Saturday, June 27, 2009

Jil Jilala

Gnawa musicians in MoroccoImage via Wikipedia

Jil Jilala is a Moroccan musical group which rose to prominence in the 1970s among the movement created by Nass El Ghiwane and Lem Chaheb. Jil Jilala was founded in Marrakech in 1972 by performing arts students Mohamed Derhem, Moulay Tahar Asbahani, Sakina Safadi, Mahmoud Essaadi, Hamid Zoughi and Moulay Abdelaziz Tahiri (who had just left Nass el Ghiwane). In 1974, they released their first record Lyam Tnadi on the Atlassiphone label. It was only a matter of time before Leklam Lemrassaa, Baba Maktoubi, Ha L'ar a Bouya, Jilala, and Chamaa became popular classics.In 1976 they wrote Laayoune Ayniya about the Green March. The song becomes almost a national anthem that is chanted when Moroccans from all over the country marched as one towards the Moroccan Sahara, then occupied by Spain.Contrary to Nass El Ghiwane, who were primarily influenced by the Gnawa music, Jil Jilala took their inspiration from other form of traditional Moroccan music like the Malhun, sung in a classical and old form of Moroccan Arabic, or the spiritual music of Jilala, a traditional sufi brotherhood. The goal of these groups was the rejuvenation of traditional Moroccan music.he Eighties saw the coming of the wonder gnaoui Mustafa Bakbou from the formation Tiq Maya. Bakbou, sometimes written as "Baqbou" is considered to be the number one Gnawa musician of Africa!Although Jil Jilala have had a lesser influence on the Moroccan music as did Nass el Ghiwane, they have brought much novelty to it. For years it seems that the line-up changed with the seasons. We see the leave and return of Sakina Safadi and also Mustafa Bakbou set out to return again. Even Tahiri will leave the group to return 10 years later. Just a few months before Mohamed Derham, heart of the group, left.Derham, today, works in a communication agency. Mustafa Bakbou now has his own group GnAwA, including wife and children, continuing the very old tradition to keep the fire burning from father to sons and daughters. Since 2006 Jil Jilala are recording and performing together with Uve Muellrich and Marlon Klein of Germany's Dissidenten.
Jil Jilala was found before lemshaheb, it was the second band after Nas elghiwan, and Moulay Abdelaziz Tahiri was a member founder of nas elghiwan, he later joined jil jilala. He was not a founder of this band. Nass El Ghiwane, were not influenced by the Gnawa music,they were influenced by Al majdoub folk music which was put on the Casablnca theatre by Attayeb Seddiki.The play was called " Sidi Abed arrahman Almajdoub". On the other hand, Jil Jilala was influenced by Gnawa music, which was displayed daily at the main square " Jamma el Fana", later on after Moulay Abdelaziz Tahiri joined the band, they went on exploring " El Malhoun" which is a great deal for people of Marrakech. As per the different reunion by some of Jil Jilala members, it was due to Derhem amd Moulay Abdelaziz Tahiri who were the only productive, the others have great voices and great singing ability, but could not compose nor write lyrics.The standards were always high. Derhem and Moulay Abdelaziz Tahiri expected more refined projects, while the others were after the financial gain. Nass El Ghiwan appeled to mass due to their simplistic tunes and lyrics, not complexion in rhythm or melodies.

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Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Belly

"Belly" (real name Ahmad Balshe) is a rapper who was born April 7 1984 in Jenin, Palestine. He currently resides in Greely, Ontario, Canada. He twice attained a top chart position in the national Much Music Countdown.

In April 2007, Belly released the video for his second single "Don't Be Shy" featuring Nina Sky, as well as the video for "History of Violence" which remains his most controversial record to date. In "History Of Violence", Belly explains his views on the Palestine-Israel conflict, and the War in Iraq.

Shortly after, "I'm The Man" featuring Kurupt was released and it was premiered as the "Big One" on MuchMusic. He also released a video for "Smell Like Money" on MySpace in early October.

