's fluency in speaking the Gulf dialect helped her to gain considerable fame in Arabic Gulf countries, and several prominent singers praised her voice, including: Shadia, Fayrouz, Najat and the Algerian singer Warda. At this time, Arabic music was affected by western influence, with pop superstars such as Amr Diab, Mohamed Mounir and Medhat Saleh. After a few successful albums with her father, Angham refused to work with him anymore, in the hope of modernising her style. Her father, surprised by this, disowned her and swore not to participate in any future artistic collaboration with her.

Wahdaniya
Her 1999 album Wahdaniya (Lonely Woman), presented a new transformation in her music. While keeping the poetic lyrics and oriental flavor, Angham chose more rapid music, minimizing the long tunes. As music videos had become popular, Angham shot her first video for the song "Ba'atly Nazra" ("Send Me a Glance") from this album. She appeared in a classic look, resembling that of Leila Mourad. After this video, she received an offer to play the role of Leila Mourad in a movie, but she refused it, knowing Leila Mourad's popularity and reputation in Egypt. After that, Angham shot another music video for her song "Bithebbaha Walla" ("Do You Love Her or What?") which marked a transformation in her looks to a more modern style.

Leih Sebtaha?
During the Wahdaniya album, Angham's marriage destabilized. After disappearing from the music scene for two years, Angham was finally divorced from her husband, Magdy Aref, who had been her manager and the director of some of her previous videos. Angham found herself obliged to take care of their child, Omar, and thus slowed down the rate at which she produced albums. However, in 2001, Angham released her most popular album, Leih Sebtaha? (Why Did You Leave Her?), which stayed at number one in the Egyptian charts for many months. The secret of its success was the song "Sidi Wisalak". The video for the song, directed by Ahmad elMahdy, showed her with a new look. In the video, Angham plays the role of a young singer who falls in love with a man who she often meets at the train station. At the end of the video, the man returns to Angham, afer discovering her love for him by listening to the radio. People were amazed by the transformation to Angham's looks after she hired a Lebanese stylist to take care of her appearance. She received two awards; "best video for 2001" and "best female singer for 2001" in Cairo's Annual Music ceremony. She also participated with Zekra in a duet about Intifada: "Nihlam Eih?" ("What Shall We Dream Of?").

Omry Maak
Omry Maak, produced by Alam Elphan, was released in August 2003. With this album, Angham turned to a new western flavour, similar to that of Amr Diab. With director, Ahmad elMahdy, Angham shot the "Omry Maak" video, in which she appeared with her son. Angham wanted to shoot "Arefha Biya" ("Introduce Me to Her") as a second video, but Alam Elphan refused, as shooting a second song was not in their contract with the singer. This resulted the separation of the singer from the company.

Before the release of Omry Maak, the press attacked Angham for secretly marrying her Kuwaiti arranger, Fahed. Angham responded by officially announcing the marriage after she joined another music production company, Rotana, owned by Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal. Angham promoted the album by appearing on many talk shows, and programs such as Star Academy 1, El beit beitak, Moubashar with Mahmoud Sa'd and Star Search.

Bahibbik Wahashteeny
After joining Rotana, Angham worked secretly for two years to produce a romantic album called Bahibbik Wahashteeny (I Love You, I Missed You). Angham worked with singers and composers including the female poet Hind El Kady, who wrote two songs for her, "Albak" (Your Heart) and "Tetghayar" (Changing). Bahibbik Wahashteeny marks Angham's return to her roots. The album includes two seven minute tracks, "Albak" and "Inta Meen" (Who Are You). Angham announced that she was pregnant with her second child, and Egypt celebrated her reconciliation with her father, ending their ten year dispute. Angham promised that she would work with her father on her 2007 album.

Her last album was released on July 25, 2005, but due to fatigue after her two hour performance in the Carthage Film Festival in Tunis, she was forced to postpone the shooting of promotional videos. She agreed to work with director Nadine Labaki on the album's title song, but shooting was postponed due to Nadine's busy schedule. Angham finally summoned Egyptian director Hady Elbagoury to direct the video, which was shot in El-Gouna, in the far south of Egypt. Her husband, Fahed, joined her to act a part in the video. "Bahibbik Wahashteeny" surpassed the success of Angham's 2001 hit, "Sidi Wisalak". After making the video, Angham was hospitalized with a kidney stone. (Source: wikipedia.org)

Official Website : www.anghaam.com

Asalah

Family
Asalah was born in Damascus, Syria. She has been active since 1991. She has two children: Sham and Khaled from her first husband Ayman Al Zahabi. They were divorced in 2005. Then she married Tarek Al Eryan who is a famous director in 2006.

Career
Her late father Mostafa Nasri was a well known singer in Syria. He discovered her talent for singing and pushed her into the career when she was 4 years old to perform children's, patriotic and religious songs. She sang the intro "Qesas Al Sho'oob" of the very popular cartoon "Hekayat Alamiyah".

Asalah and her father
She was very attached with her father who died in 1986. It was the greatest shock in her life. She stopped singing for three years and took the role as father and mother of her younger brothers and sisters: Reem, Amani, Ayman and Ayham.

Bahraini citizenship
Although she is Syrian she holds a Bahraini citizenship since 2006. It was granted to her by Bahraini King Hamad Bin Issa Al Khalifa. The singer was granted citizenship a few days after she gave a spectacular performance in the operetta Love and Loyalty in celebration of Bahrain’s Independence Day. (Source: Wikipedia.org)

Official Website: www.assalanasry.com

Carole Sakr

Karol Sakr

Official Website: www.karolsakr.com

Carole Samaha

After graduating from school, Carole decided to study drama, It was at St Joseph University of Beirut where she took her master degree in Acting & Directing and graduated in 1999.

Since her very first play at University, Carole has been chosen for the leading female role in most important musicals in Lebanon as well as T.V. series.

"Chameleon" is the word most artists and directors who worked with Carole use to describe her. On stage, she is gifted with a multi-faceted personality; exactly like a Chameleon, she swiftly and smoothly changes from one state of mind to another one.

Not only Carole proved herself as an actress, her voice is individual with an ability to express character. This allowed her to perform many songs written by great composers in the Middle East such as Mansour Rahbani.
As a result, Carole succeeds in introducing herself as a promising whole artist who can sing and act with equal aptitude.

Carole is currently essentially focusing on her singing career. Her many hits include Habib Alby, Ettale’a Feya, and Methl El Helm.

Websites:
- Carole Samaha
http://www.carolesamaha.com/

Cheb Mami

Assumed Name: Cheb Mami ?? ????

Date of Birth: July 11th 1966

Horoscope: Cancer ???????

Place of Birth: Saida, Algeria ???????

Nationality: Algerian , French ?????? , ?????

Work: Singer, Composer ????, ????

Cheb Mami, real name Mohamed Khelifati (born July 11, 1966 in Saida, Algeria) is an Algeria-born raï singer.

He sings in both French and Maghribi Arabic.

In 1982, the 16-year-old adolescent sang on the "Alhan wa Chabab" radio show, a singing competition organised by Radio Télevision Algérienne. He sang "El Marsam" (The Sanctuary) a classic of Oranese music from the 1920s. The audience was transfixed by the sheer emotion of his performance and by his sinuous vocal intonations which captured perfectly the flavour of the song's title. The judges, who represented a government which refused to admit even the existence of raï, gave the first prize to a cover version of a hit by the famous Egyptian diva, Oum Kalthoum, but were forced to acknowledge the standing ovation Mami received by awarding him second prize.

Cheb Mami was spotted by Boualem, the producer of the Oran label, Disco Maghreb, and the cassette waltz began. From 1982 to 1985, Cheb Mami recorded about ten cassettes, whose production varied from 100,000 to 500,000 copies.

Cheb Mami made his first official public appearance at the First Oran Raï Festival in 1985, which marked the official recognition of the genre by the Algerian authorities.

As well as recording many straight raï songs, Cheb Mami has achieved crossover success with the hip-hop remix of his track "Parisien du Nord" on his album Meli Meli and also with the backing vocals on Sting's hit "Desert Rose".

When Sting's album was released in 2000, the pair's duet, "Desert Rose", went rocketing to the top of singles charts around the world, fulfilling Mami's long-held dream of internationalising Raï sounds.

Perhaps Mami's most successful recording is the album Dellali, produced by former CHIC guitarist Nile Rodgers, which was released soon after his collaboration with Sting.

Coincidentally, the album's lead single is entitled "Le Rai C'est Chic" - although the word is used in the original French sense.

Selected discography

- Prince of Rai (1989)
- Let Me Raï (1991)
- Saida (1994)
- Douni El Bladi (1996)
- Meli Meli (1999)
- Dellali (2001)
- Du Sud au Nord (2003)
- Live au Grand Rex (2004)
- Layali (2006)

Websites:
- Cheb Mami - Official website

Cheb Mami

He sings in both Maghribi Arabic and French.

Biography
In 1982, the 16-year-old adolescent sang on the "Alhan wa Chabab" radio show, a singing competition organised by Radio Télevision Algérienne. He sang "El Marsam" (The Sanctuary) a classic of Oranese music from the 1920s. The audience was transfixed by the sheer emotion of his performance and by his concordant vocal intonations which captured perfectly the flavour of the song's title. The judges, who represented the government which refused to admit even the existence of raï, gave the first prize to the contestant that sang a cover version of a hit by the famous Egyptian diva, Umm Kulthum, but were forced to acknowledge the standing ovation Mami received by awarding him second prize.

Cheb Mami was spotted by Boualem, the producer of the Oran label, Disco Maghreb, and the cassette waltz began. From 1982 to 1985, Cheb Mami recorded about ten cassettes, whose production varied from 100,000 to 500,000 copies.

Cheb Mami made his first official public appearance at the First Oran Raï Festival in 1985, which marked the official recognition of the genre by the Algerian authorities.

He was in military service for two years in Algeria.After that in May of 1989, Mami returned to the Paris at the Olympia, rejuvenating Rai Music. He then toured the United States, the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Spain, Scandinavia and England.

Mami’s music is a blend of Mediterranean and Western influences including Turkish,Flamenco and Greek music as well as Latin music. His voice tinged with Andalusian accents, his music is amalgamation of the traditional and the modern styles of singing and creation of Music.

As well as recording many straight raï songs, Cheb Mami has achieved crossover success with the hip-hop remix of his track "Parisien du Nord" on his album Meli Meli and also with the backing vocals on Sting's hit "Desert Rose" and "Youm Wara Youm" the title track of which is a duet with Samira Said .

When Sting's album was released in 2000, the pair's duet, "Desert Rose", went rocketing to the top of singles charts around the world, fulfilling Mami's long-held dream of internationalising Raï sounds.

Perhaps Mami's most successful recording is the album Dellali, produced by former Chic guitarist Nile Rodgers, which was released soon after his collaboration with Sting. The album's lead single was "Le Rai C'est Chic".

Cheb Mami is currently under an international arrest warrant after being indicted in October 2006 for "voluntary violence, sequestration and threats" against an ex-girlfriend, and failing to answer a court summons on May 14 2007. He is accused of having tried to force his former girlfriend, a magazine photographer, to have an abortion. During a trip to Algeria in the summer of 2005, the alleged victim is said to have been locked in a house belonging to one of Mami's friends, where an abortive procedure was attempted on her. Back in France, however, she realised the foetus was still alive and decided to keep the child. Mami has reportedly accused his manager of organising the abortion plan. (Source: Wikipedia.org)

Official Website : www.chebmami.net

Dania

Her debut single, "Yalla Bina", released in October 1996. Her self-titled album, "Dania" was released by EMI Music Arabia in September 1997. (Source: Wikipedia.org)

Darine
Darine is a Swedish artist. With two albums in account, her breakthrough was through her debut hit single "Aiwa" in her album Ma Rulez.

Overview
Darine is of a Lebanese father and half-Hungarian, half-Romanian mother. She grew a passion for R&B and hip hop music and honed her singing skills to pursue her career in producing and performing such music. As she got her breakthrough in 2004 with her debut hit single "Aiwa", Darine was thought to be a one-hit-wonder but she came to a time with two successful albums in account.

Darine's "Aiwa" got popular for the simple lyrics, heavy hip hop beat roations along with sounds of Oriental string instruments. The song was released in summer 2004, produced by EMI music Arabia & PRO Music. Darine resides and is a citizen of Sweden. She claims that though the fact that most her music is directed to Hip-Hop, R&B loving Arab audience, Sweden was a good place to cultivate her talent where she ended up with her buddy producer, SoulClap.

After the success of the first single, Darine released her album Ma Rulez, which included two versions of the song "Aiwa" along with 14 new tracks. The album included "Ja Leily" which is pronounced "Ya Leily". This was Darine's second single, but the music video had a different version of the previously included track in the album.

