Shatha Hassoun
Encyclopedia
Shada Amjad Nasser Hassoun Alshamery (born March 3, 1981 in Casablanca
, Morocco
) better known as Shatha Hassoun is an Arabic singer from both Iraqi
and Moroccan
ancestry, who rose to fame as the winner of the 4th season of the pan-Arab television talent show Star Academy Arab World. She was the first female to win the competition. She is currently one of the most popular singers in both the Middle East
and Maghreb
region, and is referred to as the "daughter of Mesopotamia
.
. Growing up, Hassoun divided her time between Morocco and France
and studied English Literature
in Casablanca
and continued her university studies in Tangier
where she joined the program of Hotel and Tourism Management. Then she continued her studies in France where she gained her master's degree.
She can sing in many languages and dialects (Arabic
, English
, French
, Spanish
, Italian
and German
).
Her family, which includes her parents and her only brother reside in Morocco while Shada lives in Beirut
.
Soon after winning the competition, Hassoun released her first single entitled "Rooh", which was written and composed by Lebanese songwriter Nikola Saada Nikhla. It was the first song to ever debut at number one on Rotana's PEPSI Top 20 charts, as it stayed at number for two weeks then peaking again at number one. The second song, "Asmallah Asmallah" or "Ebin Bladi", was written and composed by the Iraqi poet, Karim Al Iraqi as a gift to the Iraqi people and The Iraqi national football team which won the Asian Cup 2007
. "Oushaq" was written and composed by the Lebanese singer Marwan Khoury
. Hassoun also revived several traditional Iraqi songs; "Allela 7elowa" and "Aleik As'al" as a duo with Ilham al-Madfai
. She also released an Iraqi song, "Mza'elni", that was written by Amar Almarhon and composed by Mohand Mehsen, and "Lo alf mara" which was the first song composed by Melhem Barakat
for a non-Lebanese artist. Hassoun is also working with the Iraqi poet Karim Al Iraqi to produce new Iraqi songs,who has worked with the likes of Kazem al Saher. Hassoun has worked with Salah Al-Sharnoby, Ramy Ayach
, Assi El Helani
, Abadi Aljawher and George Wassouf
for a common art work .
in the month of Ramadan 2008.
and sang there in two big charity concerts for the children of Iraq, the first one in Al-elowea club and second one in hunting club, then she hold a press conference in Baghdad
where she talked about her joyful to be a first Iraq
i and Arab
singer who visited Baghdad after war 2003 despite the unstable security in Baghdad
and Predict murder in 2009 from one of Astrologer
.
Hassoun is working on her album that is going to include songs in the Iraqi, Lebanese, Gulf
, Moroccan
, and Egyptian
dialects. Her main goal is—as she said in an interview—to represent her beloved country Iraq in the best way.
Hassoun filmed her music video for the song "O'd 3rgoub" with the late Lebanese director Yehia Saade in Beirut and has toured across North America
, Syria
, Lebanon
, Jordan
, Kuwait
, Sweden
and Egypt
.
In 2010 she held a concert in Dubai
alongside Fares Karam
.
.
1-During StarAc Arab 4,Shatha had won "the top 1 of the week" as the best student in week 13 in all respects (Evaluation,Study-Hard,Involve in classes,Deal with students ...etc.),So the academic administration surprise her with a unique gift which was filming a TV advertisement for new SMS service in Zain(MTC Atheer-Previously) and as a national support by sing a traditional Iraqi song in modern style alongside the famous Iraqi singer Ilham al-Madfai
who love shatha's voice
2-After Shatha Hassoun winning in Star Academy
and when the Iraqi national football team won the Asian Cup 2007, Zain
deal with Shatha and 3 players from the team in a second Mobile advertisement,The work talk about optimism for New Iraq after its wars and tragedies in past-time through several shots of Reconstruction of Iraq
and they performanced the anthem
.
Casablanca
Casablanca is a city in western Morocco, located on the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Grand Casablanca region.Casablanca is Morocco's largest city as well as its chief port. It is also the biggest city in the Maghreb. The 2004 census recorded a population of 2,949,805 in the prefecture...
, Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
) better known as Shatha Hassoun is an Arabic singer from both Iraqi
Iraqi people
The Iraqi people or Mesopotamian people are natives or inhabitants of the country of Iraq, known since antiquity as Mesopotamia , with a large diaspora throughout the Arab World, Europe, the Americas, and...
and Moroccan
Moroccan people
The Moroccan people are a people that share a common Moroccan culture, ancestry and speak the Moroccan variant of the Arabic language or a Berber language as a mother tongue....
ancestry, who rose to fame as the winner of the 4th season of the pan-Arab television talent show Star Academy Arab World. She was the first female to win the competition. She is currently one of the most popular singers in both the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
and Maghreb
Maghreb
The Maghreb is the region of Northwest Africa, west of Egypt. It includes five countries: Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, and Mauritania and the disputed territory of Western Sahara...
region, and is referred to as the "daughter of Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia is a toponym for the area of the Tigris–Euphrates river system, largely corresponding to modern-day Iraq, northeastern Syria, southeastern Turkey and southwestern Iran.Widely considered to be the cradle of civilization, Bronze Age Mesopotamia included Sumer and the...
.
Early life
Born to an Iraqi father, a well-known reporter from Al-Hilla and a Moroccan mother who is a history teacher from SafiSafi, Morocco
Safi is a city in western Morocco on the Atlantic Ocean. The capital of the Doukkala-Abda Region, it has a population of 282,227 , but is also the centre of an agglomeration which has an estimated 793,000 inhabitants ....
. Growing up, Hassoun divided her time between Morocco and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and studied English Literature
English literature
English literature is the literature written in the English language, including literature composed in English by writers not necessarily from England; for example, Robert Burns was Scottish, James Joyce was Irish, Joseph Conrad was Polish, Dylan Thomas was Welsh, Edgar Allan Poe was American, J....
in Casablanca
Casablanca
Casablanca is a city in western Morocco, located on the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Grand Casablanca region.Casablanca is Morocco's largest city as well as its chief port. It is also the biggest city in the Maghreb. The 2004 census recorded a population of 2,949,805 in the prefecture...
and continued her university studies in Tangier
Tangier
Tangier, also Tangiers is a city in northern Morocco with a population of about 700,000 . It lies on the North African coast at the western entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar where the Mediterranean meets the Atlantic Ocean off Cape Spartel...
where she joined the program of Hotel and Tourism Management. Then she continued her studies in France where she gained her master's degree.
She can sing in many languages and dialects (Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
, English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
and German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
).
Her family, which includes her parents and her only brother reside in Morocco while Shada lives in Beirut
Beirut
Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...
.
Aftermath of Star Academy
In 2007 Hassoun won Star Academy 4, making her the first female winner. Her performance of Lebanese singer Fairouz's song "Baghdad" earned her 54.8% of the vote which enabled her to reach the finals. Along with the four finalists, Hassoun won the competition by receiving 40 per cent of the votes.Soon after winning the competition, Hassoun released her first single entitled "Rooh", which was written and composed by Lebanese songwriter Nikola Saada Nikhla. It was the first song to ever debut at number one on Rotana's PEPSI Top 20 charts, as it stayed at number for two weeks then peaking again at number one. The second song, "Asmallah Asmallah" or "Ebin Bladi", was written and composed by the Iraqi poet, Karim Al Iraqi as a gift to the Iraqi people and The Iraqi national football team which won the Asian Cup 2007
2007 AFC Asian Cup
The Asian Football Confederation's 2007 AFC Asian Cup finals were held from July 7 to July 29, 2007. For the first time in its history, the competition was co-hosted by four nations: Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam. The tournament was won by first-time champions Iraq, who defeated Saudi...
. "Oushaq" was written and composed by the Lebanese singer Marwan Khoury
Marwan Khoury
Marwan Khoury is a Lebanese singer, writer, composer and music arranger. His compositions are performed by some of the most famous artists in the Arab World and adapted by many other countries including Turkey...
