Assala Mostafa Hatem Nasri (; born 15 May 1969), commonly known as Assala (), is a

Syrian Syrians () are the majority inhabitants of Syria, indigenous to the Levant, most of whom have Arabic, especially its Levantine and Mesopotamian dialects, as a mother tongue. The cultural and linguistic heritage of the Syrian people is a blend ...

singer.

Early life and career

Assala was born in

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

to a middle class

Arab Arabs (, , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of years ...

family. Mostafa Nasri, Assala's father, was a revered composer and singer. Assala began her musical career by performing

patriotic Patriotism is the feeling of love, devotion, and a sense of attachment to one's country or state. This attachment can be a combination of different feelings for things such as the language of one's homeland, and its ethnic, cultural, politic ...

religious Religion is a range of social- cultural systems, including designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relate humanity to supernatural ...

, and children's songs when she was fourteen years old. She sang the theme song "Qessas Al Sho'oub" (), of the cartoon show, ''Hekayat Alamiyah'' (). In 1984, Mostafa Nasri died after suffering from internal bleeding caused by a car accident. Aged 15 she helped to take care of her siblings Aman, Ayham, Reem and Anas with her mother Aziza Al-Babelli. Assala's commercial musical career debuted in 1991 with the

Egyptian ''Egyptian'' describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of year ...

song hit ''Law Ta'rafou'' (Egyptian Arabic: لو تعرفو). The album had 4

songs in the oriental operatic ''Classic Egyptian tarab'' style. The album was an instant hit in

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

back at that time with heartbreaking songs like "Ya Sabra Yana" and "Samehtak Ketir". She quickly cemented her presence in the

Arabic world The Arab world ( '), formally the Arab homeland ( '), also known as the Arab nation ( '), the Arabsphere, or the Arab states, comprises a large group of countries, mainly located in West Asia and North Africa. While the majority of people in ...

a growing industry brimming with singers like

Angham Angham Mohamed Ali Suleiman ( ; born 19 January 1972), known by the mononym Angham (), is an Egyptian singer, recording artist, and actress. Her debut was in 1987 under the guidance of her father, Mohammad Suleiman. Following her divorce from ...

Najwa Karam Najwa Karam (; ; born 26 February 1966) is a Lebanon, Lebanese singer, songwriter, producer, fashion icon, and television personality. She has sold over 60 million records worldwide and was recognized as the highest-selling Lebanese people, Leba ...

and

Latifa Latifa, Lateefa or Lateefah is a feminine Arabic (لٓطِيفٓة) given name which means "gentle", "nice" or "pleasant". It corresponds to the masculine Latif. Notable persons Lateefa(h) * Lateefa Al Gaood, Bahraini politician * Lateefah Dur ...

. Ever since the beginning of the Syrian civil war, in 2011, Assala Nasri claimed her support for the

people and her commitment against

Bashar al-Assad Bashar al-Assad (born 11September 1965) is a Syrian politician, military officer and former dictator Sources characterising Assad as a dictator: who served as the president of Syria from 2000 until fall of the Assad regime, his government ...

. Her positions towards the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

are humanitarian, in which she wants the conflict to end for the sake of the Syrian civilians. She had her first composing experience in the writing of one song, released in 2011. For her commitment in the conflict, Assala sang at the International Peace day as a new ambassador for "Peace Building Through Music." However, Assala was criticized for her position, due to the fact that

Hafez al-Assad Hafez al-Assad (6 October 193010 June 2000) was a Syrian politician and military officer who was the president of Syria from 1971 until Death and state funeral of Hafez al-Assad, his death in 2000. He was previously the Prime Minister of Syria ...

authorized her treatment from

polio Poliomyelitis ( ), commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 75% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe ...

. She was arrested on Monday, 26 June 2017 in

Beirut International Airport Beirut ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the fourth-largest city in the Levant region and the sixteenth-largest i ...

at the behest of Lebanese officials who support

for the crime of fraternizing with Israel. She had recently performed in

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

. She was placed under

house arrest House arrest (also called home confinement, or nowadays electronic monitoring) is a legal measure where a person is required to remain at their residence under supervision, typically as an alternative to imprisonment. The person is confined b ...

, then quickly released, for lack of evidence, but some pro-Syrian outlets never corrected their claims that she was arrested for carrying drugs. In 2019, Assala performed "Right Where I'm Supposed to Be" as the Official Song of the

2019 Special Olympics World Summer Games The 2019 Special Olympics World Summer Games (, ) were a special olympics multi-sport event for athletes with intellectual disabilities in the tradition of the Special Olympics movement. It was held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates from March 1 ...

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The city is the seat of the Abu Dhabi Central Capital District, the capital city of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and the UAE's List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most popu ...

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...

in collaboration with

Ryan Tedder Ryan Benjamin Tedder (born June 26, 1979) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is best known as the co-founder, frontman, and lead vocalist for the pop rock band OneRepublic, while also serving as a prolific cont ...