In late October 2007, his third single featuring Mario Winans entitled "Ridin'" was released. The video features Mario Winans, model KD Aubert, who plays Belly's lead-girl and Dr. Benjamin Chavis.

Career highlights

Go Sens Go

During the 2007 NHL Playoffs, as the Ottawa Senators were competing, Belly released a single entitled "Go Sens Go." When the Senators made the Stanley Cup Finals, Belly released a second version of the song which featured goaltender Ray Emery. The "Go Sens Go" song was a huge success among Ottawa Senator fans.

"The Revolution"

His debut album, "The Revolution", was released June 5, 2007. This double disc album was divided into two sections: "The People" and "The System". "The People" contained more in depth songs, such as "History of Violence", "Follow Me" and "Revolutionary", where he challenges his listeners to discover the facts regarding the Middle-East situation. Other songs on this disc include "People Change", "Leave me Alone", where he talks about his long time friends and the memories that he kept from them. "The System" contained his hit singles "Don't Be Shy", "Ridin" and "Pressure". Belly won the 2008 Juno Award for Rap Recording of the Year for his album "The Revolution". Also at the MMVA [ much music video awards ] , Belly won Best Rap Video, for 2 years in a row, this year was for the song Ridin, which also reach number 1 video on the much music countdown

2008 police raid

A major police raid was conducted at the artist's home in Greely on 15 August 2008 based on a search warrant to seek firearms there. However, the only evidence of note found in this raid were three BB guns that were purchased from a Canadian Tire store. No charges were laid and Belly later commented that the raid "was a waste of Ottawa taxpayers' money, but now my neighbours can see that I don't have anything to hide."http://dic.academic.ru/dic.nsf/enwiki/5892878

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Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Malikah

Lebanese Queen of Rap Lynn Fattouh, known as Malikah. Born in Marseille, France in 1986, Malikah is a Lebanese Algerian raised in Beirut. What makes her a unique Arab rapper, singer, and MC, that stands out in the industry, is that she is not only a female but she also raps fluently in Arabic, English, and French. “I have a collaboration track on Aks’seir’ album, that was released a couple of years ago where I rap in French and Arabic (Algerian accent),” she said. This track was the retake of the famous Abdel Kader for Algerian Singer Cheb Khaled.
Malikah describes her “2 personalities” when it comes to music. “Malikah is the rough, serious, hardcore, Arabic woman who raps about politics, religion, and social issues; and MC Lix is my alter-ego, the feminine, sexy lady who is more commercial and talks about love, friendship and so on,” she added.Malikah first hit the Lebanese hip hop scene in 2003 when she performed in front of a number of Lebanese Male rappers at the “Peak Hall,” Lebanon. “Back then, I had to cover my face because my parents were against me rapping,” she said. She secretly continued doing her thing until she was asked to perform on Lebanon’s Future Television show “Zaven” in 2003. “This is where I had to face my parents. Eventually we spoke and made a deal that they would let me do my music as long as I keep up with school,” she explained. Three years later Malikah started MC’ing.

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Sunday, June 21, 2009

Diana Haddad


Lebanese Artist Diana Joseph Fouad Haddad (born 1 October 1976) is a Lebanese Arab pop folk singer and model with Emirati citizenship. Mainly known as Diana Haddad, she is one of the most popular and successful singers in the Arab World and has been so since the start. Lebanese Singer Diana Haddad was a record-breaker since her first song Saken in 1996, and she is still considered one of the most successful Arab female singers and one of the best selling singers in the Arab World. Lebanese Singer Diana Haddad does not limit herself to one music style, she knows how to present a very wide range, moving from the most rhythmic songs to the slow romantic ones. Lebanese Singer Diana Haddad first came to fame in 1993 when she just 16. While she was recording her first album she appeared on the Arabic talent show Studio El Fan in Beirut performing the traditional Lebanese folk song written by Elias Abou Azala Tayr El Yammameh which would be included on her first album Saken.

