10 Years of Music - Thank You!

It’s been a decade since I embarked on my musical journey. In my very first video that I uploaded on YouTube in 2009, I said, with a thick accent: “I don’t know where this is gonna take me, but I just know that it’s gonna be amazing”, and amazing it has been.

Looking back on the last ten years, I feel so proud of my younger self. I’ve been through so much. I had endless voices calling me names, telling me I wasn’t talented enough or good-looking enough, that I didn’t fit the mold for a pop star, that I was Arab and singing in English would lead me nowhere in the Middle East. I paid a high social price for having “farfetched” dreams, for being different, for trying to do something that nobody else seemed to dare to do in my part of the world. All the odds seemed to be against me. On the flip side, I got to experience some incredible moments, meet some wonderful people who I’m proud to call my friends, and share my music with fans all over the world who continue to support me today.

I’m nowhere near the “success story” I had envisioned for myself. However, I am a different person today and my standards for success are no longer what they used to be. Long gone are my Grammy aspirations and wanting to be #1 all over the world - not because I’m any less ambitious than I was 10 years ago, but because I realized that there are far more important things in life. Why should I let a Grammy or a #1 hit dictate my worth? Now that I’m older and wiser, I realize that my worth can only come from one place - myself. Not what other people think of me, not my Spotify Wrapped graphic, not the number of followers or subscribers I have, not the number of awards I win, or what record label I’m signed to or what artists I opened for.

For ten years, the two things that kept me going were my passion for music and my supporters who tell me how my music inspired them or helped them overcome something. These two things will continue to give me the strength to keep going for ten more years.

This year, I’m celebrating you and the 10th anniversary of the release of my debut album ‘Resurrected’, so on January 8th, you’ll be able to listen to ‘Resurrect Me 2.0’ with all new vocals and all-new production! You can pre-save the song on Spotify now by clicking here.

I can’t wait to share all the new music I’ve been working on with you. Sending lots of love to all of you who stood by me for 10 years. You know who you are. ❤️