Avril Lavigne Avril Ramona Lavigne ( ; ; born September 27, 1984) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She is a key musician in popularizing pop-punk music, as she paved the way for female-driven, punk-influenced pop music in the early 2000s. List of awa ...

Luis Fonsi Luis Alfonso Rodríguez López-Cepero (born April 15, 1978), known by his stage name Luis Fonsi (), is a Puerto Rican singer. He is known for his soulful and dance oriented songs, most notably 2017's "Despacito". Fonsi received his first Latin ...

Hussain Al Jassmi Hussain Al Jassmi (; born August 25, 1979) is an Emirati singer and musician who is well known in the Arab world. Al Jassmi was born in Khorfakkan in August 1979 to an Emirati father and an Egyptian mother. He released his first single "Bawada'a ...

and

Tamer Hosny Tamer Hosny Sherif Abbas Farghaly (; born 16 August 1977), known by his stage name Tamer Hosny (), is an Egyptian singer and actor. He first came to public attention when he appeared on mixed tapes with other Egyptian artists. Hosny launched his ...

Television

Assala hosted a

television program A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via Terrestrial television, over-the-air, Satellite television, satellite, and cable te ...

which is called ''Soula'' (), on

Al Hayat TV Alhayat TV, also known as Life TV (), is an evangelical Christian Arabic-language television channel that airs in countries in North Africa, West Asia, the Middle East, America, Canada, Australia and some of Europe.

and

Dubai TV Dubai TV is an Emirati TV channel offered by the Dubai Media Incorporated (DMI). It replaced Emirates Dubai Television on 14 June 2004. Dubai TV broadcasts programmes predominantly in Arabic. The programming caters to family Arab audience speci ...

. The show presented guest

musicians A musician is someone who Composer, composes, Conducting, conducts, or Performing arts#Performers, performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general Terminology, term used to designate a person who fol ...

as though they were visiting Assala in her home in

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

. Assala was also a judge on the panel of ''Saudi Idol'' on its debut in 2022, along with Aseel Abu Bakr, Ahlam, and

Majid Al Mohandis Majid Abd al-Amir Adir al-Attabi (; born 25 October 1971), better known as Majid Al Mohandis (), is an Iraqi Saudi singer and composer. His success in the Arab world has earned him the titles of "the Engineer of the Arabic song" () and "Voice ...

Personal life

Assala's first marriage was to Ayman Al Dahabi. Her first daughter, Sham, was born in 1992, and her first son, Khaled, in 1998. She divorced in 2005 after more than 15 years of marriage. After the divorce, she received the custody of her two children. Her second marriage was to a Palestinian-Egyptian director, Tarek Alarian, on 26 March 2006. She was pregnant with Alarian's child in early 2007, but suffered a miscarriage halfway through the pregnancy. In May 2011, she gave birth to twin boys, Adam and Ali, via

IVF In vitro fertilisation (IVF) is a process of fertilisation in which an egg is combined with sperm in vitro ("in glass"). The process involves monitoring and stimulating the ovulatory process, then removing an ovum or ova (egg or eggs) from t ...

. In an Instagram post dated 6 January

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

, Assala announced her divorce from her husband Tarek Alarian. Assala currently lives in Cairo with her four children. In September 2021, she married Faeq Hassan, an Iraqi national who lives in

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

and works as the business manager of the

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

Saudi Saudi or Saudi Arabian may refer to: * Saudi Arabia * Saudis, people from Saudi Arabia * Saudi culture, the culture of Saudi Arabia * House of Saud, the ruling family of Saudi Arabia See also *Saud (disambiguation) The House of Saud The H ...

singer

. Assala is a

Sunni Muslim Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr () rightfully succeeded him as the caliph of the Musli ...

. She was granted Bahraini citizenship by Bahraini King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa a few days after she gave a performance in the operetta ''Love and Loyalty'' in celebration of Bahrain's Independence Day.

Discography

Studio albums

* ''Ya Sabra Yana'' (Patient Me) (1990) * ''Assala Performs Umm Kulthum'' (1990) * ''O'zorni'' (Forgive Me) (1991) * ''Ghayar Awi'' (He's So Jealous) (1991) * ''Taw'am Al Rouh'' (My Soul's Twin) (1992) * ''Ighdab'' (Be Angry) (1993) * ''Wala Tessadda (Don't Believe It) (1994) * ''Rahal'' (He Left) (1995) * ''Erja' Laha'' (Return to Her) (1996) * ''Al Mushtaka'' (The Complaint) (1997) * ''Alby Bayrtahlak'' (My Heart Is Comfortable For You) (1998) * ''Ya Magnon'' (O Madman) (1999) * ''Yakhy Esaal'' (Ask About Me) (2000) * ''Moshtaah'' (I'm Missing You) (2001) * ''Yamin Allah/Haqiqat Waqe'i'' (I Swear/My Reality) (2002) * ''Ad El Horouf'' (As Much as the Number of Letters) (2003) * ''Awgat'' (Sometimes) (2004) * ''Ady'' (Ordinary) (2005) * ''Hayati'' (My Life) (2006) * ''Sawaha Qalbi'' (My Heart Has Done It) (2007) * ''Nos Hala'' (Half State) (2008) * ''Qanon Kaifak'' (Law of Your Fancy) (2010) * '' Shakhseya Aneeda'' (A Stubborn Personality) (2012) * ''60 De'ee'a Hayah'' (60 Minutes of Life) (2015) * ''Alleg El Deneia'' (I Hang the World) (2016) * ''Mohatamma Bel Tafasil'' (Interested in the Details) (2017) * ''Fi Orbak'' (Near You) (2019) * ''La Testaslem'' (Don't Give Up) (2020) * ''Shayfa Feek'' (See You) (2022) * ''Lehekt Nafsi''(I followed myself) (2023)