Surprisingly enough, Darine relaunched a music video for her first hit "Aiwa", which didn't get good reception as the track already had a video. The broadcast of the new music video didn't last long. In the outro found on Ma Rulez, Darine gives a special thanks and states she's been working with SoulClap on the second album ever since. (Source: Wikipedia.org)

Darine Hadchiti
Darine Hadchiti born 1981 is a Lebanese singer. She started her debut in 2005. Within one year, she was able to attain a great level of success whether in the MENA region or on a worldwide basis and is famous for her first single Eddam El Kel. She is now known as one of the most famous young Arab singers in the world because of her vocal talent, charisma, and videos.

She was born in Hadchit, Lebanon and began singing when she was 13. She won the 2001-2002 studio El Fann bronze medal for her lovely voice. She began her singing career upon signing with the Lea Production Team, managed by George Anastasiades, the owner of the Anastasia Group. Darine Hadchiti, after the launch of her second album "Irtahlak Albi", now participates in numerous concerts and festivals all over the world. She is currently shooting a couple of videos for her latest album and preparing for the release of her new album in 2007.

Darine Hadchiti was recently nominated for the best female artist in the arab world, the best video and the best single. She won the best video award for "Irtahlak Albi", a clip filmed in Australia with the acclaimed director Jad Haber.

Darine Hadchiti's name is printed in most of the arab media products, be it magazine articles, tv appearences (recently MBC's Album 5)or radio interviews. (Source: Wikipedia.org)

Official Website : www.darinehadchiti.com

Dina Hayek

Musical career
Hayek started her career year 1999 as a solo artist. She studied music at Kaslik University, before taking private courses for 3 years with Fouad Houad and two years Rafik Houbaika whom are both well known musicians in Lebanon.

Concerts
An active singer, Hayek has given a number concerts and festivals in Lebanon, Egypt and Gulf Region. Her great voice got the attention of the famed Syrian singer, George Wassouf with whom she performed with in many concerts. She has also worked with Melhem Barakat in few concerts.

Massive Hits
Dina's massive hits include, Helwi Minnak, Darb el-Hawa and Ta'ala Albi.

Other Information
Her brother is her business manager. (Source: Wikipedia.org)

Official Website: www.dinahayekonline.com

Ehab Tawfik

He started in 1989 with his first single "Dany", that song was on the Top. First album was in 1990 in title "Ekminny". In 1995 he received his Masters Degree for his thesis: "The Egyptian Song in the Second Half of the Twentieth Century". Not satisfied with just a master degree, Ehab worked toward his Doctorate in Music and Arabic singing, completed in April 2002. The doctorate was entitled "The Methods of Performing Arabic Singing in Egypt during the second half of the last century".

He is seen as one of the top singers in the Arab world, especially revered in his hometown. Arguably, his greatest exposure as an artist came on February 26, 2001, when he performed for 50,000 people at a benefit concert to raise funds for Iraqis who were maimed during the Gulf War in Baghdad.

Critics say the successes of Ehab albums year after year can be attributed to his warm voice, good lyrics, and ability to find talented composers.

In 2006, Ehab denied rumors that he had an affair with the model that appears with him in the video "Alaf Kilmit Hub" ("The Sweetest Love Word"). He said that she lives in Germany and came to Egypt solely to work as a model. She was born to an Egyptian father and a German mother, he added.There has been news spreading about a new love affair in his life with ART TV host. He will soon marry Audrey.

its
His hit songs include "Habibi" ("My Darling"), "Sahrany" ("She Enchanted Me"), "Tetraga Feya" ("Begging Me"), "Hobbak Aliminni" ("Your Love Taught Me"), and Allah Alek Ya Seede. (Source: Wwikipedia.org)

Official Website: www.ehabtawfik.com

Elissa

Elissa has won two World Music Awards for best-selling artist in the Middle East in 2005 and 2006. Total sales of her albums are close to 18 million, making her one of the most popular Lebanese singers ever. lissa is also one of the wealthiest Lebanese singers and her wealth is estimated to be nearly $31 million.Elissa is also known for accusing the singer, Amal Hijazi for imitating her style especially in the video of Hijazo's song, Bedawwar A Albi (Searching for my heart). Hijazi however denied the accusations, stressing that each of the singers has her own unique style. Hijazi added that her song was filmed long before Elissa's "Hubbak Waja" and has been airing on different satellite channels for some time now. In 2004, however, Hijazi put everything aside and made a personal visit to Elissa to give her condolences after the latter lost her father to cancer. Elissa welcomed Amal with open arms and expressed her gratitude towards Amals attempt to stand by her side at such a troublesome time.

Elissa started her singing career in the early '90s on a talent show, "Studio el Fan," in which she won the silver medal on LBC. After a long absence, she came back with a Spanish-Arabic single, titled "Badi Doub" in 1998. Her first album Baddi Doub was one of the largest-selling albums in Lebanon and the Middle East, selling over 150,000 copies. The album's success resulted in her participation in the renowned International Music Festival in Cannes in 2000.

Her second project in 2000 was a duet with Ragheb Alameh "Betghib Betrouh." The song was included in Elissa's second album W'akherta Ma'ak, which went on to sell more than 1,600,000 copies.

n 2001, she took part in Jordan's 'Fiesta Latina'. She also held a performance at the pyramids of Egypt as the opening act for British superstar Sting. In addition to this, she was the only Arabic artist to perform in front of the former U.S President Bill Clinton at the Stars Charity show in Dubai. Also present at this event were Queen Rania of Jordan and the Crown Prince of Dubai, Cheikh Mohamed Bin Rachid al Maktoum.

Later on, Elissa was featured with the international artist Chris DeBurgh in an Arabic-English song titled "Lebanese Nights", which was written, composed and distributed by DeBurgh. He wrote this song while on his last visit to the country. He decided to sing it with a Lebanese singer, and chose Elissa. The song was recorded in London and released in DeBurgh's 2002 Album, Timing Is Everything.

Her third album Ayshalak was released in June 2002 supported by a video clip filmed in Paris by French director Fabrice Begotti, wardrobe and make up by Christian Dior. Elissa was the first Arab figure to represent Christian Dior. The video and song were huge successes, and with the aid of the composer/arranger Jean-Marie Riachi, Elissa was able to follow with another hit "Agmal Ehsas" was Elissa's second single from Ayshalak. The video clip was directed by the Lebanese director, Selim El Turk. Together Elissa and Selim won the Murex D'Or for the best female artist and the best video clip.

At end of 2002 she inaugurated the opening of Kuwait's Virgin Megastore with Sir Richard Branson, the founder of the famous stores. Also a great success for Elissa was being included in the anthology book '100 Pioneers of Lebanon' alongside artists such as Fairouz, Wadih el Safi, as well as many other celebrities.

In September 2003, Elissa performed at the Hope Charity gala, which took place in the Royal Albert hall, one of London's most prestigious venues. Elissa was the sole representative of the Middle East among other international stars such as Sarah Brightman, Zucchero, and Joaquin Cortes.

In 2003 was her first deal with Pepsi which made her the official female star for Pepsi for the Arab World. It was followed in 2004 by a contract with Ray Ban to promote their campaign.

Elissa's fourth album, Ahla Donya was released in 2004. This was one of the fastest-selling albums ever in the Arab world. This album was the first under Elissa's contract with Rotana, the music production company. The album included a variety of songs, such as Koll Youm Fi Omry, Erga' Lel Shoa', Hobbak Waja' (Inta Lameen) and Ahla Donya. The album received a 2005 World Music Award for best-selling album in the Middle East and North Africa. In 2005, a Special Collector's Edition of the record was made available (1000 copies) with state-of-the-art packaging including a mini-biography. Elissa was rewarded an exceptional Honorable Murex D'Or for being the first Lebanese to receive the World Music Award 2005. In the same event Elissa was also admired for her second success with Lebanese director Selim el Turk and received the best video clip award for the song Hobbak Waja' (directed by Selim el Turk). She was also held the Best Female artist of the year.
Further commercial campaigns included the contract with Lux, and a renewal for her contract with Pepsi.

Elissa is an official spokesperson for Pepsi. In 2006 she co-starred with Christina Aguilera in a Pepsi Cola advertisement. In early 2006, Elissa released her fifth studio effort, the album Bastanak, which has sold nearly 6.2 million copies, according to Rotana. In 2006, Elissa again won the World Music Award for best-selling Middle Eastern artist from the album sales of "Bastanak".

Elissa's fan base increases with every new album. Her concerts are always fully booked with sometimes a huge number of viewers that exceeds the capacity of the stage at which she is performing. Her official fan club page has more than 12,000 members since it relaunched in March 2006.

Bastanak, Elissa's latest album which created a lot of debate among all media representatives for its high production cost and international standards, brought Elissa a lot of success on a local, regional, and international scope of sales leading her to claim her second consecutive World Music Award.

Elissa performed Bastanak the smash hit from her latest album, dazzling the audience with a lovely performance, dedicating the award to her beloved country Lebanon - her Father's soul - and all her fans.

Her album Bastanak received a 2006 World Music Award for best-selling album in the Middle East.

Her current (2007) hit is called Halili and is a duet with Cheb Mami. (Source: Wikipedia.org)

Official Website: www.elissalb.com

Fadl Shaker

Personal Life
Fadl Shaker (Ibn EL Genoob), was born on April 1st, 1969 in Saida (Sidon), a city in Southern Lebanon. He lives in Beirut in a small town called Marta'ala. Fadl Shaker is Palestinian and married to his wife Nadia also Palestinian, and has two children, Mohamed and Alhan. He's also expecting a third child.

Fadl musical talent started early in his age, at the age of 15. Early in his singing career, he performed many original songs by Arab legends like Umm Kulthum (singer), Abdul Haleem Hafez, Fareed El Atrash, Mohamed Abdul Wahab and many other famous singers of his generation as well. He had to overcome many obstacles and hardships as a young aspiring singer before achieving fame.

1997 Early Commercial Success
In 1997, he was discovered by an agent from the recording label Stallions Company, and was signed on to produce three albums. This was Fadl's first significant career break.

Fadl released his first album Wallah Zaman in 1998, which had eight original songs, including Meta Habeby Meta, Nazra Wah. Some of these songs were composed and written by such known Arab stars like Salah El Sharnoby and Ahmed Sheta.

The second album was Baya'a El Qolob released in 1999, and the title song hit # 1 on all charts in the first week of the album's debut. The song was also very popular on radio stations throughout the Middle East. Due to the overwhelming success and huge sales of the album, Fadl decided to produce two music video clips, the first was for the song "Baya'a El Qolob and the second was for Eesheqtak. As a result of his first album's astonishing success, Fadl was catapulted to become one of the top superstars in the Middle East.

2000 - 2002
His third album was El Hob El Adem, released in 2000. It included very famous songs like Ash Men Shafak. This album was also a huge success, just like his previous album. It topped all charts as well. His third album Hobak Khayal was released in 2001, and contained 10 songs this time, and was produced by Al Khoyoul Company. It contained songs like Hazzak Ya Qalby, Men Kotr Hoby Feek, and El Maraya.

In 2002, Fadl recorded and released his first duo with the renowned Arab gulf singer Nawal. This duet topped the charts for five months straight, and broke all sales records in the Arab world. It was voted by music critics as the best duo in the history of Persian Gulf music. Its success was also complemented by the release of a hot music video clip, directed by Ahmed El Doghajy.

In the first album, Fadl Shaker composed three of his famous songs (Meta Habeby Meta, Maserak Habeby and Ya Tkon Habeby), and one song in his 2nd album Malet Ana A'azar. He didn't compose any other songs in the albums that followed.

2003 - Present
In 2003, Fadl released to the radio stations his new smash-hit ballad Ya Ghayeb, which was voted the Best song for 2003 by the radio stations. It became a big hit before the album or any music videos were released. The song reached # 1 status on all Arabic stations in the Middle East. Fadl bought all rights of the tune for his song from the Greek composer and singer Sotis Volanis, and the lyrics were written by Prince (Turky Bin Abdel Rahman El Sudairy), who also wrote another song of Fadl's coming album called Dehkat Eldony.

As of 2007, Fadl Shaker is working on a new album composed by himself.

Fadl Shaker was always concerned about singing maqamat, the hardest of Arabic melodies, and he always tried to preserve the true Arabic musical style in all of his songs. His songs are known not to have any western melody influence. Fadl is known for his unique singing style, and as a result, has built a huge fan base throughout the Middle East.

During his musical career, Fadl has won many prestigious music awards in the Middle East, and in just four years (1998 - 2002) he became one of the Middle East greatest music legends. He was nicknamed by his fans as Malek El Romansia or King of Romance.

Fadl Shaker also performed in major Arabic Festivals in many Arab countries like Egypt, Lebanon, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates,Palestine and other countries worldwide. He recently performed with other well known Arabic singers, in a big festival in Palestine in honor of the Intifada.