Three years later, the release of her debut album Saken, which featured her single Saken, Lagaitek, a cover of Issam Rajje's old hit, and Al-Sahra. Soon, after Lebanese Artist Diana Haddad became a mother to her first child, a daughter Sofi. In 1997 Lebanese Artist Diana Haddad released one of the most successful albums in her discography, Ahl Al Esheg, which included the hit single Ahl Al Esheg. Diana Haddad released the most popular pop album of the 1990s Ammanih. In 2000s Diana Haddad released the more critically acclaimed and successful albums Awel Marrah and Diana 2006. In 2007 Diana Haddad gave birth to her second daughter Mira in Dubai. On 30 October 2008, Diana Haddad released her second long waited Khaliji (Gulf Arabic) album Men Diana Illa. Rest on http://www.lebanonatlas.com/content/magazine/DianaHaddad.asp

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Saturday, June 20, 2009

Khaled

Khaled Hadj Brahim (Arabic: خالد حاج ابراهيم‎, born 29 February 1960), better known as Khaled, is a raï singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist born in Sidi-El-Houari in Oran Province of Algeria. He began recording in his early teens under the name Cheb Khaled (Arabic for "Young man Khaled") and has become probably the most internationally famous Algerian singer. His popularity has earned him the unofficial title "King of Raï".WIKIPEDIA

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Friday, June 19, 2009

SaidaFikri

Saida Fikri
( سعيدة فكري ) is a Moroccan singer-songwriter well known in North Africa and Western Europe for expressing powerful personal and social themes in an original, cosmopolitan style of music.

Saida’s eclectic songs combine elements of rock, blues, jazz, folk, pop, country and reggae, but all with a subtle Middle Eastern touch. The ‘eastern’ traces in Saida’s music include gnawi, rai, chaabi, Andalusian, Berber and classical Arabic rhythms. Her lyrics are written in the Moroccan dialect of Arabic, French, and English.

The result of this global fusion is one of a kind : Saida has taken in the best of the world’s musical traditions, yet she doesn’t sound like anyone else in the world.

In terms of orchestration, Saida’s repertory can be divided into two kinds. On the one hand, ‘big’ songs like “Zmane Naga” and “Ait Mankhabbi” are supported by numerous instruments and backup singers. Their ‘fast’ and exciting rhythms always inspire the audience to sway and dance along.

On the other hand, Saida is also a master of the ‘small’ and ‘quiet’ song in the style of Joan Baez or Joni Mitchell, performed solo with a guitar, or sometimes as a duet with another acoustique instrument. The best example of this genre is the much loved “Misiria” , a blistering attack on the indifference and hypocrisies of fatcats and corrupt officials. Or in the words of Mohamed Lotfi, a journalist for Radio Canada, "One voice, one guitar and words which bluntly portray a society where injustice, inequality and patriarchical abuse of power are still the rule".

Saida’s music is thus not just music. It is also something serious, conveying complex emotions and social statements. Her music displays a special concern for the hardships, struggles and suffering of the ordinary people of Morocco. There are nostalgic meditations on the experiences of emigrants. There are elegies to the forgotten people of society. There are cries for justice. There is social criticism. In other words, Saida is a principled artist whose principles are justice, truth, and honesty. Asked "what does Saida sing?", a young man of 18 at a Saida Fikri concert in Rabat replied, "She sings about our problems".

Saida Fikri is also a social pioneer in the Middle East and North Africa. Normally, a female singer in this part of the world performs the songs written for her by men. But Saida not only sings, but also writes her own outspoken lyrics, composes her own music and performs with the guitar. In fact, Saida was the first Moroccan woman to appear in public holding a guitar.

