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Joseph Attieh tries to capture hearts with "Mawhoum"
![[FILE] Singer Joseph Attieh is known for his patriotic songs about Lebanon.](/cocoon/meii/images/2010/06/18/100618-feature-3-photoAP.jpg) [FILE] Singer Joseph Attieh is known for his patriotic songs about Lebanon. |
Joseph Attieh rose to fame in Lebanon and the Arab world quickly after he won the third season of Star Academy in 2005, the first Lebanese to win the TV contest. In less than five years Attieh, 24, became a top-notch singer.
Recently, he released "Mawhoum", his second album. Two songs, "Mawhoum" and "Taab El-Shauq" have been filmed as music videos.
Al-Shorfa met Attieh to discuss his latest projects.
Al-Shorfa: From all the songs on your album, why did you pick "Taab El-Shauq" to be shot as a video?
Attieh: My choice of "Taab El-Shauq" to be filmed as music video was a response to audience requests. People responded very positively to this song, and they selected it to be filmed as music video.
Al-Shorfa: Tell us about the video.
Attieh: Music videos translate the beauty expressed in the song. The lyrics were written by Mounir Abou Assaf and the composition and arrangement by Souwayyat Erdogan. Producer David Zinni beautifully translated it into moving images which matched the words of the song. The filming locations included Monot Street and some regions in the Beqaa, particularly the Qaraoun Dam region.
Al-Shorfa: Getting back to your album "Mawhoum", did it do as well as you had hoped it would?
Attieh: Like other songs I released, "Mawhoum" was successful across the Arab world, and the album went gold after topping the charts.
Al-Shorfa: It is interesting that no one song on the album resembles the others. Was this intentional?
Attieh: "Mawhoum" contains 12 songs, and every one of them is different. I did this intentionally. I wanted each song to have a particular flavour. There are songs that are calm, others in the Dabke style, and others that are of the Mawwal and popular styles, in addition to Turkish musical elements in "Taab El-Shauq".
Al-Shorfa: Doesn't this variety of singing styles take you away from the folkloric songs which you were known for?
Attieh: Not at all. My main focus is on Lebanese folk songs, to bring them to the audience in the Arab world. I am attached to Lebanese music for two reasons: to establish my position in Lebanon as an artist and to promote it across the world.
Al-Shorfa: Does this mean that you will not sing in other dialects?
Attieh: The fact that I sing in the Lebanese style does not mean that I will not sing in other Arabic dialects. I will sing in the Egyptian and Gulf dialects, but my priority is always the Lebanese style.
Al-Shorfa: You have been known for your patriotic songs for Lebanon.
Attieh: Lebanon has a strong presence in my songs, and the proof is that my song "Lebanon Will Return" has reached the same status as the national anthem.
Al-Shorfa: Your name is linked with Lebanese festivals. Where will you be this summer?
Attieh: I am preparing for festivals in Lebanon after performances in Syria and Jordan. I will also be on a tour in the United States and Australia.
Al-Shorfa: What does it mean to sing before Lebanese and international diasporas?
Attieh: The best audience that a singer can perform for is the Lebanese and Arab expatriate community. They have an unquenchable thirst for Lebanese art and culture.
Al-Shorfa: Has your dream come true now?
Attieh: I always dreamed about being a singer. I lived my life to make this dream come true, and Star Academy opened that door for me and introduced me, my voice and my work to the public. Even before I participated in the show I was singing, I had my own songs. After the show and after I won the title "Star of Star Academy", I started my artistic career. My objective is to reach people's hearts and earn their appreciation for my work.
Reader Comments
The Lebanese music is meaningful and is much better than Egyptian music, which is considered poor, because the Lebanese have worked on developing their music. In fact, the introduction of new melodies to Lebanese music has contributed to expanding it and has caused most of the Arab youth to listen to it. Besides, there are many nice and good voices in Lebanese music, because the Lebanese singer enjoys a nice and strong, mountainous voice. Most of the time, mountainous voices are the strongest in terms of “karar” and “jawab,” and this attracts many listeners. On the other hand, Egyptian music is based on editing and voice mixing so that the singer’s voice comes out nicer. Thus, these songs are a failure, despite the fact that most of the Arab musicians are from Egypt. However, Egyptian music suffers from the singers’ poor performances, which harm the reputation of modern Egyptian music, bearing in mind that the old Egyptian music was among the music that delighted all who listened to it and which had many master artists like Om Kalthoum and Abdel Wahab. Nowadays, according to my own expectation, I think the Lebanese music is better than the Egyptian one in terms of performance, voice, lyrics and melodies, as it is keeping pace with musical development.
He would be a good singer if he avoided having girls in his videos.
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