Fadl enjoys fishing on his boat at the shores of his birth city ( Saida ),and also enjoys most water sports. He loves to play the Piano, and listen to old and modern music with his wife and kids. (Source: Wikipedia.org)

Official Website: www.fadel-shaker.cjb.net

Fady Badr

He dreamt of celebrity since he was a kid. He grew up in Greece because of the situation at the time. He enjoys swimming, all kinds of sports and music. However, Fadi's ambition didn't end with his achievement at the TV program. He performed in well known night clubs in Lebanon such as Xanadou and Shabaco ... He also performed in Egypt, where his successful events were appreciated among the egyptian youth; he also had activities in several other Arab contries.

Special with his charismatic presence on stage that helps keep people up late partying around. He recorder a duo album along with Egyptian artist Shirine Wajdi "Ashek Maashouk".

He decided to lead his career on a serious professional track, the first fruits were produced by "Diva" production house, owned by Mr. Assaaad Abou Rashed, who believed in him since the first time he saw him singing; thus selected him for the production of the entire album, that was one of the first house products. It enclosed the first clip from Fadi: "Yaji Yamshi" nicely realized with highest techniques.

He traveled in Egypt several times to follow-up on the production of his album and to several and to several arab countries to perform in live performances and concerts. (Source: Fadybadr.com)

Official Website: www.fadybadr.com

George Al Rassi

At 16 years old Georges won his first contract a six months agreement to perdorm at ''Options", the international night club, at Kaslik, Lebanon. He has since achieved great popularity and success at other Lebansese clubs such as ''La Fortuna'' and ''Al Atlal'' as well in a number of tourist locations such as ''Medraj Safra'' and the ''Yasmine Festival'' at Hadath. Further afield he has already appeared at one of Dubai's five-star hotels during aperiod of a month.

In july 1995 Georges met the well-known composer ''Samir Copty''. Samir believed in Georges gifted voice and his meting led to his first hit ''Min Ya Habibi Min''. This was followed, in August by appearances at the ''Mayrouba Festival'' with the ''Carte Blance Night Club'' Georges climb up the ladder of fame continues apace and he has been proud to have signed his first recording contract with ''EMI Music Arabia'', which happily coincided with the opening of EMI Music Lebanon, and with whom he is entrusting his future success. (Source: Georgesalrassi.com)

Official Website: www.georgesalrassi.com

Ghady

Since his early childhood, Ghady loved Arabic Music. He took several courses at the Lebanese Conservatoire, while he was still a student at "La Sagesse" school, Jdeideh.

After finishing his studies at college, he was admitted as a Fireman at the Lebanese Fire Department, then he successfully completed some National Tournament for Life Saving and First Aid. He also worked as a lifeguard, after that he completed his Military Service.

Soon after, he realized that this was not the carrier of his dreams. He wanted to be a singer. Hence, he sang at several Lebanese restaurants and night clubs, but his ambition was far from satisfied.

So he took private lessons in Oriental Music and opened his own restaurant, where he sang every night and there began his journey as a professional singer.

In 2004, he released his first single "Dakhilak 3oud" with a video clip, which was broadcasted in Lebanon and the Arab world. The success of his first song gave him a great boost and encouraged him to release, few months later, his second video clip "Biky Dam", which was his first real HIT and took the first place in several chart shows on radio and TV stations.

Three months later, he released his third single "La3ib" and its success was proved by the huge number of congratulation calls he received from his Fans from all over the world.

His fourth single "Bashe2 Majrou7" was released in December 2004. In the time being, he is working on four new songs to complete his CD, which is due to be released in Summer 2005.

In only one year, Ghady released his four singles with their respective video clips. He took part in several Festivals during summer 2004 all over the Lebanese territory, such as Dhour Choueir, Byblos, Batroun, Ein Ebbel and many other regions.

In addition to these festivals, he performed in Syria and Dubaï. Because of his success he was invited to many interviews with TV stations and art magazines as well as radio stations.

He´s known to have a kind, loving and interesting personality. His hobbies besides music are football, basketball and swimming. (Source: Ghady.net)

Official Website: www.ghady.net

Iwan

Iwan started by composing music to Bassima, Fares Karam, he also wrote the words of a song for Carole Samaha in his early years as an artist.

Iwan started singing at school and university. After performing his military service, Iwan, wrote the words of his first song (Ouedni wkol Inchallah). Iwan made his first videoclip for this song with Walid Nassef as the director. (Source: Wikipedia.org)

Hamada Helal

At school, Hamada sung during the school breaks and entertainment periods. One of his friends would be playing a drum, Hamada would be singing and a girl would be dancing.

When Hamada was seven, one of his relatives heard him while he was singing and took Hamada to a musician. He learned the music basics and was encouraged. The musician told Hamda that he would introduce him to sing at a wedding of one of his relatives after three months. This was the starting point of his career.

Hamada met a popular composer called Hassan Esh Esh. He introduced me to Hamid Elshaerry and presented him to a recording studio. They signed him up to a contract straight away.

Hamada's first appearance as a professional singer was on High Quality album Part 3 and he participated in two songs. He has since produced four albums, his latest being Waheshni. (Source: Wikipedia.org)

Official Website: www.hamadahelal.com

Hossam Ramzy

Hossam's passion and huge talent for percussion was noted by his family, many of whom were themselves involved in the arts. Hossam was encouraged to master his craft and studied under leading Cairo music teachers.

A move to Saudi Arabia led him to joining with many Bedouin tribes which gave the young Hossam a rich insight into the cultural origins of Middle Eastern music and became the inspiration for many of his later rhythmic directions. In the mid 1970's Hossam came to England, and enjoyed great success as a Jazz drummer working with many respected Jazz musicians like Andy Sheperd and Geoff Williams. But as he began looking for new dimensions of percussive sounds, he found himself turning full circle back to his first love, the Egyptian Drums, and the thrilling dance rhythms of the Middle East. Hossam then encorporated all his rhythmic experience into creating a new sound that is heard on hundreds of the world leading albums recorded today.

The club dance scene of 2001 was taken by a storm with Hossam's No# 1 hit EDONY that has topped the dance charts worldwide.The distinctive sound of his Arabian & North African string arrangements, his percussion and exciting rhythms on his albums caught the imagination of Peter Gabriel and Hossam was invited to perform on PASSION and later US, and has just completed the working on Peter's new unreleased album. Hossam has gone on to work with many top musicians including Joan Armatrading & Mary Wilson.

Hossam is known world wide for creating string arrangements and percussion and produced many songs for the world's leading artists such as: Yesim Salkim, Celick Erici, Cheb Khaled, Tarkan, Rachid Taha, Faudel, The Gypsy Kings and the list just goes on.

In 1994 Robert Plant and Jimmy Page (ex-Led Zeppelin) invited Hossam to bring together a band of Arabian musicians and work on their reunion album 'No Quarter - Unledded' for which he was rewarded a GOLD thena PLATINUM discs. This led to Hossam joining Page & Plant on their historic reunion 1995/96 world tour.

During this historic tour, the following headline appeared:
"Hossam Ramzy, The fuel behind the Robert Plant & Jimmy Page's Unledded World Tour."
© The Chicago Times

In November 2001 at the 25th Anniversary of the ARC Music record company, with whom Hossam has released 18 Albums in his own name for the Egyptian dance, he was awarded a PLATINUM disc for being their top selling artist, over 200.000 record sales.

Hossam built his own state of the art recording environment DRUMZY STUDIO, in which he has the latest in recording technolgy mixed in with old;and unique sounds of the best names in recording equipment. With all this available to his finger tips, he can now create many new sounds of the old traditional grooves and Arabian & North African Samples & Loops of which he has no less than 80.000, all in perfect BPM, and ready to use. To date Hossam has recorded and released 4 top selling albums in Drumzy Studio. (Source: Hossamramzy.com)

Official Website: www.hossamramzy.com

Jad Chaouiri

Luggage
Though his parents desperately wanted him to make medical or political studies (his grandfather being a politician), he insisted on going into the world of arts and started his movie directing studies in ''L'Ecole de Réalisation Audiovisielle'' in ALBA. He was the first in his class when he left the country two years later after being accepted in La Sorbonne Paris III. Jad got his degree in ''Arts du Spectacle Option Etudes Cinématographiques'and spent more than three years in Paris traveling around, meeting people and playing in a couple of French university plays. He also played in a Canadian experimental movie valled ''Traîée de Bruit".

Scratch
In 2001 during his summer hollidays in Beirut Jad entered the ''Studio el Fan'' contest and won the first prize and $25000 in the clip directing category for the clip of Lebanese singer Rida Boutros. He then shot two other clips and won the silver medal in the same category.

Meanwhile, Jad's real ambitions started being unbearable to hide. Even in the couple of clips he directed we can always see him: In Rida's clip ''Ya Mustapha'', he is Mustapha and appears nearly as much as her, in wassim el Faricy's ''3endik Harakat'' he's one of the dancers, and mohamed Iskandar's ''Jayi Tsambel Warayeh'' he's the guy who plays the flute.
While working as a journalist and art director in a French magazine SELECT, he starts learning Arabic pronunciation and vocalize cause until then he lacked ability in Arabic and all the songs he wrote or sang as an amateur were in French or English.

Almost There
In May 2003, Jad starts working on his first song ''A'ollak Eh'' Very few people ecourage him, and his parents threaten not speak to him again if he insists on singing.

Jad finishes writing and recording the song along with another one called ''Mazzika'' by the end of the year. He asks Queen Club Paris resident Dj Michael Kaiser to remix ''A'ollak Eh'', after meeting him in a Queen event Jad organized in Beirut.
The time had come for him to shoot his video.The result was a hip, high standard clip with an occidental-like dancing.

The Beginning of the Dream
The tune. The dancing. The number. That look in his eyes. The guts. We sometimes wonder what really made it all happen. It's probably all of this to which we can add the controversy that followed the release of the clip. The song directly caught attention and flew to the speak positions in many of the Arabic charts. The teenagers adored it. The grown-ups knew about it.
Some hated it. Some others supported him. ''I burn the dishes I'm preparing each time he comes on TV'' said a 65 years-old lady on the radio when a guest insinuated Jad's only liked by the young generation.Jad's carees got launched on several levels because of ''a'olak Eh''. Not only did he become a phenomenon singer-star but his directing and songwriting skills got revealed and he stared working on other singers songs and clips. His concept of the number on a T-shirt was sold in a mall in Kuwait, and his song was played in Europe.' He might even be in next years Guinness. Book of Records as the person with biggest number of missed calls on a regular unprofitable phone number. (Source: Jadchoueiri.com)

Official Website: www.jadchoueiri.com

Joe Ashkar
Having transcended the typical & traditional wave of the Arabic song Joe Achkar is very much his own man. Someone, who is still down to earth about how far he has come in a short period of time. And an artist who still throws a party as if tonight is the last night to party.

Expectations for the rising artist are running very high with the release of his third album (June21, 2004). Joe's first album "Shu Biemnaa" (2001) was a hit in many ways. While it exceeded its expected album sales both on CD & MC, the hit single on the album "Shu Biemnaa" immediately acquired nationwide acclaim and remained a favored hit on dance floors for over 18 months. Ashkar's second album entitled "Maza Kalou" (What They Said) slated for August 2002 is still a favorite on Joe's Fan's list, which is growing by the second.

Joe's unique position as an entertaining artist from his club stage at Cassino gives him a unique perspective on the music and night life where he gets into direct contact with fans and clubbers almost every day of the week getting closer to the people that love his music.

The initial success of Joe Ashkar was driven, in part, by the irresistible groove of "Shu Biemnaa" his first album's single, which featured such great contributors as lyricists: Elie Nasser & Nabil Abou Abdo among others as well as Song writers Ziad Boutros, Georges Mardirossian, Tarek Abou Jaoudeh and others, all of whom also contributed to his second album " Maza Kalou", as well as his third album" Sha'i3at"(Rumors).

From early on his career as a night entertainer Joe Ashkar knew what his public and fans wanted and this has given him a unique gift to supply them with the tune they need to dance to. Joe started his career singing at different pubs and clubs where he eventually moved on to his first large scale club to get immediate and nationwide success at Xanadu. His ambition to move on to a larger music platform made him decide to move on to own his first Club, Concerto. There Joe's artistic freedom started to take shape and he moved his career from Night Entertainer to nationally acknowledged artist when he launched " Shu Biemnaa" using Concerto as his lab for mastering his works. The latest move brought Joe down to the center of night-life, Ashrafieh (Beirut), where he opened his newly launched club, Cassino.Today, Joe is riding the success of his newly released third album, which puts him under a new light. The "Sha'i3at" album is truly a step up in Joe's singing career, and is available in all Middle East and world wide markets.

Expect the best out of Joe Achkar. The Music Video of (Fil Alb Hawakom) is being played on all Terrestrial & Satelitte TV stations, National and International. (Source: Joeachkar.com)

Official Website: www.joeachkar.com

Khaled Selim

Official Website: www.khaledselim.com

Madeline Matart
Madeline Matar is a popular Lebanese singer. Her repertoire includes popular Arabic music.

