Is Wael Kfoury’s ‘El Bint El Awiye’ the Arabic song of the summer?

The Lebanese crooner's new track has fast become a favourite online and on stage

Since its release on July 11, Wael Kfoury's new hit 'El Bint El Awiye' has been viewed nearly 20 million times on YouTube so far. Courtesy Wael Hamzeh

Wael Kfoury has another monster hit on his hands.

Since its release on July 11, El Bint El Awiye has managed to rack up nearly 20 million views on YouTube and trended globally on the platform.

Kfoury was reportedly encouraged to perform the track three times at his Dubai Eid Al Adha concert on Friday, such was the audience demand.

While Kfoury can happily list El Bint El Awiye as another in a long line of hits spanning his two-decade career, the speed of its success is worth noting.

More than its carefree vibes, the song comes after the silver-haired crooner has been subjected to extra public scrutiny on the back of revelations about his divorce.

While El Bint El Awiye, meaning "the strong girl", does not directly address his relationship, the lyrics and the music video’s concept alludes to a defiant state of mind.

Heartbreak or sarcasm?

It's good to hear Kfoury lighten up, in terms of sound. Known for his expansive ballads, such as Khedney Lay and Stashbahet Fiki, the new work has him turning down the drama for a sun-kissed Mediterranean feel.

Flashes of flamenco guitar abound as Kfoury jettisons his trademark yearning vocals for a more playful staccato delivery. That ebullience is undercut, however, by the singer’s signature mediations on love and heartbreak.

Only this time, it is all seemingly told with a dash of sarcasm.

The song comes on the back of a March television interview in which ex-wife Angela Bechara detailed their failed marriage and Kfoury’s alleged emotional remoteness, and so he seemingly delivers El Bint El Awiye’s lovelorn lyrics as a cheeky response.

“If you ever leave me and stop loving me, I swear I will make my eyes go blind,” he begins.

“If you ever go away, my life will get ruined. What would I do to myself? I don’t know.”

Hanging out with the boys

For such heart-rending words, you would think the accompanying music video would be another one filled with scenes of a brooding Kfoury.

Instead, the star is having an absolute ball. Reportedly shot at his lavish farm house in the Lebanese city of Zahle, Kfoury invites the boys over for a get-together.

Beverages and impressive fruit platters are shared while mates guffaw to Kfoury’s musings on heartbreak, which he delivers with a content smile.

Instead of being a lament, El Bint El Awiye is a celebration of surviving a torrid relationship.

The “strong girl” Kfoury refers to may have done him wrong, but the video and overall vibe of the track find him picking up the pieces and having fun along the way.