Nawal El Kuwaitia

نوال الكويتية
Nawal El Kuwaitia
Birth name Nawal Thaher Al-Zaid
Born (1966-11-18) 18 November 1966
Origin Kuwait City, Kuwait
Genres Pop
Occupation(s) Singer-songwriter
Years active 80s – present
Labels
  • Bou Zaid Phone (1984-1989)
  • Funoon Al-Jazeera (1994)
  • Al-Nazaer (1995)
  • Rotana (1995 – present)

Nawal El Kuwaitia (Arabic: نوال الكويتية‎‎; born Nawal Thaher Al-Zaid, 18 November 1966) is a well-known female singer and musical icon in the Middle East. She is known as Shaikhat Al Tarab (The Queen of Classic Music) and Qaitharat Al Khaleej (Harp of Khaliji Song).

Career

Nawal studied at the Music Institute in Kuwait where she met the Kuwaiti composer Rashid Al-Khadr. Al-Khadr composed many of her initial songs and poet Abdullatif Al-Banay wrote lyrics for her.

Nawal's first album was released in 1983. The majority of her albums are not titled, but rather are referred to by number (e.g. Nawal 98, Nawal 99). She was once asked about the reason and she responded, "I take pride in all the songs of my album and therefore I don't refer one to the other, and I leave the album untitled so that I do not impose a certain song on the dear listener but I leave the choice open to them." She has also filmed many music videos (mainly in Lebanon[1]) and was one of the first Khaliji artists to do so. Initially, she was reluctant to perform in public and suffered severe stage fright at her first concert in Bahrain in 1984. However, Nawal soon became accustomed to singing publicly and eventually appeared in a variety of venues throughout the world. She rose to fame in the 1990s with a series of successful songs: "Ya Msabbir Il Mwuoud" ("You Await Your Date"), "Tadri Wala Matadri" ("Do You Know or Don't You?"), "Tehadidni" ("You Threaten Me"), "Yooh Ya Yooh" ("Oh What I Am Experiencing"), and "Tebara" ("Abandon"). She also performed an opera at the 1998 Al Janadiriyah Festival that marked the 100th anniversary of Saudi Arabia.

After retiring from her singing career for personal reasons, Nawal returned after five years with a duet performed with Abdullah Rashad, "Kan Widdi Niltiki" ("I Wished We Could Have Met"). The song was composed by Khaled Abdulkarim, with lyrics by poet Ali Asairi. Nawal has also performed duets with other artists: "Ahawel" ("I Try") with Lebanese singer Fadel Shaker and "O'thorini" ("Forgive Me") with Khaliji singer Abdallah Al Rowaished.

Her latest album includes such songs as "Ya Msabbir Il Mwuoud", "Houbok Asbah She Adi" ("Your Love Has Become a Matter of the Ordinary"), "Anna Il Masoul" ("I am the One Responsible"), and "Ya Sayyidhoum Weenak" ("Where are You, Their Lord").

Chart performance

Nawal's latest album debuted at number 1 on Rotana's Khaliji album charts and at No.2 on Rotana's Egyptian charts, marking the first time that she has appeared on the Egyptian charts. Her first single off the album Moliyah debuted at No.1 on Rotana's Pepsi Top 20 charts, dropping to No.4 the next week. However, the third week following the single's release, it returned to No.1; it was the second song (After Shatha Hassoun's Rooh) and the first Khaleeji song to ever do so in its first week.

Personal life

Nawal is well known for her reclusive nature. She rarely speaks with the media and rarely attends public functions. In March 2009, she married Mishaal Al Aroj, a well known Kuwaiti composer and singer, with whom she worked for many years.

Discography

Albums

Singles

Music videos (Incomplete List)

References

  1. ↑ "Nawal Sets Her Sights Abroad for Treatment". Arab News. 19 April 2005. Retrieved 26 November 2008.
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