Discography
Bahebak Wadari (2006)
Ala Bali Hawak (2003)
Taba'ak Sa'ab
Nissani
Bitlawen Leh Alaya
Sharki Gharbi
Shakka Fik (Source: Wikipedia.org)

Official Website: www.madeleinematar.com

Marcel Khalife

In 1999 he was granted the Palestine Award for Music. In turn, he contributed the financial portion of the award to the National Conservatory of Music at Birzeit University in Palestine. In 2005, Khalife was named UNESCO Artist for Peace.

One son, Bachar Khalife, is also an accomplished oud player; the other, Rami Khalife, is a virtuoso pianist who graduated from Juilliard School.

The beginnings
Marcel Khalife was born in 1950 in Amsheet, a small village on the coast in the North of Beirut where Ernest Renan used to live. His grandfather was a flutist and a fisherman. He lived among fishermen, peasants and Gypsies, with a double confessional influence :

"Then I used to go to church and listen to Christian music, and also to Islamic recitations of the Qur'an. In Lebanon we have a marriage of Islamic and Christian culture. That really helped to form my musical awareness."

His first lessons in music was with a retired military man, a teacher in his village, Hanna Karam, who advised the parents of the young boy to let him continue learning music. His mother died of cancer when he was 16 years old. He studied the Oud (Near Eastern Lute) at the National Academy of Music in Beirut. Instrument with strict technical rules, Marcel Khalife expanded the rules and the possibilities of the oud.

From 1970 to 1975, he taught at the conservatory in Beirut and other local institutions and toured the Middle East, North Africa, Europe and the United States giving solo performances on the oud. In Beirut, he discovered the situation of the Palestinians, passing by the Palestinian refugee camps when he used to go to the conservatory.

"When I used to attend the conservatory in Beirut, I used to pass by the Palestinian refugee camps. I wondered why these people were living in these houses made of zinc, and what the circumstances were which found them living in this kind of poverty. Some Lebanese families used to live there, too, mind you. I decided I wanted to learn more about the Palestinians, and learn how they lost their lands, lost their homes and their rights in Palestine. I became a supporter since their cause was a just one. Until now, I never hesitate to do anything at all in order to show my support for this great cause."

In 1972, Marcel Khalife created a musical group in his native village with the goal of reviving its musical heritage and the Arabic chorale. The first performances took place in Lebanon during the Lebanese civil war in 1975. During the war, he risked his life in bombed out concert halls.

"Since I was born, I’ve felt I had a rebel’s soul within me. I rejected things that might be inherited, but that were wrong."

"I connected my artistic project with the fatherland, with life, society, and the people,"

"My music is for the service of humanity, and is intended to present a serious and sincere work for those tormented in this destructive war. My music was a sort of balm for those wounds."

Al Mayadeen ensemble
His work combines traditional Arabic music with Western elements like the piano. Mainly, Marcel Khalife uses modern Arab poetry (like Mahmoud Darwish) and muwashahat (music of Al-Andalus). He composes and sings the poetry of Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish, songs on nationalism and revolution.

1976 saw the birth of Al Mayadeen Ensemble. Al-mayadeen is the plural of maydan, which can mean both battlefield and village square, the site of festive events, weddings, song and dance. Enriched by the previous ensemble’s musical experiences, Al Mayadeen’s notoriety went well beyond Lebanon, performing the songs Umi (My Mother), Rita w'al-Bundaqiya (Rita and the Rifle) and Jawaz al-Safr (Passport), based on Darwish's poetry. The band performed in Arab countries, Europe, the United States, Canada, South America, Australia, and Japan.

Marcel Khalife has been invited several times to festivals of international fame such as: Baalbeck, Beit Eddine (Lebanon), Carthage, El Hammamat (Tunisia), Timgad (Algeria), Jarash (Jordan), Arles (France), Krems, Linz (Austria), Bremen (Germany), ReOrient (Sweden), Pavia (Italy), World Music Festival in San Francisco, New York, Cleveland (USA). He performed in many prestigious halls as the Palace of Arts in Montreal, Symphony Space and Merkin Concert in New York, Berklee Theatre and New England Conservatory in Boston, Royal Festival Hall, and Queen Elizabeth Hall in London,UNESCO Palace of Beirut, Cairo Opera House (Egypt).

Instrumental works
His recent works consist mainly of instrumental works like The Symphony of Return, Chants of the East,Concerto Al-Andalus Suite for Oud and Orchestra,Sharq the word means (Orient),it is a musical case-history or a musical memoir of the Arabic musical legacy written by Khalife for 100 choral singers and 100 players in a great orchestral shape , Mouda'aba (Caress), Diwan Al Oud, Jadal Oud duo, Oud Quartet, Al Samaa in the traditional Arabic forms and Taqasim, duo for oud and double bass. Marcel Khalife’s compositions has been performed by several orchestras, notably the Kiev Symphony Orchestra, the Academy of Boulogne Billancourt Orchestra, The San Francisco Chamber Orchestra, the Orchestra of the city of Tunis, and the Absolute Ensemble.

"I realize myself more in music than in singing. This tendency is evident in several of my works, the last of which was the 'Oud Concerto,'"

"When the text is absent, I find myself more comfortable in composing music, although this need not suggest that I am ignoring the song, which is essential to me. Rather, my real interest lies in musical composition. This was present in early compositions like Rita, Aaras (Weddings) and Tusbahouna ala Watan (Ode to Homeland). Each of these was a musical composition and not just music written for songs. In these works, whenever the lyrics stop the music continues; and whenever I feel the lyrics are incomplete, they are completed by music."

Banishment from Tunisia
In 2005, Marcel Khalife told the media that his music and songs have been banned in Tunisia by the state-controlled radio and TV stations. He might have angered the Tunisian authorities during a concert in Carthage in August when he dedicated one of his songs to Arabs imprisoned in Israel and Arab countries. He also expressed support for the rights of political activists who went on hunger strike before and during the World Summit on Information Society in Tunis in November 2005.

The Ana Yussef, ya Abi case
Three times (1996, 1999 and 2003), he faced criminal prosecution for his song I am Joseph, O Father, written by the Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish. Khalife was accused of insulting religious values by including a two-line verse from a chapter of the Qur'an.

Khalifa recorded the song in his 1995 album "The Arabic Coffee Pot" that was based on a 1992 poem of the prominent Palestinian poet, Mahmoud Darwish. The poem adapted this verse from the story of Yousef (Joseph) in the Qur'an : "O my father, I saw eleven stars and the sun and the moon bowing before me in homage." It tells the story of how Joseph's brothers were jealous of him because he was handsome and kind, his brothers don't like him. The story reflected the suffering of the Palestinian people.

In 1999, the case was brought to a court by the newly appointed investigating judge, Abdel Rahman Shihab, who reproached Marcel of "insulting religious values by using a verse from the chapter of Joseph from the Holy Qur'an in a song." Marcel faced six months to three years imprisonment for publicly insulting religion (article 474 of the Lebanon's penal code, six months to three years in prison) and blasphemy (article 473 of the penal code, one month to one year in prison).

Senior Sunni Muslim clerics in Lebanon ruled that singing verses from the Qur'an was "absolutely banned and not accepted." The highest Sunni Muslim religious authority in Lebanon, Grand Mufti Sheikh Muhamed Rashid Qabbani, has maintained repeatedly that Khalifa is guilty of blasphemy for singing a verse from the Qur'an. Sheikh Qabbani said : "There is a limit to freedom of expression. One limit is that it should not infringe on people's religious beliefs."

Demonstrations of solidarity came from many sides, intellectuals, human rights organisations and ordinary people. A meeting were held in Beirut where 2000 people sang altogether the song in trial. Marcel Khalife even received the support of Sheikh Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah, a Shi'ite theologist. The famous Lebanese writer Elias Khoury harshly criticized the trial, as did Mahmoud Darwish, who said :

"Fundamentalism is in the process of stifling culture and creation in the Arab world, I say it is shameful. I am ashamed. We should all be ashamed. If Marcel Khalifa is found guilty, it will be an insult to culture."

Ghada Abu Karrum, the judge, rejected the demand of the prosecutor, and found him innocent of the charge of degrading Islam. As stated in the judgement :

"[...] Although, in the first place, it is not for this court in any circumstance to indulge in discussing whether the action of the defendant mentioned above constitutes a deviation from Islamic tradition and its prohibitions, it is necessary to note that human societies have always known - since the advent of religions until this day - forms of behavior that touched the various aspects of life while not always observing all religious rules or abiding by them without that necessarily forming a desecration of the religious sanctity of the texts from which these rules have emerged."

"[...] Hence, it is clear from listening to the tape and CD at hand that the defendant has chanted the poem in gravity and composure that reveal a deep perception of the humanism expressed in the poem ornamented with the holy phrase. [He is] committed in his expression - in form and content - to a performance that bears no infringement on the holiness of the Qur'anic text, or offense to it or its content, nor reveal any intent to incite disparagement of it explicitly or implicitly, neither by words, meaning, nor music. "

WORKS

Books
The composer wrote in 1982 a six-part Anthology of Studying the Oud. The purpose of his writing works is to rationalize musical traditions, an attempt to develop Arabic musical traditions.

"We Arabs have no history of our music. In my judgment, we have linked music to singing, and it is time to write down the history of music, not just song."

His further writing will be Jadal Oud Duo, which is :

"an attempt to find new methods of expressing the deeply-rooted spontaneity in Arabic music. It is at a level of artistry that departs from the past, presenting a new challenge to the composer and the musician. Jadal brings forth a unique richness in Arabic music through the search for a new law of aesthetics to replace the old. It is an openness toward an uncharted territory emanating from the familiar."

He wrote also Samaa.

Films
Marcel Khalife has composed soundtracks for films, documentaries and fictions, produced by Maroun Baghdadi, Oussama Mohammed, Sophi Sayhf Eddin and Sami Zikra.

In 2002, European television networks broadcast a documentary on Marcel Khalife. The documentary, entitled Voyageur, presents 33 selections from Khalifé’s repertoire, which ranges from compositions for solo oud and vocal settings of Arabic poetry to orchestral compositions, films cores and ballets.

Le Luth Sacrilège is another documentary, directed by Pierre Dupouey, produced by Ognon Pictures and Mezzo. The documentary tells the story of the second trial Marcel Khalife faced in 1998 for his song Ana Yussef (I am Joseph).

Quotations
"Every serious and sincere musical work reflects revolution, the artist is by nature a rebel ; one must be rebellious with his writing and creative projects."

"Freedom, democracy and bread are the things we lack in our region" (Source: Wikipedia.org)

Official Website: www.marcelkhalife.com

Marwa

Biography
Marwa began playing music at the age of eight, when she played the accordion at school. Later on, she started singing the works of Layla Nazme, Shadia and Wardaal Jazaeria, as well as performing on stage. Marwa has developed her own style of music after mastering her talent in the hands of professor Foad Awwad, and honed her ability to sing Kahligi, Lebanese, and in the Egyptian dialect.

Personal life
Marwa enjoys fashion design, modeling, as well as acting. She is an advanced saxophone, accordion, and piano player. Her favorite hobbies are horse back riding, drawing, traveling, and reading. (Source: Wikipedia.org)

Official Website: www.marwastar.com

Mohamed Hamaki

Hamaki loved his music to a great level of detail and passion and from here he earned his degree in Arabic music and graduated at the Cairo academy of arts.

Ever since Hamaki entered the music arena he made connections with a number of composers and artists and most importantly met Tarek Madkour (One of the most respected and extremely talented Musical arrangers in the middle east, a man of huge achievements and experience with the best artists in the middle east) who took Hamaki on board and decided to support him and raise his talent to another level. Hamaki managed to introduce himself to the audience through a number of singles. Starting with a song in 'Lekaa' el Nogoom' album, followed by a single in 'Sa'aaedi in the American University' and 'Hammaam in Amsterdam' albums, then he took part in the opera band 'Eid ala Eid' at the opening of the Nile TV channels, also Hamaki sang in another opera band with a number of famous Egyptian and Arabic stars in the 'El Quds Haterga' Lena'. Hamaki collaborated with Hameed ElShaery and sang a single 'Sa'altak Habeebe' in Hameed's album 'Bahebek ya Fairuz'.

After all these experiences and from that point it was all about shaping Hamaki the star and creating his personalized image, style and musical vision. Hamaki’s focus on songs, lyrics and innovation was his ultimate aim during his pre & production process for his first ever coming album. The result was a strongly honest, soulful record ‘Khaleena Ne’eesh’ where Hamaki’s personality and musical influence by Tarek Madkour took place. ‘Khaleena Ne’eesh’ was released in 2003 where it integrated with the audience and gained lots of attention and success.