This troublemaker, a native of Casablanca, grew up listening to the songs of Joan Baez, Dolly Parton and Bob Dylan. She started playing the guitar at age of 8 and wrote her first song at 12. She soon found herself in the formal study of music at the Conservatory of Casablanca. Her musical career of tackling her country's biggest taboos took off in 1994 with her debut album “Nadmana”, at a time when the freedom of expression was still limited, well before the political liberalisation started by the current king.Her music being an immediate commercial success, it was not long before Saida was touring all over Morocco and Europe. The government of Belgium invited her to sing as the representative of the modern North African woman, a performance before tens of thousands in Brussels’s Great Square. Saida has also performed at the prestigious Paradiso club in Amsterdam, a presitigous venue reserved for big international stars. In April of 2008, Saida and her group of 5 musicians went on her first North American tour, performing on stage in New York, Boston, Washington DC (the Rosslyn Spectrum Theatre) and Montreal (Kola Note).
At the concert held on 20 May 2008 in Morocco’s capital city of Rabat for the Mawazine International Music Festival, Saida performed before a cheering crowd of over 30,000 who sang along with her and recited her repertory word for word.http://www.saidafikri.net/

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Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Angham

Angham (born January 19, 1966) is an Egyptian singer, record producer and actress. Her debut was in 1987 under the guidance of her father, Mohammad Suleiman. She is the most successful vocal female artist in Egypt starting from the 1980s till nowadays. Following her divorce from Magdy Aref in 2000, Angham took much more control over her image and musical style after that “Leih Sebtaha” (Why Did You Leave Her) record established her into a strong position amid the constant emerge of new voices in the Middle East music scene. After a highly publicized feud between Alam elPhan Music Records’ president Mohsen Gaber and the artist , Angham moved to another record company, Rotana. In 2005, she released "Bahibbik Wahashteeny" (I Love You, I Miss You) record . The record was critically acclaimed, but commercially was not as expected. After a three years, Angham return to the forefront of Arabic pop music in 2007 with her hit record “Kolma N’arrab” (Whenever We Come Closer) which sold more than half a million CD across the Middle East in less than three months and was awarded a platinum certification.
Angham was named the best selling female pop artist in Middle East for the years 2000, 2001 , 2003, and 2007 . She is well-known for her vocal range, simplicity, melismatic style, and use of the whistle register. However, some critics have said Angham's efforts to showcase her vocal talents have been at the expense of communicating true emotion through song rather than showing her full vocal capacities. WIKIPEDIA

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Sunday, June 14, 2009

Menna & Nhala


MENNA:Was born in Alexandria.and graduated from Arab academy for science&technology.
Her artistic began from school parties (fransiscan school) to channel five where she sang some songs to "gezert el arais"show By the age of eleven she was applied as a singer by the listener's association for the song of "bahlam" then she stopped due to the objection of her father until she finished her education ...........
Nahla:
Was born in Alexandria and graduated form faculty of fine arts .
her artistic began from primary stage. she took part from all school parties (farnsiscan school) then to channel five
where she was singing star in"hadouta badwya" show.
she also stopped although many offers due to objection of her father.until she finished her education



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Friday, June 12, 2009

Jannat Mahid

Singing was in her blood since she was 5 years old, unlike children in her age playing with dolls; she used to listen to Umma Kalthoum, Abd El Wahab & many other great singers, she is the Star Jannat. She was raised in her family with her 3 brothers, where she wasn't just the only girl, but the youngest. She was always surrounded by their care and attention since she was the youngest & by this attention her family noticed that her ear in listening wasn't interested in kids’ songs as the kids in her age, she used to choose heavy songs and she started singing those songs. Her family then started supporting her specially her mother, who had herself a beautiful voice, but she only used it in singing for the family or in the family events. When she was 8, she participated in a singing competition in Morocco & stood on stage with a band and audience. Despite she was very young, she had no fear. Not only that, she won the first place in this competition. After that she participated in another 3 competitions in morocco & she one the first place, 1 in Alexandria & she also won the first place and the last one before she started her album was in Dubai shopping & tourism festival "Mahragan El Seyaha Wel Tasawok" & she also won the first place. She was then invited by Dr. Ratiba El Hefni as a guest of Horner to sing in the opening of the Arabic music Festival in the Opera. She paused for a while until she graduated from marketing. From there she started taking singing as a career & not just a talent; in 2004 she launched a single song in a Clip named "Efhamny Habibi". During that time the producer Ahmed Desouki was looking for new voices to introduce, he liked her voice so much & signed with her in 2005, since then, they had been working on her first album with Good News for Music "Elly Beiny W Beinak" till it had been launched in July 2006, it took them a year and a half preparing this album, as the producer Ahmed Desouki wanted her album to be a hit, it took them a lot of time & effort. It was really a hit. She shot "Aktar men sana" as the clip and the audiences say that her voice is so tender & warm & her feelings are high & this is reflected on the songs & her voice. The album has a total of 10 songs, a mix between love, sadness & being hurt & songs to show a strong woman. She's also shot another song from her album called "Bahebak" with the director Mohamed Gomaa. She launched two singles in Collection “Good News Vol-1” called “Habeby Ala Neyato” & “Alek Beeh” in July 2008. She is now working with Producer Ahmed El Desouki on their second album together which will be released on 2009.

