Elissa (singer)

For other uses, see Elissa (disambiguation).
In this Lebanese name, the father's name is Zakaria and the family name is Khoury.

Elissa
إليسا
Elissa in August 2012
Born
Elissar Zakaria Khoury
إليسار زكريا خوري

(1972-10-27) 27 October 1972 (age 52)
Deir Al-Ahmar, Lebanon
Occupations
  • Singer
  • television judge
  • businesswoman
Years active1989–present
Musical career
Genres
InstrumentVocals
Labels
  • Lido (1998)
  • Dilara/Music Master (1999–2002)
  • Rotana (2003–2020)
  • E-Records (2022–present)
  • Rotana (distributor)

Elissar Zakaria Khoury (Arabic: إليسار زكريا خوري; born 27 October 1972), commonly known as Elissa (Arabic: إليسا), is a Lebanese singer, actress, television personality and businesswoman.[1] Known for her romantic musical style and emotive vocal performances, she has been dubbed as the "Queen of Emotions" by fans and journalists alike.[2] 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. While the album was a success, the titular song’s music video initially received criticism for its racy content.[3] Her second album W'akherta Maak (2000) featured the single "Betghib Betrouh", a duet with Ragheb Alama which achieved commercial success and won accolades.[4]

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.[5] After signing with Saudi Arabian-based 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.[6]

Elissa is one of the best-selling music artists of the Middle East; selling over 30 million albums throughout her career.[7][8][1] She has additionally garnered over 500 million streams on Anghami and over 4.5 billion views on YouTube.[9][10] 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.[11] 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.[12][13][5][14]

  1. ^ a b Nadia Al-Dhahir (22 August 2017). "إليسا.. السر وراء لقب "ملكة الإحساس" - Forbes Middle East". Archived from the original on 1 September 2017. Retrieved 23 August 2017.
  2. ^ Ogaily, Mayya (19 January 2024). "12 Albums, 12 Stories: Elissa Revisits the Milestones of Her Journey as the Arab World's 'Queen of Emotions'". Billboard. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  3. ^ Vivian Haddad (14 September 2002). "اليسا: اليوم صرت أكثر نضجا وأعرف ماذا أريد وكيف أقيّم عملي". Aawsat (in Arabic). Retrieved 1 April 2024.
  4. ^ "الساهر وسميرة سعيد يفوزان بجائزة أفضل فيديو كليب". Al Jazzera (in Arabic). 13 April 2001. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
  5. ^ a b Elissa Khoury, la chanteuse du Moyen-Orient en visite chez Corum : une journée sous le charme oriental. Montres de Luxe, 30 August 2011. Archived 28 September 2020 at the Wayback Machine
  6. ^ "في عيد ميلادها.. أهم المراحل في حياة إليسا وأمور قد لا تعرفونها عنها". Farfesh. 27 October 2019. Retrieved 5 April 2024.
  7. ^ "Women Are Saying They're Getting Checked After A Famous Lebanese Singer Said She'd Had Breast Cancer". BuzzFeed News. 13 August 2018.
  8. ^ Al-Dhahir, Nadia (20 August 2017). "The Secret To The Success Of Elissa Lies In More Than A Love Song".
  9. ^ "Lebanese singer Elissa to retire, says the industry is like a 'mafia'". Saudigazette. 19 August 2019. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
  10. ^ "Elissa breaks Youtube record". MSN. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
  11. ^ Khazaal, Chaker (13 March 2015). "Elissa: A Light in the Dark Times of the Middle East". HuffPost.
  12. ^ Khalife, Leyal (12 July 2017). "Elissa released a new music video and people are speechless". StepFeed. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
  13. ^ "Lebanese star signs deal with Pepsi". Khaleej Times. 6 September 2023. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
  14. ^ "Lebanese pop sensation reveals breast cancer battle in music video". Reuters. 13 August 2018. Retrieved 1 April 2024.