Since the release of 'Khalena Ne'eesh' Hamaki and Madkour unfortunately had some misunderstandings and where not able to produce the second album, till 2005 they came back with a single 'Yana Yanta', which was filmed in Lebanon and resurfaced Hamaki's appearance and engagement with his fans.

Hamaki and without the existence of Tarek Madkour finally managed to produce his second album ‘Kheles El Kalam’ summer 2006, after 3 years from his first album ‘Khaleena Ne’eesh’. Hamaki awarded his fans what they've been longing for, a stunning hit which blew their minds off and topped their sensations. 'Kheles El Kalam' according to the production company "Delta Sounds" and the fans is to be one of the most successful albums out in the market.

Respectively, Mohamed Hamaki has achieved several awards 'best artist' from both Egyptian and Arabic charts, also he received an Oscar award from 'ElMehwar' channel for his first album 'Khaleena Ne'eesh'. Recently Hamaki was given 'best artist' for 2005 by 'Akhbar El Nogoom' charts on his single 'Yana Yanta'.

Hamaki's domestic life is just as pleasing as his musical career. He cherishes and dedicates his time with his family.

Hamaki appreciates sport and surprisingly could have been one of the youth players in 'El Ahly' football club, his talent should have gave him the chance but it wasn't written for him to continue. Hamaki yet plays football occasionally and with his musical band crew on play station.

Mohamed Hamaki's hard work and passion to creating quality music and new stylized musical techniques was and will continuously be his ultimate aim throughout the years.

Fact File
Full Name: Mohamed Ibrahim Mohamed El-Hamaki.
DOB: 4-November-1975.
Star Sign: Scorpio.
Birthplace: Egypt/Cairo.
Hair Color: Black.
Eye Color: Black.
Father: Ibrahim Mohamed El-Hamaki.
Education: Cairo Academy Of Arts and Music.
Fav. Movie: Troy.
Fav. Music: Pop and RnB.
Fav. Food: Wara2 3enab.
Fav. Book: In Search of Identity, by Anwar Al-Sadat.
Fav. Video Game: Winning Eleven.
Fav. Clothing: D&G, Cavalli.
Fav. Jeans: Diesel.
Fav. Sports Brand: Adidas.
Fav. Perfume: Ultraviolet.
Fav. Chocolate: Snickers.
Fav. Ice Cream Flavour: Chocolate.
Instruments: Guitar and Percussion.
Fav. Male Singer: Craig David & Mohamed Mounir.
Fav. Female Singer: Christina Aguilera.
Fav Song: Fatet Sneen.
Fav. Personal Song: Ma2darsh Ansak.
Fav Actor: Ahmed Zaki - Ahmad El-Sakka.
Fav. Acctress: So3ad Hosny - Mona Zaki.
Fav. Sport: Football, Swimming.
Soccer Team: Ahly - Barcelona.
Fav. Colour: Blue.
Fav. Saying: "Always look on the bright side of life" (Source: wikipedia.org)

Official Website: www.hamaki.ws

Mohamed Mounir

Mounir, has also gathered experiences in film: the film Destiny from Youssef Chahine, a prominent outsider in Egyptian cinema and at the same time its most internationally renowned representative, is a reckoning with the growing fundamentalism of his country. Mounir plays the singer Marwan from the 12th century, who escapes an attempted assassination by stirred up fanatics the first time, but succumbs the second time - a reference the Algerian Rai singer, but also Egyptian literary figures like Naguib Mahfouz or Farag Foda. (Source: Wikipedia.org)

Mohamed Nour
Mohamed Nour was born on January 18th in Cairo. His handsome looks and strong physique have made him very popular with the ladies and turned him into an admired heartthrob with the fans.

However, his looks do not undermine his passion and talent for music. His love for the violin and the passion of his lyrics are all indications of a very talented artist.

Mohamed is one of the founders of WAMA Band and is considered the vocal power behind it.

His participation at an early age in international concerts, playing alongside big stars like Rachid Taha and Cheb Khaled, has added value and experience and has helped him mature into a serious artist. He looks up to Mohamed Abdel Wahab and Michael Bolton.

His goal is to reach people with his music, and with it, reach the heights of fame. (Source: Wikipedia.org)

Official Website: www.mohamednour.com

O-Sane

His shows consist of a live performance on 2 keyboards and turntables, an animation screen reflecting the musical performance, and a live violinist and percussionist.

He’s very flexible in mixing different styles of music to which he adds his personal touch.

O-Sane’s musical ear and talent allow him to be creative in re-arranging remixing and composing songs as well as producing new sounds and beats featuring his musical style.

His music is full of Energy, a fusion of House, Oriental House and an assortment of other genres to satisfy every mood.

Oriental Music is now making its presence felt in a diversity of musical genres. Wanting to stay ahead of the scene and be a trend setter, O-Sane created a concept of combining the Oriental music/melodies or songs in fusion with the occidental music /melodies /synthesizer / Beats and sounds creating a new musical genre with no vacancy in the combination of tunes and styles.

In his first album “A train To Arabia”, O-Sane’s objective was to create a fusion of cultures, so that people could enjoy the music and find their roots whether they are oriental or occidental. (Source: Lebanon.com)

Nader Hamdy

Nader was born on September 17th in Cairo in an artistic family. His passion for piano became evident at an early age and eventually reaped its rewards and his talent became so evident that famous maestros like Daniel Darenboin asked for him personally to perform in international concerts and take part in classical music competitions.

His aim is to present a new genre to Egypt and the region and hopefully achieve crossover appeal with his music. (Source: Naderhamdy.com)

Official Website: www.naderhamdy.com

Najwa Karam

The famous Arab - Lebanese singer Najwa Karam was born on the 26th of February 1966 in Zahleh - Lebanon.
She is the youngest amongst her siblings, She has three brothers, Tony, Jan and Nicola and one sister, Salwa. Najwa studied in Zahleh and gratuated with a degree in Philosphy, and later became a teacher for two years. Her musical talents were apparent from a young age where she used to sing at some school parties with her friends. Najwa's father initially disapproved of her interest in musical profession.

In 1985 Najwa joined the famous TV show that supports young talents Layali Lobnan. She succeded, and was an immediate hit in that show, she won the Golden Medal,this changing her fathers' original opinion. After Layali Lobnan, Najwa participated in many concerts singing traditional Lebanese songs and joined the Arabic Music institute for four years to improve her skills as a vocalist.

Her first official song was Ala Zahleh, then she released couple of songs like Batalet Som wa Asally and Eddam Elforsan, before releasing her first album Ya Habayeb in 1989. Two years later in 1992 Najwa released her second album, Shams El-Ghennieh, the album succeeded in Lebanon and the name Shams El-Ghennieh has been associated with her ever since the release of the album. Naghmet Hob was a massive hit and one of the 1994 Best Selling Albums, the song Law Habaytak - Ana Mafyee Introduced Najwa Karam and Made her music known all over the Arab World. Najwa has released 14 successful albums so far, as well as a couple of singles, and continues to impress us with her Lebanese style of singing. One of the most remarkable songs in her career was the duo she performed with the famous Lebanese singer Wadih El Safi (Wikberna).

She participated in many festivals in many countried around the world, such as, America, Europe and Australia. Her concerts in Jarash Festival - Jordan (1996) are considered the most successful concerts in the history of Jarash. Carthaj - Tunisia (1997) (2000) are considered to be among Najwas' greatest concerts, especially when the audience sand instead of her. She also participated in Major festivals all around the Arab World, in Lebanon, Libya, Egypt, Dubai - UAE, Kuwait, Qatar and Syria.

Websites:
- Najwa Karam - Official Website


http://www.najwakaram.com/

Nancy Ajram

She had quite a normal childhood with her small family that consisted of her parents, her sister and brother and herself. But when Nancy Ajram was 12, she participated in a television program called "Nojoum Al Mostakbal" and actually won first prize. Soon after, Ajram began studying music under the supervision of some of the finest teachers in her country. When she turned 18, she joined the Syndicate of Professional Artists in Lebanon - after they made an exception regarding her age.

Her first album; Mehtagalak, was released in 1998 and marked her first official step in the world of show business. But, it took the young singer another 3 years to launch her second album Shil Eyounak Aney in 2003. Then her true hit came with her third and most famous album Ya Salam in 2003. The singer stressed the success of the album by shooting three of its songs; Akhasmak Ah, Ya Salam and Sehr Eyounoh, in the form of video clips. The clips were a tremendous hit and gained popularity in such a short time and gave the singer incredible fame in the Arab world.

Her latest album is Ah we Nos was released this year. Nancy already shot two of its songs as video clips; Loun Eyounak and Ah we Nos - and word has it she will shoot a third song soon. The album is witnessing the same success as the previous one.

As for other activities besides singing, the Lebanese diva has agreed to be the spokesperson for the international soft drink company Coca Cola. But when it came to invading the silver screen, Ajram refused to take that step now and preferred to postpone it so she can concentrate on her singing career

Websites:
- Nancy Ajram - Official Website
http://www.nancyajramonline.com/

Nawal
The Kuwaiti artist /

Nawal

She studied at the Music Institute in Kuwait from which she benefited a lot. One of which is having the role of Solfage which served her in her singing career, and through the institute she began getting in contact with the artist arena and got acquainted with a number of Kuwaiti composers who were convinced by her talent, one of which is the late composer Rashid Al-Khadr who helped her at the beginning of her artistic journey and presented her with may compositions

Her first album was out at the end of 1983 and it is renowned the the singer Nawal does not place a certain name on her albums and simply goes by the expression Nawal 98 or Nawal 99 and so forth. She was once asked about the reason and she responded, Because I take pride in all the songs of my album and therefore I dont refer one to the other, and I leave the album untitled so that I do not impose a certain song on the dear listener but I leave the choice open to them. And up till now, 10 albums of her has been issued, and she has filmed a collection of her songs as a video clip, whereby she was one of the first artists that dealt with this new style of the Arabic song. Her filmed songs are: Ana Min Shouktak (I am the one who excited you), Dourobi (My Paths), Sineen wa Ayam (Years and Days), Arafat Kadri (I Knew My Fate), Marra Aateek (Once I Give you), Lawla AL Mahabba (Had it not been for affection) Tadri (You Know), Ana walla Ant (Is it me or you), La Rihit Anni (If You Go Away), Ya Msabbir Il Wuoud (You who hold promises) and other songs

Some of her most prominent songs which she presented during her artistic journey and which the public knew her are the songs: Youh Ya Youh, Four Years, Ana Min Shouktak, My Knight in Shining Armor, I Suffer, You Know, Lawla AL Mahabba, Arafat Kadri, Marra Aateek and a duet with the artist Abdullah Rashad which met with a colossal success of the song Kan Bi Widdi Niltiki. Her latest album which she cast forward few months ago has accomplished a lot of success for her in the Arabic singing arena especially the songs Ya Msabbir Il Wuoud, Houbok Asbah She Adi (Your Love has Become a Matter of the Ordinary), Anna Il Masoul (I am the One Responsible), Ya Sayyidhoum Weenak (Where are you, their lord) and others

It is known about her that she is frugal in talking to the press and media generally, and she is also distant from the social and artistic occasions. She did not pursue her university studies due to her occupation with art.

An instance she wont forget: When she sang on stage for the first time in her life at the age of 17 and that was at a concert thrown in the State of Bahrain in 1984, whereby she was in a state of anxiety because it was her first experience in facing the public, but she mounted the stage and presented a collection of songs with all confidence and very naturally received a standing ovation. During that same year, she sang at a concert in the British capital, London.

Nawal also ensures that she will never forget these concerts and the big success that she reaped from them despite her young age and little experience at that time.

She also loves traveling to countries that are distinct for calmness and exquisite nature, and she always prefers traveling with a group and does not like to travel on her own.

She personally ensures that she is a romantic person by nature and very good-humored and she further likes to stay at home but is not a recluse, she likes people and being social with them, even if she had to be with people who she does not know, she adapts quickly with them

Despite the fact that her artistic journey has exceeded 18 years, she has not received any awards, and on that she responds, As an artist, I have not set the fruits of my labor any reward for one of my songs, because what matters to me most is to give good work. She always says that What suffices me is the love of my public for my art and that is what I take pride in. As for the awards through contests and festivals, I see in them some flattery and personal connections, what suffices me is what I hear from some responsible officials and competent people of expressions, appreciation and admiration after I present any new work.

Nawal is deemed as the pioneer singer in the Gulf region, whereby when she appeared in the artistic arena, there werent that many singers from the gulf at the time, for Nawals beginning was in synchrony with that of the singers: Rabab and Itab only (because the singing arena at that time was confined to them due to the limited number of female singers in the Arab GulfHowever, she retired from art for a period of time for private reasons which she does not declare, but she powerfully returned to the artistic arena with a duet with the artist Abdulla Rashad and Nawal proved her artistic presence from her beginning through her distinct work and as an artist she has her own style of music and artistic curriculum which she has been following from the start.

