Najwa Karam

Najwa Karam (, ; born February 26, 1966) is a Lebanese multi-platinum singer, songwriter, producer, fashion icon, and television personality. With over 60 million records sold worldwide, she was the highest selling Lebanese artist in 1999, 2008, and 2011.

Nicknamed Shams el-Ghinnieh (''The Sun of Arabic Song''), Karam is noted for her mawwal-skilled vocals. She came to prominence for her traditional Lebanese music and contemporary sounds, which has contributed to the spread of the Lebanese dialect in Arabic Music. Karam was mentioned in ''Forbes'' 50 Over 50: Europe, Middle East and Africa 2023. She continues to perform frequently throughout the Arab world and internationally.

In 2011, Karam made her debut as a judge on the reality competition television series ''Arabs Got Talent'' and she has since appeared in all six seasons. In 2020, she served as a coach on the first season of MBC's The Voice Senior. In 2017, ''Forbes'' Middle East ranked Karam fifth on its list of "The Top 100 Arab Celebrities" with over 26.58 million social media followers at the time. The following year, ''Cosmopolitan'' included her among "The 15 Most Inspiring Women In The Middle East", and ''Forbes'' named her one of the "Top 10 of Arab Stars On The Global Stage". In 2021, she was featured on ''Forbes Middle East’s'' Arab Music Stars list of MENA’s 50 most streamed and followed active musicians.

Karam rose to stardom throughout the 1990s, earning the nickname ''Shams el-Ghinnieh'' (''The Sun of Song''), from her eponymous album. Her other successful ’90s albums include ''Naghmet Hob'', ''Ma Bassmahlak'', ''Maghroumeh'', and ''Rouh Rouhi''. In 2000, Karam's tenth album ''Oyoun Qalbi'' became her highest-selling album. In 2001, her album ''Nedmaneh'' sold millions of copies worldwide, earning Karam a Murex d'Or award for Best Arabic Artist and Rotana Records awards including Artist of the Year, Album of the Year, and Highest-Selling Album of the Year. By the time her album ''Saharni'' was released in 2003, she had established herself as one of the most prominent Arabic singers and a Middle Eastern pop icon. Throughout the late 2000s, Karam's commercial success endured via her albums, ''Hayda Haki'', ''Am Bemzah Ma'ak'', and ''Khallini Shoufak''. Karam frequently worked with the renowned musician and composer Melhem Barakat and collaborated with the legendary singer, Wadih el Safi on their critically acclaimed 2004 duet titled, W Kberna ("We Grow Old Together"). In 2011, Karam collaborated with Sony Entertainment and Rotana to produce the Arab World's first 3D music video for her song, "Ma Fi Noum" from her record ''Hal Layle... Ma Fi Nom''. In 2012, Karam walked the Red Carpet at the 65th Cannes Film Festival. She has since released well-received singles and music videos as well as her latest studio album, ''Menni Elak'', in 2017. In 2019, Karam's single, ''Maloun Abou L Echeq'' became a commercial and critical success, with its music video becoming one of the highest-viewed Arabic music videos on YouTube. Provided by Wikipedia