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Thursday, June 11, 2009

MC Amin

Ahmed Amin (Arabic: أحمد أمين‎) (born in 1985) better known by his stage name Mc Amin and El-General, is a rapper from Mansoura City. He is considered the best of Egyptian rappers, mainly for his hardcore aggressive style and for his songs'themes, which express problems within many of Egyptians.Born in 1985 in Mansoura City, Mc Amin grew up in a middle class family. He studied in University Unions (Arabic: الجامعة العمالية‎), and after receiving his Baccalauréat, he started his career as an underground rapper . * In 1998 He started memorizing the lyrics of the songs he listened to and rap them while he was around his friends. That gave him the idea of creating his own lines with new beats. This was the start of having his own way of rapping. and it started to develope from a hobby to a serious part of his life.
* 2004 was when he started to write his own lyrics in arabic and started to express his anger feelings through music. EveryBody were amazed[citation needed] by his talent and brave lyrics . His friends supported him all the way, which truely helped him more and more in becoming selfconfident.This Was Mc Amin Breaking-Through.
* In 2007 Mc Amin decided to publish his own records. He created a band Called Black Attack dropping his first underground album Mc Amin VOL#1 - Black Attack. After his succeeded album he helped many young rappers to start writing and recording thier lyrics for the first time such as Kordy, F-Killa, Rakip and Mac-D. He organised them to a band called Arab Rap Soldiers, Dropping his second successful album Mc Amin VOL#2 - Arab Rap Soldiers.
* 2008 was one of the most sucsessfully year in his career. He worked with alot of people, recorded a plenty of songs with known artists like Arabian Knightz, Wighit Nazar, Ahmed El Fishawy, Shadia Mansour and Fredwreck, He also had alot of big gigs and many guest appearances like the first summit of Mediterranean Hiphop Culture. and Desert Saga MixTape released by the end of 2008. WIKIPEDIA


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Oumeima El Khalil

32/365 (Alternate): Sing a Song of SixpenceImage by hyperbolic pants explosion via Flickr

Born in Al Fakiha in 1966, Oumeima El Khalil started her career as a singer at twelve. She lived in an art-loving family; this is how she was discovered at an early age in the singing world.
El Khalil pursued her secondary studies in the Bekaa, and then moved to Beirut where she studied music theory and vocal techniques.
Meeting Marcel Khalifé at an early age was a good occasion for Oumeima to venture into the world of singing as it gave her the opportunity to sing as a solo in his "Al Mayadin" band where she showed a high level of professionalism in the domain.
The 12-year old girl had her own songs that she interpreted worldwide for over 27 years at high-level concerts in which Marcel Khalifé and his band participated.