The artist Nawal has participated vocally only in the Al-Janadiriyah Festival which was thrown in 1998, and that was the first time that the singer participates in that festival, and because the opera that was performed in that festival was at the occasion of the hundredth anniversary of the establishment of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia under the title (Opera of the Unification Knight) and the lyrics and composition of the opera required a distinct female voice, Nawal was selected for being the distinct voice from the Gulf

Nawal has expressed her happiness with the choice to sing at the special hundredth anniversary opera and said that despite singing a relatively short stanza, I feel happy to have helped in performing what is required of me, and I express my thanks to all the people responsible for the Janadiriyah Festival for selecting me

Nawal and Being Overly Romantic
Nawal is deemed as one of the distinct voices in the field of song and Nawal was able to ensconce at the female singing pinnacle in the Gulf for long periods even if separated by periods of absence due to the romance in performance which Nawal enjoys in this age of speed and daily distractions. Nawal has come forth with many songs and honest lyrics, which seeped into the Arabic sentiment everywhere. After she achieved fame and fortune, Nawal sensed the size of the responsibility and started launching herself into wider domains and searching for lyrics and compositions that achieve her artistic entity, and during her artistic journey there were circumstances that led Nawal to stop giving for the period of five years. This halt, however, did not affect her artistic journey and her return was luminated and radiating in the song Kan Widdi Niltiki (I Wished We Could Have met) with the artist Abdullah Rashad whereby this song was a weaving unaccustomed by the song of the gulf which helped in the success of the experiment a great deal to the extent it returned to the frontline all the names that participated in its making, Abdullah Rashad, Nawal its poet Ali Asairi and its composer Khaled Abdulkarim.

Because Nawal is serene by nature and deals with matters regardless of their difficulty with calm, she preferred not to reply to the many voices that for many years kept fueling the saying that Nawal cannot compete with any female voice in the Gulf region. Nawal adds that her silence is because she is naturally relaxed and prefers quiet and perhaps what has helped her in her early success is her familys direct consent that she delves into the art world when opportunity came knocking on her door with the deceased composer Rashid Al-Khadr and the poet Abdullatif Al-Banay, a matter that bewildered the presenter of Khleek bil Beet (Stay Home) show, Zahi Wihbi, on Future TV when he hosted her on that show as to how a family from the Gulf would allow its daughter to enter the world of art and so quickly without effort, sacrifices or challenges that the talented artist performs Generally, Nawal is one of the artists that embodies the lovers agony and on that she replies that she prefers not to disclose her own suffering to others because she is a secretive person by nature and she unleashes her energy before the microphone, it goes without saying that Nawal says it all when she sings. (Source: Rotana.net)

Nicole Saba

Birthday: June, 26th.

My Astrological Sign: Cancer

Place of Birth: Beirut, Lebanon

Family: John (father), Mary (mother), Nadine (sister).

Pets: Louli (dog).

Hobbies: Travelling, Shopping, Going to movies, and Working out.

Favorite Singers: Coldplay, Madonna, Fairouz.

Favorite Food: Lebanese and Japanese food.

Favorite Vacation: London, Europe.

Advice: Follow your 6th scence.

E-Mail: NicoleSaba@NicoleSaba.net

Source: http://www.nicolesaba.net

Rabih Saqar

Rayan

His first step in the music scene was the release of “Hala Ghariba” Album, produced by Rotana, the most prestigious record company in the Middle East. Rotana believed in Rayan’s unique vocal abilities. The expert was right and the album witnessed rapid notoriety and distribution which led Rotana to print a large quantity of the album several times to satisfy the increased market demand.

The song “Ahla Gharam” from the mentioned album, hit the Arab charts occupying the number one position in many countries. Rayan‘s popularity soon shot up, his voice and the kind of emotion he puts in every song gets the audience’s attention. The audience longs for the sincerity and the romance that Rayan offers. He has simply given back romantic music its glory.

Rayan's artistic inclination has not stopped him from continuing to pursue a degree in law; he believes that education and knowledge are essential for his evolution, which makes him not just a pretty face and voice but also a unique personality distinctive by its creativity and its love of knowledge.

Writer of “Ahla Gharam”’s lyrics, Rayan’s talent for poetry was welcomed by the audience which encouraged him to write more songs for his upcoming album.

Rayan signed a management contract with “Music Is My life” artist Management Company located in Beirut, to provide himself with the kind of professional vision and assistance which he will need for his growing career.

This new album, slated for February 2006 is entitled “hekyo ainaik” and contains 8 songs with various collaborations with renowned names such as: Nasser El Assaad, Jean Saliba, Wissam Al Amir, Ziad Khoury, Selim abou Jaoudeh, Boudi Naoum & Joe Baroudjian as well as a unique duo with female star “Amal Hijazy” for the song “Jonoun bi hobbak”.

Rayan shoot it two clips for his second albums; “hekyo ainaik” & Kanit Rouhi” both are directed by Walid Nassif.

The song “Hekyo ainaik” been elected number one at “sawt el ghad” radio station and the clip number four at Rotana musical channel…

After the big success of his second album and the massive demand on “Kanit Rouhi” song, Rayan decided to shoot it as a clip. Till now that song been on the top of charts in all Arabic radio stations and the clip is number one on Rotana TV.
Many composers and musicians agreed that Rayan’s voice was remarkable and distinguish in his hit song “Kanit Rouhi”.
Therefore, Mr. Wadigh El safi, one of the biggest Artist in middle east congratulate him for his success wishing him the best.

Rayan is a name people and professionals bet on, his two albums proved them more than right… this young artist who approaches music with intensity, simply has what it takes to shine. (Source: Musicismylife.com)

Razan Moughrabi

Razan has been in the process of working on her debut album for over a year now and is expected to launch her album shortly, which is yet to be entitled. (Source: Musicismylife.com)

Official Website: www.razanmoughrabi.com

Rouby

Early life
Ruby (full name Rania Hussein Mohammed Tawfik) started her career as a model when Marcel Romanoff, the Polish singer, spotted her in front of the American University in Cairo.[citation needed] Romanoff chose Ruby to appear in his music video. She later appeared in the music video of his song Don't Make Me Cry. Ruby previously studied Law at Bani Suwayf University.

Ruby later worked in television commercials for several products, including Pringles, Sparkle, and Alo. She then worked with Egyptian film director Youssef Chahine in the film Sekoot Hansawwar (2001), in which she played the role of a romantic wealthy girl who falls in love with her driver. Youssef Chahine is reportedly responsible for the switch to her stage name, "Ruby". She previously appeared in the comedy Film Thakafy in a minor role as a schoolgirl.

Musical career
Her first music video of debut single "Enta Aref Leih" (2003), was directed by Sherif Sabri and was a hit on most satellite music stations in the Middle East during the summer of 2003. This video caused a huge stir in the media, causing people and critics to criticize the way Ruby appeared in provocative costume of a belly dancer, wandering in the streets of Prague. Despite such opposing and criticism, the successful single brought Ruby into the limelight.The song was composed by the well-known Egyptian musician Mohammad Rahim.

Ruby's second video was released in early 2004. Titled "Leih Beydary Kedah" and directed by Sherif Sabri, the video again featured provocative contents as the first one. At the last seconds of the video, it showed Ruby 'in the making' with some make-over scenes of makeover by stylists in Beirut, others of her recording songs with Mohammad Rahim and Sherif Sabri.

The third music video of the song "El Gharaam (Koll Amma A'ollo Ah)" was accompanied by clips from Ruby's movie, Saba' Wara'aat Kotcheena (7 Playing Cards). The movie was critically distressed by the censorship and governments of Egypt, Syria and many other Arabic countries did not allow its running due to the overt usage of erotic themes and suggestive hints. Directed and produced by Sherif Sabri, it was his first experience in cinema. Two music videos were released later. One for "Ana Omry Mastaneat Hadd" and the other for "Ghawy" Both are taken from the movie Saba' Wara'aat Kotcheena (7 Playing Cards).

"Eba'a Abelni" music video is the latest by Ruby. The music video's theme was set to be ancient Egyptian, with Ruby dancing in set-up studios. The video's version of the song was rearranged by Sherif Sabri himself. He was also the director of the music video. She has been sponsored by MelodyHits TV, and provided exclusive broadcast to the video.

"Mosh Hate'dar" is her the first single from her second album released in March 2007, titled Meshit Wara Ehsasy. The music video of "Mosh Hate'dar" surprised the audience due to her straying away from the provocative image of her previous music videos, and having a rather conservative one. The second single was the title track "Meshit Wara Ehsasy", featured her performing in Giza, in front of the Pyramids and Sphinx.

Ruby has been questioned in numerous interviews about her provocative style and suggestive moves, to which she responded that she does not consider herself to be a sex symbol. She was also rumoured to be married to her manager, Sherif Sabri, but both her and Sabri have denied the rumour. (Source: Wikipedia.org)

Offical Website: www.ruby.tv

Saber el Roubai

THE DISCOVERY
Saber Rebaï is a young talented singer and composer whose indisputable artistic values have won him the Tunisian audience's full admiration and due respect; an audience internationally reputed for its connoisseur judgment of artistic quality and widely acknowledged as a credible authority whose critical eye world artists duly revere.

A fabulous itinerary was traced by Saber from Sfax (his native city) through Tunis (the Capital) to Lebanon and then Egypt ; such an impressive voyage led him into the heart of the entirety of the Arab people.

Saber' s achievements have not taken place in a void. In fact, he did prepare the necessary means of his success. Saber won the admiration of the Egyptians, thanks to the eloquence of his rendering of defunct Abdelwaheb's songs notable Egyptian singer who still represents a distinguished school of oriental musicology at an era of decline for oriental revelry music. In harmony with such accomplishments, Saber received some awards and reaped certain success in Lebanon and in Cairo , starting then a career leading him to outstanding fame.

Always in quest of originality and variety, Saber Rebaï has called a number of poets and composers from all the Arab countries. He never hesitates to introduce new instruments in his orchestra or call up musicians from diverse artistic backgrounds, which fact explains the mystery of his fascinating success also explicable to a large extent by the quality of his potent but tender voice. Thanks to his prestigious & terrific voice, Saber has fostered a nation-wide impression of splendor and admiration of his real aptitude to offer an infinity of vocal modulations reminiscent of the spectacular legacy of such great singers as Mohamed Abdelwaheb , whose song “ Ennil Najachi ” dating back to the mid 1930's when Abdelwaheb had an acute and powerful voice and disposed of extraordinary vocal assets. This orientation and taste chosen by Saber will be crucial for his future artistic career. Among his favorite models of oriental singers and musicians there are Wadii Safi, Abdel Halim Hafedth, Karem Mahmoud , and others.

Constantly in quest of satisfying the public, and after a long period of stammering out musical composition as well as some glamorous participations in the national music festivals, Saber has been able to leave the imprints of his fairly successful cumulative experience visible in the surviving songs he composed, such as “ Assalia ” or “ Ommi ”, the latter being one of the best songs whose musical notes were composed by Saber .

Saber composed the notes of most of his songs, among which the song “ Kelma ” has been outstandingly successful and well-known by the following composers: Hilmi Bakr, Salah Al Charnoubi & Dr Abdel Errab Idriss . Likewise, very well renowned artists, such as Sayed Makawi , Warda have flatteringly spoken of Saber 's voice.

On the other hand, the printed press in the Arab world has affirmed that his singing style is genuine and that, from now on, he will be considered super star of the Arab song. In fact, he has never renounced his native style, i.e. Tunisian music, but he has nevertheless experienced singing Egyptian and Arabian songs (from the Gulf countries) in order to win the confidence of all types of audience and guarantee wider renown. Saber realized his dream when he succeeded in the Audition Committee Test in Egypt , including in its panel such famous composers as Hilmi Bakr and Sayed Makawi . The former celebrity announced that Saber 's was the most melodious voice he had ever listened to for twenty years.” Saber ' s recent fame in Egypt has originated from the publication of his album “ I go and I return ” (whose words were written by Imad Hassan & Mohammed Labib ; and its tune composed by Mahmoud Dhia the latter unceasingly expresses his admiration for Saber 's voice).

His album “Hayaruni ” (“They induced me into confusion”) has won him further fame. To bring that project to fruition, Saber Rebaï has closely collaborated with great names in the realm of writing songs and composing their music. The album comprises the following songs: “Hayarouni ” (“They induced me into confusion”), “Ah Men El Hawa ” (“Oh love”), “Hom Elli Nesyouna” (“They did forget me”), “Ma Entahena” (“Haven't we finished?”), “Kelma” (“Just one word”),, “Atathakkarak” (“I do remember you”), “Hikaya” (“A story”), and “Men Gher Helfen” (“No more promises”). The Jordanian director Hussein Daiebiss is the producer of video clips for Saber 's two songs: “Hayarooni” (“They induced me into confusion”) and “Atathakkarak” (“I remember you”).

