ARAB MUSIC | Music Freakdom

THE SENSATIONAL ARAB VOCALISTS

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Arab music is the music of the Arab world with all its diverse music styles and genres, Arabic countries have many rich and varied styles of music and also many linguistic dialects, with each country and region having their own traditional music.

Arabic music has a long history of interaction with many other regional musical styles and genres. It represents the music of all the peoples that make up the Arab world today.

MEET UMM KULTHUM OF EGYPT

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Umm Kulthum was known for her vocal ability and unique style. She sold over 80 million records worldwide, making her one of the best-selling Middle Eastern singers of all time. She is considered a national icon in her native Egypt; she has been dubbed "The voice of Egypt “and "Egypt's fourth pyramid".

Umm Kulthum was born in the village of Tamay e-Zahayra, belonging to the city of Senbellawein, Dakahlia Governorate, in the Nile Delta. Her birth date is unconfirmed, as birth registration was not enforced throughout Egypt at that time. Some sources claim that she was born either on 31 December 1898; 31 December 1904; or 4 May 1904. She learned how to sing by listening to her father teach her older brother, Khalid.

Umm Kulthum is regarded as one of the greatest singers in the history of arab music, with significant influence on a number of musicians, both in the Arab World and beyond. Among others, Jah Wobble has claimed her as a significant influence on his work. Bob Dylan has been quoted praising her Maria Callas, Marie Laforêt, Bono, Robert Plant, and among many others are also known to be admirers of Umm Kulthum's music. Youssou N'Dour, a fan of hers since childhood, recorded his 2004 album Egypt with an Egyptian orchestra in homage to her legacy. One of her best-known songs, "Enta Omri", has been covered and reinterpreted numerous times.

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She was referred to as the Lady by Charles de Gaulle and is regarded as the "Incomparable Voice" by Maria Callas. It is difficult to accurately measure her vocal range at its peak, as most of her songs were recorded live. Even today, she has retained a near-mythical status among young Egyptians. In 2001, the Egyptian government opened the Kawkab al-Sharq (Star of the East) Museum in the singer's memory. Housed in a pavilion on the grounds of Cairo's Manesterly Palace, the collection includes a range of Umm Kulthum's personal possessions, including her trademark sunglasses and scarves, along with photographs, recordings, and other archival material.

Umm Kulthum: died on 3 February 1975, aged 76, from kidney failure. Her funeral procession became a national event, with around 4 million grief-stricken Egyptians lining the streets to catch a glimpse as her cortège passed. It is even reported that her funeral's attendance drew a greater audience than that of the late president at the time. She was buried in her mausoleum in Imam Al-Shafi’i cemetery in Cairo.(Photo by Claude Salhani/Sygma via Getty Images).

SAAD LAMJARRED

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Born April 7, 1985 is a Moroccan singer-songwriter, actor, dancer, record producer. Lamjarred was born to Bachir Abdou, a Moroccan classical singer, and Nezha Regragui, an actress and comedian. From an early age, Lamjarred had a special interest in playing the piano, as well as singing as early as the age of four. Lamjarred then went on to study at the Conservatory of Music in Rabat, where he studied music, art theory and dance. He would perform many productions wherein he would collaborate with his father.

Lamjarred moved to the US in 2001 and cites this as one of the main sources of inspiration for his music, crediting the experience for exposing him to western music and having a defining effect on his style and the type of artist he wanted to identify as. In 2007, Lamjarred took part in Super Star, a widely popular Arab talent TV show, and was placed second in season 4 of the series that was won by the Tunisian Marwan Ali. His participation earned him recognition. In 2011, Lamjarred started his acting career, playing the male lead in Ahlam Nassim, a Moroccan soap opera. He released an album in 2013, titled Wala Aalik. That same year, he released two more EPs, namely Salina and Enty.

The title song of the latter, "Enty", became one of Lamjarred's biggest hits and earned him an award at the Méditel Morocco Music Awards 2014, as well as a nomination for the Best Middle East Act at the 2014 MTV Europe Music Awards. Lamjarred was also nominated for the Best Middle East Act at the 2014 MTV Europe Music Awards. He won the Murex d'Or in the category of "Best Arabic Song" for his 2014 song "Enty".The music video for Lamjarred's 2015 hit single, "Lm3allem", earned a Guinness World Record achievement after garnering 700 million views on YouTube within three months of release. As of October 2020, the video is the most viewed Arabic video on YouTube, garnering 858 million views.

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August 2018 saw Lamjarred incarcerated once more in Saint Tropez, halting his music career again until December 2018, in which he released another single, titled "Baddek Eih". Within 4 hours of publication, the official music video received over a million views on YouTube.

In July 2019, Lamjarred performed and released a duet with Egyptian actor and fellow singer Mohamed Ramadan titled "Ensay", which garnered over 100 million views within a month of publication.

On 10 June 2020, Lamjarred reached 10 million subscribers on his official YouTube channel, and becoming the first Arab African singer to get the Diamond Button.

Lamjarred leads a very private love life, but there were confirmed rumors that he was once married, and divorced around 2015. When asked about it by the media, he blamed jealousy, claiming that it could "really destroy lives", especially since he works in entertainment.

MAHER ZAIN

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Maher Zain born 16 July 1981 is a Swedish R&B singer, songwriter and music producer of Lebanese origin. He released his debut album Thank You Allah, an internationally successful album produced by Awake. Maher Zain's Lebanese family emigrated to Sweden when he was eight. He completed his schooling there, gaining a bachelor's degree in Aeronautical Engineering. After university, he entered the music industry in Sweden, and in 2005 linked up with the Moroccan-born Swedish producer RedOne.When RedOne moved to New York in 2006, Zain soon followed to continue his music industry career in the United States, producing for artists such as Kal Deluna. On returning home to Sweden, he became engaged once more with his Islamic faith and decided to move away from a career as a music producer to become a singer/songwriter of contemporary R&B music with a strong Muslim religious influence.

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In January 2009, Maher Zain began working on an album with Awakening Records. His debut album, Thank You Allah, with 13 songs and two bonus tracks, was released on 1 November 2009 with percussion versions and French versions of some tracks released shortly afterwards.

Zain and Awakening Records successfully used social media such as Facebook, YouTube and iTunes to promote tracks from the album. In early 2010 his music very quickly gathered a huge online following in Arabic-speaking and Islamic countries as well as among young Muslims in western countries. By the end of 2010, he was the most Googled celebrity in Malaysia for that year. Malaysia and Indonesia have been the countries where he has had the most commercial success. The album Thank You Allah has been certified multiple platinum by Warner Music Malaysia and Sony Music Indonesia. It became the highest selling album of 2010 in Malaysia.

CYRINE ABDELNOUR