Elissa
Elissar Zakaria Khoury (Arabic: إليسار زكريا خوري; born 27 October 1971), commonly known as Elissa (Arabic: إليسا), is a Lebanese singer, television personality and businesswoman. Known for her romantic musical style and emotive vocal performances, she has been dubbed as the "Queen of Emotions" by fans and journalists alike. Her musical career began in 1992 when she was featured in the Lebanese talent show Studio El Fan; later being awarded the silver medal. In 1998, she released her debut studio album Baddy Doub through EMI Music Arabia, with the album achieving success. Her second album W'akherta Maak (2000) featured the single "Betghib Betrouh", a duet with Ragheb Alama which achieved commercial success and won accolades.
Elissa's breakthrough occurred with her 2002 hit single "Ayshalak", from the third studio album of the same name, which was a substantial commercial success. After signing with record label Rotana, she released the albums Ahla Dounya (2004), Bastanak (2006), Ayami Bik (2007), Tesada'a Bemeen (2009), Asaad Wahda (2012), Halet Hob (2014), Saharna Ya Leil (2016), Ila Kol Elli Bihebbouni (2018) and Sahbit Raey (2020); eventually becoming Rotana's best-selling artist. Following a dispute over her masters and the withdrawal of her catalogue from platforms like Spotify, YouTube and Anghami, Elissa launched her own record label, E-Records, in 2022, and has since released the album Ana Sekketen (2024).
Elissa is one of the best-selling music artists of the Middle East; having sold 30 million albums throughout her career. She has additionally garnered over 1 billion streams on Anghami, making her the most-streamed female artist and the second most-streamed overall on the platform, as well as over 6 billion views on YouTube. In 2005, Elissa became the first Arab artist of Lebanese descent to win the World Music Award for "Best Selling Middle Eastern Artist" in recognition of the sales for Ahla Dounya, additionally doing so in 2006 and 2010 for Bastanak and Tesada'a Bemeen, respectively. Throughout her career, she has also endorsed numerous brands such as Corum and Pepsi and is also an outspoken women's rights activist; raising awareness on specific subjects such as women's rights in Lebanon and breast cancer awareness through her music and social media platforms.
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