. Hassoun also revived several traditional Iraqi songs; "Allela 7elowa" and "Aleik As'al" as a duo with Ilham al-Madfai
Ilham al-Madfai
Ilham al-Madfai is an Iraqi guitarist, singer and composer. al-Madfai's synthesis of Western guitar stylings with traditional Iraqi music has made him a revered and popular artist in his native country and throughout the Middle East...
. She also released an Iraqi song, "Mza'elni", that was written by Amar Almarhon and composed by Mohand Mehsen, and "Lo alf mara" which was the first song composed by Melhem Barakat
Melhem Barakat
Melhem Barakat , also known as Melhim Barakat, is a Lebanese singer and song-writer. He is nicknamed by his fans as Abou Majd. Melhem Barakat started his career back in the 1960s, Barakat has arguebly established a genre of his own in both the way he sings and composes, which makes him one of the...
for a non-Lebanese artist. Hassoun is also working with the Iraqi poet Karim Al Iraqi to produce new Iraqi songs,who has worked with the likes of Kazem al Saher. Hassoun has worked with Salah Al-Sharnoby, Ramy Ayach
Ramy Ayach
Ramy Ayach is a Druze Lebanese singer, songwriter, composer, and instrumentalist.- Early life :...
, Assi El Helani
Assi El Helani
Mohammed El Helani , widely known as Assi El Helani , is a Lebanese singer who has been a major figure in the music scene of the Middle East since the 1990s. Assi's musical career officially started after winning the Art Studio TV Program for young artists at the age of 17.He has released more than...
, Abadi Aljawher and George Wassouf
George Wassouf
George Wassouf is a Syrian singer with over 30 albums to his name. Wassouf had a unique vocal style which has been emulated by younger singers such as George El Rassi....
for a common art work .
Acting
Away from the singing, Hassoun has participated in an Iraqi-Syrian-Egyptian television series called Rasael Men Ragol Mayet (letters from a dead man), alongside Syrian actor Ghassan Masoud and many Iraqi actors. The series talks about the problems of Iraqi society between 1979–2005. Directed by Hassan Hosny, the series was filmed in Syria and aired exclusive on Al-Baghdadia TVAl-Baghdadia TV
Al-Baghdadia TV is an independent Iraqi-owned Arabic-language satellite channel based in Cairo, Egypt. It is considered a Nationalistic channel of funding directly and only from the CEO. During the Iraqi insurgency, several prominent journalists with the station were murdered...
in the month of Ramadan 2008.
2009 - present
In late July 2009, Shatha achieved her life dream and the dream of fans when she went to her country's capital BaghdadBaghdad
Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
and sang there in two big charity concerts for the children of Iraq, the first one in Al-elowea club and second one in hunting club, then she hold a press conference in Baghdad
Baghdad
Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
where she talked about her joyful to be a first Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
i and Arab
Arab
Arab people, also known as Arabs , are a panethnicity primarily living in the Arab world, which is located in Western Asia and North Africa. They are identified as such on one or more of genealogical, linguistic, or cultural grounds, with tribal affiliations, and intra-tribal relationships playing...
singer who visited Baghdad after war 2003 despite the unstable security in Baghdad
Baghdad
Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
and Predict murder in 2009 from one of Astrologer
Astrologer
An astrologer practices one or more forms of astrology. Typically an astrologer draws a horoscope for the time of an event, such as a person's birth, and interprets celestial points and their placements at the time of the event to better understand someone, determine the auspiciousness of an...
.
Hassoun is working on her album that is going to include songs in the Iraqi, Lebanese, Gulf
Gulf Arabic
Gulf Arabic is a variety of the Arabic language spoken around the shore of the Persian Gulf such as in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Oman...
, Moroccan
Moroccan Arabic
Moroccan Arabic is the variety of Arabic spoken in the Arabic-speaking areas of Morocco. For official communications, the government and other public bodies use Modern Standard Arabic, as is the case in most Arabic-speaking countries. A mixture of French and Moroccan Arabic is used in business...
