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French online music streaming service Deezer is celebrating this March female voices. The platform launched the «Hiya» project, which brings together emerging talents from various Arab countries to reinterpret song by Arab artists.
Yassin Tabouktirt, Artist Marketing Manager and one of the coordinators of the project in the Maghreb, explained to Yabiladi,l that the initiative aims to «showcase the talents of women in the Middle East and North Africa region, by reinterpreting the songs of female artists who have marked history and honoring them in a special way, on the occasion of International Women's Day».
«'Hiya' was marked by the participation of three Moroccan artists: Meriem Abou El Ouafa, who performed the song Jari Ya Jari «by the diva Naima Samih, Zainab Oussama who performed the song 'Aoul Ansak' by Lebanese artist Carole Samaha and artist Leila, who performed a song from 'Hidous', a music genre sung by women in the Oriental region», he added.
«Hidous» with a rock and roll touch
Although the idea of the project was mainly to present covers, Leila, who is a North African rock singer, chose to reinterpret a complete musical genre, sung by the women of her region. «I immediately agreed to participate in this women's event, because I loved the idea. For my part, I chose to sing Hidous», said the 24-year-old artist, originally from Oujda but currently living in Casablanca.
Leila, who is also a songwriter, grew up with this type of music, which is one of the arts of collective song and dance, in which women use the bendir as an instrument. «They improvise the lyrics, which voices the messages and problems they deal with», she added.
«When the idea was proposed to me, I was in my family's house in Oujda, which allowed me to immerse myself more in this musical genre and its history.Also, my grandmother and other older women more familiar with Hidous helped me find out more.I think that if I was not at the time in Oujda, I would not have been able to interpret this musical genre in this way, which was appreciated by many people».
Leila has revisited this traditional music by adding a touch of rock and roll. «It was a wonderful experience that allowed me to discover other cultures and genres of music, thanks to the participation of other artists. Although we worked remotely, we were able to make this project a common success», she said.
After her successful collaboration with Deezer, Leila plans to cover other songs from Hidous. «This idea was on my list of projects but I did not have the opportunity to implement it, except during this project», she declared, expressing her pride of this musical genre and of being «a daughter of the Oriental».