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Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Sy Mehdi

Sy Mehdi chante depuis l'âge de 8 ans. à 17 ans il sort son premier album , puis en 2001 il se produit pour un album de chansons orientés musique populaire marocaine. C'est en 2003 qu'il pourra enfin réaliser l'album de la réussite avec FTG Records. « Ya bladi » mélange à la fois les thèmes du Rai à la marocaine sur des rythmes et des arrangements modernes. Précurseur du Rai'n'B, Sy Mehdi récidive en sortant en 2006 le premier album de Rai'n'Groove du Maghreb. Sy Mehdi a joué plusieurs fois sur l'esplanade de la Wilaya de Casablanca devant un public enthousiaste, qui a apprécié sa musique rythmée et enjouée.
Son groupe percutant, avec lequel il tourne depuis deux ans, mélange habilement sur scène les reprises et les compositions originales ,avec pour seul mot d'ordre : Faire plaisir au public . http://www.symehdi.com/



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Sunday, June 7, 2009

Salah Edin

Abid Tounssi, also known as Salah Edin is a Dutch rapper. He was born and raised in Alphen aan den Rijn, the Netherlands. He lived in Morocco for about 2 years. After a brief career in English, Salah began recording in Darija Arabic.In the first edition of the film Fitna, and subsequently removed from the second release, when referring to the murder of Theo van Gogh, instead of the murderer's face (Mohammed Bouyeri), a picture of Edin is displayed. The picture was shot for the rapper's album Nederlands Grootste Nachtmerrie (Netherlands' Worst Nightmare), which, according to the singer's website, was shot to be "exactly like the mugshot of convicted killer Mohamed B". A 2007 article by Dutch newspaper De Dag had captioned an article about the killer with the shot. On that occasion, Salah Edin's received an out-of-court libel settlement for the publication. The photo was said by the rapper to be intended to depict "the way the average white Dutch citizen sees me, as a young Moroccan Muslim radical. That's why I chose to do this picture and use it for the front cover of my album. It is in no way supporting the deeds of Mohamed B". Edin has accepted a settlement of 25,000 euros for the infringement. WIKIPEDIA

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Cheba Maria

Cheba Maria, Moroccan Raï music singer.Moroccan-born, Cheba Maria move to France in 1998 in order to make her musical career take off.Based in Toulouse, Cheba Maria charmed auditors with a strong voice and a joyful personality. Many artists were delighted to host her in their shows. Thus, she sang alongside Cheb Rachid « Enta Ould Bladi » in 1998 which was sold thousands of copies in many countries and especially in Morocco where Cheba Maria is more beloved.
In 1999, Cheba Maria gave her public a new hit « Amalek a Zine », « Zinek Khater » in 2000 and « Rani Mghamra » in 2001.After having released « Jenetinie » 2003, Cheba Maria participated to the album Rain'b Fever by the single «Mon Bled » with Mohamed lamine and Rohff. The album sold 250.000 copies earned her a Sony Music contract and a first Gold.Featured with Hamid Bouchnak, Cheba Maria released in 2006 another big hit "Omry" http://en.hibamusic.com

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Saturday, June 6, 2009

Asalah Nasri

Asala was born in Damascus, Syria to a middle class couple. Mostafa Nasri, Asala's father, was a revered Syrian composer and singer who recognized her singing talent early on and launched her singing career. She was very attached to her father who taught her to love music. Her infatuation with music entertained her through her childhood, she was much more content with the radio than a doll. Asala began her musical career by performing patriotic, religious, and children's songs when she was four years old. She sang the theme song, Qessas Al Sho'oub (Arabic: قصص الشعوب), of the cartoon show, Hekayat Alamiyah (Arabic: حكايات عالمية). In 1986, Mostafa Nasri died after suffering from internal bleeding caused by a car accident. The untimely passing of Asala's father caused her great grief and she left singing and took up her duties as the eldest child. At the young age of seventeen, she took care of her siblings, Reem, Amani, Ayman and Ayham with her mother.Asala's commercial musical career debuted in 1991 with Law Ta'rafou (Arabic: لو تعرفو). The album had 4 songs in the oriental operatic tarab style. The album was an instant hit with heartbreaking songs like Ya Sabra Yana and Samehtak Ketir. She quickly cemented her presence in a growing industry brimming with new, young talent like Najwa Karam, Saber Rebai, Angham, and Abdelmajeed Abdullah.WIKIPEDIA

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