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Despite security threats, Kurdish female singers rock
Sulaimaniyah, Iraqi Kurdistan |
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Despite security threats, Kurdish female
singers rock Sulaimaniyah, Iraqi Kurdistan
29.4.2010
Report by Mariwan Faydullah Salihi
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April
29, 2010
SULAIMANIYAH,
Kurdistan region 'Iraq', — Five renowned Kurdish
singers hold a free concert in the city of
Sulaimaniyah last Sunday, April 25, under tight
security measures, attracting thousands of fans
throughout Iraq's Kurdistan Region and beyond.
The concert, which took place at the prestigious "Talari
Hunar" [Arts Hall] in Sulaimaniyah, started around 7
p.m. with Nelissa, a new Kurdish singer who recently
returned from London. A mixture of her
romantic-style and Kurdish dance music made the
audience go wild in the concert hall. Mera, a
popular male singer took the stage over at 7.30 p.m.
entertaining the audience with his latest hits.
The main attraction for the night were the two
already-popular divas Dashni and Loka. Called "The
Shakira of Kurdistan" by most international media,
Dashni Murad [famous for her controversial
western-style video clips that caused some outrage
among local conservatives] crazed her fans at 8 p.m.
wearing revealing black-and-diamonds outfit, while
carrying the Kurdish flag.
Her western dance moves
were the attention of the 2,000-plus crowd. Fans,
carrying posters of the pop star and former TV
presenter, were singing Hela Hopa and Hom Shika Wawa
[two of her popular songs] alongside the diva.
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"The Shakira of Kurdistan" by most international
media,
Dashni Murad [famous for her controversial
western-style video clips that caused some outrage
among local conservatives] crazed her fans wearing
revealing black-and-diamonds outfit, while carrying
the Kurdish flag, Dashni, a Kurdish artist from
Sulaimaniyah, Iraqi Kurdistan, living in Holland.
Exclusive photo by: Mariwan Faydullah Salihi,
ekurd.net |
Famous Kurdish
beauty-icon Loka Zahir, wearing
traditional Kurdish clothes, finished the show. Fans
screaming "Loka, Loka" out cried most of her
songs. Debuting for the first time in Kurdistan
Region, was the new singer Kristal; she song one song for the
audience.
”I thought I was in Royal
Albert Hall"
Dashni thanked all her fans from Sulaimaniyah,
because according to her they are the reason of her
success. "Our fans here deserved a gift and the best
one was to give them a free concert; not everyone
can pay a huge amount of money, so giving them a
concert like this will make them happy and make us
closer to them," commented the blonde artist.
Dashni Murad
"The Shakira of Kurdistan" Exclusive photo
by: Mariwan Faydullah Salihi, ekurd.net
Meanwhile, Loka thanked the organizers of the gig,
Komalay Dwarozhi Kurdistan [Kurdistan Future Group]
a local civil society organization based in
Sulaimaniyah. She also thanked her fans in the city.
"I thank them for their support and warm welcome,"
she added.
Nelissa, a Kurdish-British citizen, was very
satisfied with the result of the concert. "We made
people happy and that's very important for artists;
the concert went very well…for a moment I thought I
was in Royal Albert Hall [a famous concert hall in
London]," she said with a perfect British accent.
The man behind the artists' success and Kurdistan
Region's most famous song writer, Halkawt Zahir, was
very delighted with the concert and the audience.
"People in Sulaimaniyah love our songs…and the prove
is this packed concert hall. My singers really made
me proud tonight," he said, while also thanking the
audience and the local security forces for providing
a safe environment during the concert.
Fans from everywhere gather
in Sulaimaniyah
Four hours before the show started, fans gathered
outside the concert hall. While most of the people
were from Sulaimaniyah, some of them came from
places as far as Zakho [a town in Duhok Province, on
the Turkish border], Kirkuk, Erbil and even
neighboring Iran.
Nelissa Jabbar (Kurdish-British singer)
Exclusive photo by: Mariwan Faydullah Salihi, ekurd.net
"I am here since yesterday…I love to see Dashni and
Loka in reality," said Shivan Ali, 22, from the town
of Zakho [6 hour by car from Sulaimaniyah], while
carrying flowers meant for the singers. Another fan
was Arazoo Hussein, 19, who came all the way from
the Kurdish city of Mahabad, in Iran. "Dashni and
Loka are very popular among Kurds in Iran; we watch
their video clips secretly, as they are not allowed
in the Islamic Republic," she mentioned.
Islamists allegedly
threathen Dashni and Loka
Days before the gig commenced, large posters and
advertisements announcing the event were pulled down
from many public areas in Sulaimaniyah by unknown
people; some speculated that the acts were done by
conservative Islamists in the overwhelming secular
city.
"Islamists do not want Sulaimaniyah to become more
liberal, and since these singers are very modern and
fashionably dressed, they are
Loka Zahir (Swiss-Kurdish singer) Exclusive photo
by: Mariwan Faydullah Salihi, ekurd.net
automatically seen by
them as a threat to the society," commented Arian
Jamal, 26, a journalist from the city. "In fact,
during the Friday prayers,www.ekurd.netone
of the Imams warned the society from singers such as
Dashni Murad and Loka Zahir," Jamal commented while
laughing. But according to him, the overwhelming
majority of the city's population are not influenced
by the religious statements of these Islamic
clerics. "Dashni, Loka and Nelissa are very popular
in Sulaimaniyah…people love them here."
Tight security measures
The venue of the concert, Talari Hunar, was packed
with more than 2,000 fans while thousands were left
outside because of the lack of space inside the
building. To avoid incidents, the security
procedures were very tight. According to the woman
who supervised all the security personnel without
any incident, the measures were the most
high-profile ever for Kurdish artists in a concert.
At least one hundred security personnel were
provided for the concert, including undercover
police and high-ranking officers. "Women can do a
hard job, as well," said Lana Ali, 30, who
volunteered for the organizers of the event. All
five singers thanked the local security forces for
their hard work during the concert.
The artists are planning to organize more free
concerts for their fans this year. "We want to go to
Zakho, Duhok, Koya, Soran, Rawanduz and all other
areas of Kurdistan Region to sing for our fans,"
concluded Dashni.
Dashni Murad
"The Shakira of Kurdistan" Exclusive photo
by: Mariwan Faydullah Salihi, ekurd.net
Worth mentioning, the Sulaimaniyah concert was the
most packed concert for local singers in years,
according to Soran Ramadan, the head of Komalay
Dwarozhi Kurdistan. The event was attended by dozens
of local and international media.
Mariwan
Faydullah Salihi, journalist at
Kurdish Globe and Rudaw in Erbil/Iraqi Kurdistan and
regular eKurd.net contributing writer. You may reach the author via email at: mariwan.journalist (at) gmail.com
Copyright, respective author or news agency,
rudaw net
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