Al Balabil (musical group)

Al Balabil
البلابل
Picture of three young women with black hair wearing black sleeveless tops, inside a yellow square with Arabic script and drawing of a musical instrument
Cover of record Sikkat madrasatna (transl. The way to our school), composed by Bashir Abbas with lyrics by Isḥaq al-Ḥalanqi, a Sudanese poet
Background information
OriginSudan
GenresMusic of Sudan, African popular music
InstrumentVocals
Years active1971–1988, 2007–2009
Members
  • Amal Talsam
  • Hadia Talsam
  • Hayat Talsam

Al Balabil (Arabic: البلابل, transl. The Nightingales) were a popular Sudanese vocal group of three sisters, mainly active from 1971 until 1988. Their popular songs and appearance as modern female performers on stage, as well as on Sudanese radio and television, earned them fame all over East Africa and beyond, and they were sometimes referred to as the "Sudanese Supremes".[1] After both retiring from the stage and emigrating to the United States in 1988, they gave a revival concert in 2007 in New York City's Central Park, and later in Detroit and Chicago, as well as in their native Sudan.

  1. ^ "'Honey, we're better than the Supremes': Sudan's girl band going strong 45-years on". The Guardian. Agence France-Presse. 21 April 2016. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 9 February 2021.