After having experienced colossal success in Tunisia in 1996, Saber started his career in the Arab world through his friendship with Mr. Ali Al Mawla ; his manager. They together initiated their way towards Lebanon and later went to the Gulf countries, the United States , Canada and Australia .

Molding new and old melodies interacting in his musical repertoire, Saber seduced his audience to dance and fired them to enthusiasm when he sang “Miziana” and “Barcha.” In his song “Ya Ommi”, rhythm and sensitivity perfectly alternate till the peak of ecstasy. The interlude “Sidi Mansour” has been the most seducing ever, as this old song derived from the Sfaxian musical legacy has been an unparalleled hit.

In the same way, his recent songs in 2001 comprise the album “Khallas Tarak” (“I quit and see you no more”), which has realized no less success than his previous works. This song is well known throughout the Arab world.

EXCITING MOMENTS
Saber 's artistic career has been marked with strong moments. His voice is currently categorized as the greatest, the most sensitive, and the most melodious one. This status has helped him overcome all the obstacles and assert himself as an indisputable star. His talent was first recognized when he participated in big festivals and sang at the Dar El Opera (“Opera House”) in Egypt . He took part in the international Carthage Festival as well as in Francophone festivals. He keeps on innovating and offering original production showing a high spirit of professionalism. He is now committed to carving a perfect image of himself and his art through enriching his collection of artistic works.

Quite impressively, the rhythm Saber uses in performing the recordings of his albums and in shooting his clips has allowed the whole world to get involved in discovering the artist's talent. He has also sang on numerous stages throughout the world, especially in Korea and Italy , and reaped a number of great awards, especially in Cairo , Dubai and Tunisia . Saber has successfully continued his search for originality in order to vest his art with a spirit of glory that can benefit both Tunisia and Arab music.

Saber Rebaï has reaped many awards for his participation in international festivals:

- The Carthage Festival closure ceremonies throughout the years 1994, 1996, 2000 & 2003 .
- The Arab Music Festival.
- The Egyptian Dar El Opera
- The Dubai Festival .
- The “Hala Fabrayer ”; Festival in Kuwait.
- The Francophone Festival in France.
He received the Gold Microphone decoration at the Arab Song Festival in Cairo.

To better know Saber
The artist Saber Rebaï is endowed with a melodious voice. He is handsome, meek in nature, always smiling, sensitive, earnest, and respectful to his audience.

Date & Place of Birth : 13 March in Tunisia
Horoscope : Pisces
Hobbies : Sports & travel
Preferred colors : Black & Blue

His philosophy
He affirms that art consists in giving generously without limits, because it is the fruition of personal bounty. He also articulates his feelings in support of humanitarian, national, and social causes. His objective is to satisfy his audience, to be responsive to their comments and to realize convincing achievements. The secret of his success lies in his young age, sweet voice and exhilarating songs molded in oriental rhythms.

His song “Sarkha” : the words composed by Hatem Guizani ; the tune by Mohamed Allem ; and interpreted by Saber Rebaï
Saber > Best dates
International Participation :

• The Spring Festival in Korea (1990)
• The Al Hsima Festival in Morocco & Al Francophonia Festival (1992)
• The Mediterranean Festival in Italy (1995)
• The Arab Song Festival in Cairo (1997)
He also participated in a number of international festivals inside and outside of Tunisia (Arab countries, America & Australia).

Awards

• Criticism Award in the Tunisian Song Festival (1996)
• The Gold Microphone Award at the Arab Song Festival in Cairo (1997)
• Several awards by various Arab Festivals , such as the Dubai Festival, Shopping Festival in Cairo. (Source: rotana.net)

Official Website: www.saber-rebai.com

Samer Gabro

These Cds are found on the Syrian market, especially in Halab.
They are not spread world wide for the simple reason that there is no production company currently for the singer.
This year was the launching of the artist Samer Gabro's on the Lebanese market; ''T 'ila shway'' song, a Lebanese Medly which made of him a recognized star.

The Song was played on TV as video clip and was broadcasted on radio stations. The success of that song made the Lebanese newspaper write about it and about Samer Gabro.

Samer performed in many citys
Damascus, Beirut, Jounieh, Oman, Halab, Kamishli, Al Haski, Tunisia, Monaco (Monte Carlo), Cannes (France), Amsterdam, Stockholm Sweden.

TV appearances:
MBC, ART, Future, Melody Hits, Melody, Arabia, Mazzika, Syria TV, Jordan TV, Tunisian TV.

Radio diffusions:
Sawt el Ghad, Strike, Mbc, Pax, Oman FM, Montecarlo, Syria FM.

Samer Gabro is an artist a performer and a writer as well as he is a dancer. His ambition is to be an international star, and to sing Arabic songs through which he can fulfill the teenagers'needs with new pics one has ever written. (Source: Samergabro.com)

Official Website: www.samergabro.com

Shada Hassoun
Shada Hassoun ,born 3 March 1981, is the winner of a popular pan-Arab TV talent show Star Academy Lebanon 4. The singer, with an Iraqi father and Moroccan mother beat out contestants from across the Middle East. She can sing in many languages (Arabic, English, French, Spanish, Italian & German) (Source: Wikipedia.org)

Official Website: www.shathahassoun.com/vb/

Shadi Aswad

Shadi`s horoscope is Leo and born in 8/8/1979

He was studying Accounting & commerce in Aleppo University , beside his study for music to develop his talent which started since childhood. Shady's father held a party upon shady succeeded in primary school to discover that shady has a great voice and love to sing. Shady didnt sing until he was 18 when he enrolled in Syrian Song Festival with his own song (Galbteni). He got the admiration and encouragment from all as he was the youngest contestant between al. He took a part in Superstar and got the admiration and encourgement from both the judges and fans and got a huge success.

Shady's hobbies are different , but the most important hobby is singing and playing music (he playes 3ood) .... beside other hobbies body building, sports especially jogging, driving cars and raising animals especially dogs and cats....He is fond of cars & clothes.

He is so sensitive, ambitious and so stubborn ....He loves the sea and his personality so much close to it.He always smiles although he has sadnees in his eyes which is related to his extremley romantic feelings. (Source: Wikipedia.org)

Official Website: www.shadiaswad.com

Samira Said

Born and raised in Rabat, Morocco; Samira began singing at an early age. In addition to being gifted with a sensitive, beautiful voice, she always had strong appreciation and love for singing. Music was her own way of expressing herself, and she knew quite well that it was what she wanted.

Encouraged by her family, Samira went on to participating in talent shows. The first time the Moroccan public saw her on the T.V. show "Mawaheb", they knew that the shy little girl was going to be a star, and they were right.
In a short time, Samira Bensaid, as Moroccans like to call her, became one of the leading names in the music scene in Morocco. She had a decent repertoire: "Maghlouba", "Wa'ady", etc.

However, Samira was not satisfied with what she had accomplished. Her ambition and dreams were bigger than anything. She remembered her idol and friend, Abdel Halim Hafez's advice to move to Egypt and expand her career.
In the early eighties, Samira moved to Egypt and recorded a song "Al hob Elli Ana Ayshah", composed by Mohamed Sultan. Then, she went on to recording with big names in the music scene in Egypt. She sang for Baligh Hamdi, Helmi Bakr, Mohamed El Mougy.

It was "Alemnah Al hob", sung in Layali El Television in 1983, that brought Samira in the spotlight, and made her well known in Egypt. Her new responsibility to maintain her success obliged her to choose her songs carefully. She started working with well known composers and lyricists. This cooperation produced songs that are considered marks in the contemporary Arabic music: "Asmar Malak", "Malak mush zay awaydak", "Sayidati anissati sadati", "Ech gab li gab", "El Leila dee", "Min ghir sabab", "Al gani Baad Yomeen", "Mosh Hatnazel Anak", and many more…

Samira managed to remain one of the top singers in the Arabic world by totally dedicating herself to her career, and always looking for new aspects and new subjects that make her unique in her style. She is also always looking for a variety of music flavors and styles: Tarab, Raï, Jazz, Slow, etc… She started working with young talented artists, and produced a variety of top selling albums: "Insani", "Khaifa", "Ashka", "Enta Habibi", "Kul Dee Eshaat", "Al Bal", "Rohy", and the latest "Leila Habibi."

Samira lives a calm, happy life with her husband Mostafa Naboulsy, a Moroccan business man; and their son Shadi, whom she said changed her life completely.

Websites:
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Samira Said

Sherine Wagdy
Name : Sherine Farouk Salem
Place Of Birth : Cairo
Hobbies : Painting & playing Piano
Degree : B.A Faculty of Arts . English Department
• She was discovered by the famous Radio Stationer Wagdi El Hakim , he was convinced of her talent and gave her his name and introduced her as Sherine Wagdy .
• The Famous musician Baligh Hamdi, listened to her voice and he was delighted and introduced her in a serial programme " Bawabet El Halwani " to play the character of Almaz .
• The Album Law Bina Aih is considered her new birth certificate Sherine Wagdi renew herself and her art which exceeded all the prospects and snatched the public’s and critics sights.
The Albums
1- Anta El Nos El Helw
2- Sadakny
3- Maakdarsh
4- Law Bina Aih
5- Wa La Lilah
6- Kol Dah
The last two albums were recorded in METROPOLIS STUDIOS in London.
" Sherine Wagdy introduced some songs as a human work Alam Wahed " to support the Bricks children and the Palestinian case , the song " " Fi Oyoun Al Atfal to support the Iraqian children .
Dramatic Works
Serials
1- Hekayet El Gharib
2- Abu Kassem El Tanbury
3- Zokak El Zankakdar
4- Bawabet El Halwani
Puzzles
1- Kais and Laila
2- Tarbastan
Children Serials
1- Yaaish Yamish with Fouad El Mohandes
2- Terhal with Mohamed Awad
Theatre
1- El Sindbada El Baharia
2- Fares and Gamila
3- Eli Bana Misr
Radio
Serial " Misr Italia & Vice Verse"
The Prizes that Sherine Wagdy won
" Maakdarsh "song won the prize of the best video clip in the Seventh Radio and Television Festival 2001 . 1-
" Law Bina Aih " song won the prize of the best video clip in the Seventh Radio and Television Festival 2002. 2-
3- LBC Channel gave " Law Bina Aih " song the prize of the most famous song in the Arab World in 2002 ( The Golden Cedar Prize )
4- "Law Bina Aih " song had the best video clip in 2002 in the questionnaire of Horiati Magazine .
5- Sherine Wagdy won the title of the youth singer for 2002 ( The Golden Lion prize ) .
6- She won the golden Murexd’Or prize for being the best Arab singer in the celebration that was given in the Lions Club in Lebanon under the sponsorship of the wife of the Lebanese President Al Emad Email Lahood in 2002 .
7- Sherine Wagdy got the title of the best singer on her Album " Law Bina Aih " in Oscar Festival that was hold in Sharm El Sheikh in 2002 .
8- She won the Golden Lion Prize for being the best Arab Singer in 2003 in the general questionnaire of Horiati Magazine .
9- Sherine Wagdy got the title of the best Arab singer in Oscar Festival that was hold in Sharm Al Sheikh in 2003 . Her song " We Dah Yerdey Mien Ya Gharam " won the prize of the best video clip and the best graphics . Her song " Wa La Lilah " won the prize of the best melody
10-She was the best Arab singer in 2003 in the questionnaire of Zahrat Al Khalig Magazine .
11- She was honored in Tunisia for her distinguished contribution to the Arab singing and for her participation in the Tunisian elections celebrations .
12- She won the platinum CD for being the best Arab singer in 2004 in the general questionnaire of Horiati Magazine .
13- She was the best Arab singer in 2004 in the questionnaire of Art Channel .
14 – She was the best Arab singer in 2004 in the questionnaire of Dream Channel .
15 – She was the best Arab singer in 2004 and 2005 in the critics annual questionnaire in Zahrat Al Khalig Magazine .
"Kol Dah" 16- In Sharm El Sheikh Festival 2005, her song won the prize of the best song.
In celebrating several national occasions at various Arabic countries, Sherine has been honored from the following leaders of these countries as an expression of their admiration for her best and distinguished performance
1 - The Libyan President "Mo’amar El Kazafy " in (2003) "Abd Allah the second" in (2003). 2 - The King Of Jordan
3 – The Tunisian President "Zein El Abdeen" in (2005).
4 - The Algerian President "Abd El Aziz Boteflikah" in (2005).
"Mohamed Hosny Moubarak" 5 - The Egyptian President
(2005). (Source: sherinewagdy.com)

Official Website: www.sherinewagdy.com

Shereen Ahmed

Sherine

Assumed Name: Shereen

Date of Birth: October 10, 1980

Horoscope: Libra

Country of Birth: Egypt

The talented singer was born on October 10th 1980 in Cairo Egypt. She grew up and was raised in the small neighbourhood of Kal3a. She studied in Egypt in one of its music academies and graduated with a music degree. She then went on in her life exposing her talented voice and produced three albums. Her first album was shared with the talented singer Tamer 7osni and made great sales.