Singles

* "Law Ta'rafou" (If You Know) from ''Law Ta'rafou'' * "Ighdab" (Get Angry) from ''Ighdab'' * "Al Mushtaka" (The Complainer) from ''Al Mushtaka'' * "Alf Leila We Leila" (One Thousand and One Nights) from ''Al Mushtaka'' * "Ya Magnoun" (O Madman) from ''Ya Magnoun'' * "Ma Oultelish" (Why Didn't You Tell Me?) from ''Ya Magnoun'' * "Moushta'a" (I'm Missing You) from ''Moushta'a'' * "E'tef Habibi" (Have Mercy My Love) from ''Moushta'a'' * "Mab'ash Ana" (I Haven't Lived Up to My Name if I Don't) from ''Moushta'a'' * "Leih El Ghorour" (Why the Arrogance?) from ''Ya Akhi Es'al'' * "Yamin Allah" (I Swear) from ''Yamin Allah/Waqe'i'' * "Misheit Senin" (I Walked for Years) from ''Ad El Horouf'' * "Tassawar" (Imagine) from ''Ad El Horouf'' * "A'taz Bek" (I Am Proud of You) from ''Ad El Horouf'' * "Gemarhom Kellohom" (You Are the Moon Among Them) from ''Awgat'' * "Meta Ashoufek" (When Will I See You?) from ''Awgat'' * "Fein Habibi" (Where is My Love?) from ''Aadi'' * "Khalik Shiwaya" (Stay) from ''Aadi'' * "Asfa" (I'm Sorry) from ''Aadi'' * "Aktar" (More) from ''Hayati'' * "Khaliha 'Ala Allah" (Leave It In God's Hands) amadan Single* "Jarhi Fel Hawa" (My Injury in Love) * "Allah Ya Omri Aleik" (You're Amazing) * "Arod Leih" (Why Reply?) from ''Hayati'' * "Bein Eideik" (In Your Hands) from ''Hayati'' * "Alamtni" (You Taught Me) from ''Hayati'' * "Hayati" (My Life) from ''Hayati'' * "Egrab Gerrib" (Get Closer) from ''Sawaha Galbi'' * "Sawaha Galbi" (My Heart Did It) from ''Sawaha Galbi'' * "La Tekhaf" (Don't Be Afraid) from ''Sawaha Galbi'' (shot as a music video in 2009) * "Wala Dary" (Doesn't Care) * "Sum wa 'Asal" (Poison and Honey) 2010 Single * "Ah law hal korsy Bye7ki" (If This Chair Would Talk) 2011 - this song is dedicated for the Syrian revolution against Bashar al-Assad. Assala composed this song. It's her first experience in composing. * "Right Where I'm Supposed to Be" (

with

, Assala Nasri and

) - this was the official song of the Special Olympic World Games Abu Dhabi 2019. * "Shakhseya Anida" (A Stubborn Personality) 2012 * "El Hakika" 2018 * "El Mustafa" 2018 * "Bent Akaber" 2019 * "Shamekh" 2020 * "Al Farq Al Kabir" 2020 * "La Tashkou Le Nas" 2022 EP * "Tegoul Tebghani" 2022 * "Goraah" 2022 * "Ghalban" 2022 * "Shayfa Feek" 2022 EP * "Bi El Salama" 2022 * "Zay El Mougezat" 2022 * "Manni Wafi" 2022 * "Elly Medayea Yefarea" 2022 * "Shayfa Feek" 2022 * "Sid Lghram" (feat.

Asma Lamnawar Asma Lamnawar (; born 25 July 1978) is a Moroccan singer and actress. She made her singing debut in 1995 with "Angham", a festival produced by Moroccan Radio and TV, where she won the prize for best interpretation, though she delayed beginning h ...

) 2022 * "Ma Aaraftik" 2023

Charted songs

References

External links

* * {{Authority control 1969 births Living people Singers who perform in Egyptian Arabic Singers who perform in Classical Arabic Syrian Sunni Muslims Musicians from Damascus Rotana Records artists 20th-century Syrian women singers 21st-century Syrian women singers Syrian film actresses Syrian television actresses Arabic-language singers of Syria Arab musicians Arab artists