Amr Diab releases biography collection

By Nohad Topalian in Beirut
For Al-Shorfa.com
2010-03-19

[Ahmad Abdel Mageed/AFP/Getty Image] Amr Diab's new biography collection will be coveted by his loyal fans.

Although the story of his life has appeared in newspapers, magazines and on the Internet, the Egyptian superstar Amr Diab can now greet his fans with "al-Helm," a new six DVD biography collection.

"Al-Helm" tells the story of Diab's personal life and career, discloses many of his secrets, and narrates the stages of his long career. The documentary, which is being released and distributed by Rotana, includes many details of Diab's early years. It begins with his elementary school, details the places where he spent his childhood, and describes his early friends and the problems and obstacles he faced throughout his career.

Written by Dr. Medhat El-Adl, and with voice-over by Egyptian star Ezzat Abou Ouf, the biography allows fans to get to know more about Diab, his lifestyle and more importantly, how hard he worked for years to make it to the top.

"Al-Helm" is a first in the Arab world, since it is a biography of an artist who is still alive. In addition to featuring information on Diab's life, it also shows the making of some of his famous videos and concerts, his work sessions with composers and songwriters, his recording sessions at studios, as well as material that was never aired.

The documentary also reveals details of the music awards, and includes testimonies from songwriters, composers, music producers and journalists who worked with Diab. He also appears in several parts to comment on the events of his life.

Diab's career officially started in 1982 when he moved to Cairo and joined the Higher Institute of Arab Music. In 1983, he recorded his first song, "Ez-Zaman," with lyrics by Hani Zaki and music by Hani Shnoda. He released his first album "Ya Taree'" in the same year.

He continued releasing albums and in 1988 Diab made his debut on the silver screen with Elham Shahin and Youssef Shaaban in a movie titled "Al-Sageenatan." The movie synchronised with his sixth album, "Mayal," which was the first in a series of hit albums that were incredibly popular and sold millions of copies.

His latest album "Wayah," was released in 2009 and sold more than three million copies.

Diab's debut on the global music scene was in 1990 during the All Africa games, where he sang in English and French. The inauguration concert was broadcast on satellite across the Arab world and was even shown on CNN.

When his album "Matkhafeesh" was released in North Africa, he was invited to the Kennedy Center in Washington and was the first Arab star to visit the centre.

However, his biggest leap to global stardom came with the release of his album "Nour El Ain" in 1996. After astronomical sales in the Middle East the album made it big across the world with the English version of the title track.

Diab was the first artist to introduce the saxophone into Arab music in 1991 with his album "Habibi." He also introduced the Spanish guitar into Arab music in 1994 with his album "Weyloumouni."

Diab boasts 24 albums, six international movies -- French, Spanish, Brazilian, and American -- as well as four Arab movies.

During his career Diab sang duos with French-Algerian Cheb Khaled and Greek singer Angela Dimitriou. He also appeared in commercials for Pepsi, much like other world stars such as Britney Spears, Beyonce, and Jennifer Lopez. He has worked with many world composers from Germany, France, the UK, the Netherlands and the United States through several Arab and foreign production companies.

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