Due to her success she went on and produced 2 more albums (solo) that almost went platinum by todays North American standard. Shereen is a singer who reaches out to her own generation and communicates to them through her songs. Her singing is praised by many and exposes her mass audience to her background and culture where many can relate to. Her musical message is beautiful and simple.

Tamer Hosny

Hobbies:
Egyptian Soccer: Played this game for nine years. Horse Riding, Swimming. My Favorite most loved Hobbies are: Playing Guitar, Writing Stories and Movies. The first movie I wrote was titled "Halet Hob".The movies' main characters were Hany Salama and I.

Private Life:
I have a brother "Hossam Hosny", He is married and got a girl "Salma". My mom is Syrian but she was raised and lived her whole life in Egypt. My dad is Egyptian, He is the singer "Hosny Sherif". I am Single. Two years ago, I was engaged but we broke up under pressure from her family because they thought of me as a person with no future and all I do is is speak out with no action but thank God, I am taking my first step towards success.

My Negatives:
Very nervous, I drive my car so fast that I know is not acceptable and I am working on quitting that habit. I think I have very warm feelings towards those who I love and I care about them more than I care about my self. As a man, Jealousy is a big part of my character, my manners are typical Upper Egypt Man (?????). I am Kind and I Love all people around me. I am crazy about my love to my mom because she gave up her life and everything for me. I live for my mom, dad, my brother and any one who loves me. My dad left me 19 years ago and I never seen him since that but after I became famous I searched for him. I found him in London, I mailed him and brought him back to Egypt ( ??????? ???? )

My Friends:
Every one who shares in making m a better person such as Mohamed Fouad the drum player known as Mimi, Hady Adel, Ayman Azmy the lyrics writer and my dear brother Hossam Housni who taught me everything.

My Childhood:
I lived a very hard childhood because I was lonely and had no financial support due to my dad's absence and my mom was far away from her homeland and family. But with patience and strong believe in God my life went on. Then I met the star creator, the producer Nasr Mahrous whom I consider my older brother, who changed my whole life and filled in the gap that my dad left. To me Nasr Mahrous is my Oxygen, my family by then I knew that if you work hard you will achieve and depending on how hard you work you will get what is determined for you.

How I want my future wife:
High manners, kind, tender, cute, low voice, good listener, take good care of her self and me. Our relation will be built up on respect, care and love. NOTE: I hate make up, I prefer nature look.

Characters Affected my life:
Nasr Mahrous, Salma El Shamaa and My Mom
My Gate: Salma El Shamaa heard me and presented me on the Opera then Nasr Mahrous heard me and took me to start my singing career.
Singers I like: Abd El Halim Hafez and all youth singers.
Song affected my career: Ana Lak Ala Tool ( ??? ?? ??? ??? ) that made me love singing.

Singers affected my singing career:
Ali El Hagar, Medhat Saleh and more. My Mom Taught me everything even LOVE.

My Dreams:
1. World Peace and a way to Gods love and heaven.
2. Cure Sick People and Pease of mind to those poor people.
3. Make my family and brother happy.
4. God's love and support to fulfill my goals and dreams.

Funny Memories:
1. When I first started people would shake hands with me saying "HI!, Mr Tamer and Sherine". 2. On the day of the earthquake day I was in the street with home uniform and that is an Cut Under Shirt but it was so long thank GOD!!!. On the follower shake I was with or may be not..........

My Final Words:
Thanks for all those shared in the success of Tamer Housni and Listened to his songs, telling them you are the reason for my success and for whom I am became today. The Peace I am in today is from my fan's love and appreciatation.

Source: http://www.tamerhosny.com

Websites:
- Tamer Hosny - The Official Website

Wael Kafoury

Future activities: Producing “Muzail kul Al Banat” in video clip.

Prizes:
The golden medal in the folklore songs for his song “ Ma Wauk Bi Nujoom Alail”.

8. He sang in America, Australia, Europe and most of the Arab countries. He participated in Jericho International Festival in Jordan.
*He has very strong voice, polite and smart.
*He polished his talent with special study. (Source: Rotana.net)

Fanclub Website: www.kfouryclub.com

Walid Samara

Even though that all indications were clearly showing that Walid is a strong and favorable candidate to win the show he decided to quite and leave the academy after spending 2 months their. The reason of why Walid decided to leave the Academy kept a secret between him and LBC but that withdrew was a topic for the Entertainment pages on the Arab world to talk about, which helped in gaining Walid more publicity and respect among the viewers.

After leaving the academy walid was invited to different interviews in different Arab TV and radio stations such as Jordan TV, AL Rai TV, Sawt El Ghad Radio, Kuwait Radio, Marina FM, Nojoom FM in Egypt, Radio Fun in Jordan, and other media channels including different Arabic newspapers and magazines. (Source: Walidsamara.com)

Official Website: www.walidsamara.com

Wadih Mrad

Wadih started his music life at the age of five. His first instrument was a piano. During his studies, he participated in many events and competitions between schools. In 1984, he was sent to Armenia as a tourist for one month through a scholarship. In 1989, he organized an orchestra for his school to participate in events with other schools. The majority of these events were for charity.

In 1992, Wadih went to the military service for two years and a half. During this period, he met an Oriental orchestra where he discovered all the oriental instruments (Kanoun, Violin, Nay) and started practicing Arabic bitrates. After one year, in 1993, he organized his own Oriental orchestra of fourteen professional musicians. During his military period, Wadih got introduced to many people where he started singing in weddings, birthdays, engagement events and others.

During the summer of 1995, Wadih´s military service was over and his fans were growing larger and larger.
Many people started loving and adoring his voice all around the city. He went back to his village where he made his first concert. The concert was great deemed very successful and everybody was encouraging him to go further in his musical career.

Wadih realized that his duties started growing as well, and that he had to proceed to create a better future, so he went studying Solfege in his village with a special private teacher who taught him the basics of "Al Makamat el Arabiyya" as well as how to play Oud.

In summer 1996, he signed his first contract in a very beautiful tourist green area known as "Mashta al Houlou" in Syria. The contract was with a restaurant called "Nabee el Aarous" that was a strategic touristic place for both Arab and European tourists. His fame started spreading in the Middle East region starting from Beirut, Egypt, Jordan, and Dubai in the Arab Emirates.

In winter 1996, Wadih went to Sweden for two months where he found large number of fans mostly from the Syriac and Armenian religions (Al Jaliya). He made many concerts there and they were all another success to tell about. Winters and summers of 1997 and 1998 were a repetition of 1996. Winters were in Sweden and summers were in "Mashta el Helou".

At the end of 1998, Wadih moved to Beirut where all the doors of fame were opened. He suffered for one year and a half in Beirut because he thought it was easy to start his career there. This was very difficult, on the other hand, because Lebanese people are very good listeners and the market was witnessing the birth of many singers and it was hard for one to prove himself quickly in the midst of such a mess.

Finally, Wadih signed a contract with a Lebanese radio station and agreed that they will manage his business. He started singing in a night club called "Blue Velvet" in Kaslik in the Jounieh area under the name of "Garo" and the contract lasted for four months. The result of this hard work was that they offered him a song and supported it exclusively on air and he was obliged to change his name to "Wadih Mrad" to fit with his style of songs.

Later on, the radio station produced an album of seven songs that included the single "Helweh el Denyeh" that lead him to the top charts. The album was entitled "Saket" and was produced by Music Master. His contract with the radio station ended with lots of problems mainly related to money that is, till now, still to be settled still in court of law.

Wadih signed his next contract with Rotana through a company based in Los Angeles named "Take 5 Music". The contract was for five years with Rotana but was broken after one album which is "Aashek Majnoun". The problem was related to the failure launching the album due to marketing reasons. The contract was ended on a friendly basis and Wadih realized that he must take full responsibility for managing his life and work by choosing the songs that fit his style because everybody was underestimating him. He felt that following the advice of others was ruining his life, dreams, future, and career that he believed in.

In Christmas 2003, Wadih went to the United States where he had a tour in many states like Los Angeles, New Jersey, Detroit, Boston, etc. and every concert there was a success. The fans were singing his songs that they memorized, and Wadih realized that his songs were almost everywhere. This put more pressure and more duties on him with respect his fans, friends, and family.

Later on, Wadih met a friend in New Jersey and they agreed to start a company to release a new album. The system was that the company will finance new albums which Wadih prepares with a lot of care and the result of this was a new album of eight songs under the name of "Waddaani el Habib". This new album promises to be a success because it has already spread all over the world including the Middle East, USA, Canada, Europe, etc. (Source: Wadihmrad.tv)

Official Website: www.wadihmrad.tv

Wust el Balad

Eight talented guys from all across the country joined together in Downtown, i.e. Wust El Balad, Cairo, forming one of the most successful bands in Egypt now. Being from different musical backgrounds, each guy brought is own flavor to the group. Their story is as compelling as the music itself.

Their first appearance as Wust El Balad as at Al Mashrabeya Gallery, followed by their first paid performance at the Berlitz Language Center. Ever since that moment, Wust El Balad was a regular performer at all galleries, cultural centers, bars, special events and hotels, and even abroad.

Their vision then was to reach the average person that can't afford hearing them in bars or galleries. nd so they were the first band to play in the Egyptian street, experiencing one of the most amazing concerts, playing in Al Alfi Street to the local community during he French festival "Les Francais aiment l'Egypte".

Wust El Balad, an amazing blend of sounds, combining traditional Arabic music with a modern and western twist, is successful in making their music as accessible as possible, not just in Cairo, but beyond. Wust El Balad means real world music in the best sense of the word. (Source: Wustelbalad.com)

Official Website: www.wustelbalad.com

Zein el Omr

From the tender age of 12, Zein sang at school performances and family gatherings, and quickly acquired the ability to perform live. In 1989, Zein moved to a school in Montreal, Canada, and his talent soon became obvious to the Lebanese community in Montreal. The young boy started singing in Arabic nightclubs and at private parties and weddings, establishing a strong name for himself, and, in less than four years, became Canada's hottest Arab star. In 1993, Zein moved back to Lebanon and released his debut single Wijik Kheir Aleina, which smashed into the Lebanese music charts at #1, and Zein began to receive recognition for his talent in his home country. The young star followed his first single by two consequent hits, La Ouyounak Inta Ya Helou and Ayel Mani Ayel. An album soon formed under the name Min Bein Kol el Bachar and was warmly received by a rapidly growing fan base.

In 1994, Zein released Kazdarna w Tal el Mishwar and was instantly rocketed to Arab stardom as the single shot to the top of music charts around the Arab world. The song was so popular among the French-Moroccan community that it was translated to French. For Zein el Omr, the journey of stardom had just begun.

The second album, Sameh, was even more successful and contained a number of hits including Nejmet Hayati, Ana Be'chaa Hali Fiki, and Sameh, which established the young star's voice as one of the most impressive in the Arab world.
In 1996, Zein's third album, Aala Zawki produced his folkloric hit Faya Mandilik and earned him even greater recognition for his powerful voice.

The subsequent album, Dari, featured some of Zein's most romantic love ballads ever, including Khaliki Ma'i and Bhebbik, along with some great pop songs like Laziza and Habibi el Hob Hayarni.

Zein astonished his fans in the year 2000 by releasing a socio-political, patriotic song titled Chou Emeltelli Bil Balad - a cry of anguish at the social and political factors that are leading to the emigration of the country's youth. The song was tremendously successful and earned Zein a Phoenix d'Or, the title of #1 singer chosen by University students, and larger recognition as an educated, serious artist. This hit was followed by Saket Ma Baddak Tehki, another intense, rebellious scream directed at national conscience.

In 2001, Zein released Hibbini Aktar and in 2002 Ala Eyni, two singles that topped the charts around the Arab world. Zein was chosen for a second consecutive year by all University students in Lebanon as their #1 singer whose "songs reflect the spirit of the new generation."

Zein el Omr has toured in Europe, America, Australia, and Canada and performed in major music festivals. Many of the Arab world's greatest artists and art critics, including Wadih el Safi, Sabah, George Ibrahim el Khoury, Mohamed Ali Suleiman, and Mohamed Kabil have praised his voice and his captivating personality.
With each new release, Zein manages to top his previous successes and to show immense growth as a performing artist and as a person. (Source: Zainelomr.com)

Official Website: www.zainelomr.com

Zizi Adel

After that she signed a contract with Rotana, The biggest music production company in the Arab World, In early 2007, Adel released her first ablum Wahda Tayeba (a kind person) also realses her first clip Hob Mosh Mahsoub 3alia (unaccounted love).

(Source: Wikipedia.org)

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