, and Egyptian
Egyptian Arabic
Egyptian Arabic is the language spoken by contemporary Egyptians.It is more commonly known locally as the Egyptian colloquial language or Egyptian dialect ....
dialects. Her main goal is—as she said in an interview—to represent her beloved country Iraq in the best way.
Hassoun filmed her music video for the song "O'd 3rgoub" with the late Lebanese director Yehia Saade in Beirut and has toured across North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
, Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
, Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
, Kuwait
Kuwait
The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
and Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
.
In 2010 she held a concert in Dubai
Dubai
Dubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...
alongside Fares Karam
Fares Karam
Fares Karam is a popular Lebanese singer who specializes in the Dabke style and Lebanese music in general, but with a more modernized twist....
.
Commercials
Shatha Hassoun has also appeared in two television advertisements for the Iraqi mobile company, ZainZain
-People:*as a given name in general , orwith a first name of Zain*Zain Abbas , a Pakistan-born cricketer*Zain Amat , a Singaporean trapshooter*Zain Awan , an India-born Arab TV journalist...
.
1-During StarAc Arab 4,Shatha had won "the top 1 of the week" as the best student in week 13 in all respects (Evaluation,Study-Hard,Involve in classes,Deal with students ...etc.),So the academic administration surprise her with a unique gift which was filming a TV advertisement for new SMS service in Zain(MTC Atheer-Previously) and as a national support by sing a traditional Iraqi song in modern style alongside the famous Iraqi singer Ilham al-Madfai
Ilham al-Madfai
Ilham al-Madfai is an Iraqi guitarist, singer and composer. al-Madfai's synthesis of Western guitar stylings with traditional Iraqi music has made him a revered and popular artist in his native country and throughout the Middle East...
who love shatha's voice
2-After Shatha Hassoun winning in Star Academy
Star Academy
Star Academy is a highly successful television show format based on the Spanish format "Operación Triunfo" produced by Endemol, that has been broadcast in over 50 countries...
and when the Iraqi national football team won the Asian Cup 2007, Zain
Zain
-People:*as a given name in general , orwith a first name of Zain*Zain Abbas , a Pakistan-born cricketer*Zain Amat , a Singaporean trapshooter*Zain Awan , an India-born Arab TV journalist...
deal with Shatha and 3 players from the team in a second Mobile advertisement,The work talk about optimism for New Iraq after its wars and tragedies in past-time through several shots of Reconstruction of Iraq
Reconstruction of Iraq
Investment in post-2003 Iraq refers to international efforts to rebuild the infrastructure of Iraq since the Iraq War in 2003.Along with the economic reform of Iraq, international projects have been implemented to repair and upgrade Iraqi water and sewage treatment plants, electricity production,...
and they performanced the anthem
Anthem
The term anthem means either a specific form of Anglican church music , or more generally, a song of celebration, usually acting as a symbol for a distinct group of people, as in the term "national anthem" or "sports anthem".-Etymology:The word is derived from the Greek via Old English , a word...
.
Awards
- 2007 Murex D'or Award - Best Uprising Artist (held in Casino du LibanCasino du LibanCasino du Liban is a casino located in Maameltein, Jounieh in Lebanon and is 22 km north of Beirut.With an area of about 35,000 square meters, the casino has around 400 slot machines and 60 gaming tables. It has a showroom, night club, theater, banquet facility and five restaurants. The casino was...
) - 2008 DG Festival Award - Best Rising Female Singer
- 2008 Art Festival Award- Best Rising Female Singer
- 2009 Murex D'or Award
Singles
| Title | Year Release |
|---|---|
| "Smallah Smallah"/"Ebin Bladi" | 2007 |
| "ROUH" | 2007 |
| "Eshaq" | 2008 |
| "Aleik As'al" | 2008 (commercial) |
| "Allela 7elowa" | 2008 |
| "Mza'elni" | 2009 |
| "Law Alf Marra" | 2009 |
| "Ba3 7waya" | 2010 |
| "Wa'ed Argoob" | 2010 |
| 2010 | |
| "Alsaa'aa" | 2010 |
| "Sha3lha" | 2011 |