Twenty-six young men and women from across the Arab world have already beaten the odds simply by reaching the final stages of Arab Idol’s third season.
But the real battle begins on Friday night, when they will go head to head in the first live episode of this year’s competition.
There is no doubt that every one of them has bucketloads of talent and the potential to go far. After all they’ve been picked by four notoriously hard-to-please judges – the Emirati singer Ahlam, the Egyptian record producer Hassan El Shafei and the Lebanese pop stars Nancy Ajram and Wael Kfoury – out of the many thousands who auditioned in 12 cities across the Middle East and Europe.
We will certainly be keeping a keen eye on the progress of Humeid Abdouli, an Emirati from Fujairah, who seems to have a good chance of going the distance in the competition, considering how impressed all four judges were not only by his singing talent, but also by his presence on stage.
But he faces some tough competition. Here is our pick of three of his rivals who have tugged on our heartstrings, and who we think also have a good chance of going all the way.
Ajrad Yoghardat, 22, from Algeria
The judges said Yoghardat’s voice is unlike any other they’ve heard this season.
His outgoing personality also impressed them and he has established himself as playful and fun-loving – but his defining feature remains his amazing vocals, which have a depth and resonance that has been described as gypsy-like on the show.
His solo performance in front of the judges, meant to determine his fate on the show, forced them to erupt into spontaneous applause and shout out “bravo” as he sang. Kfoury even told him that his voice was “outside human capabilities”.
Definitely one to watch out for and it helps that he’s always so funny and happy on the show.
Sahar Abou Elshorouf, 27, from Syria
Elshorouf is the self-professed comedian among her friends and peers, despite the grief she has had to endure in the past few years.
The young Syrian spoke of losing her home soon after her father died, when the situation in Syria started to worsen. She says she has lost 23 relatives and friends to the civil war in the country, describing them as "martyrs", and she has already dedicated whatever success she enjoys in Arab Idol to them.
The judges say she sings “with feeling” and “from the heart”. Once it sank in that she had won a place in the final 26, she swore that there would be “no more grief and depression for me from now on – I’m going to stay positive”.
Salma Ahmed, 18, from Egypt
Ahmed auditioned last year but was rejected early on in the process and never made it to the live phase of the show. This time around, all four judges are unanimous in their opinion that her voice has matured and will become crucial to the show.
An honourable mention has to go to Manar Sami, 26, from Egypt, whose beautiful voice made her an easy choice for the judges. However, Ahlam advised her to lose some weight if she hopes to continue with Arab Idol, claiming that no clothes were available on the show in anything other than a size small or medium.
We’d hate to see Sami booted out because of a weight issue – it’s supposed to be a singing contest, last time we checked.
artslife@thenational.ae
End of free parking
- paid-for parking will be rolled across Abu Dhabi island on August 18
- drivers will have three working weeks leeway before fines are issued
- areas that are currently free to park - around Sheikh Zayed Bridge, Maqta Bridge, Mussaffah Bridge and the Corniche - will now require a ticket
- villa residents will need a permit to park outside their home. One vehicle is Dh800 and a second is Dh1,200.
- The penalty for failing to pay for a ticket after 10 minutes will be Dh200
- Parking on a patch of sand will incur a fine of Dh300
Golden Shoe top five (as of March 1):
Harry Kane, Tottenham, Premier League, 24 goals, 48 points
Edinson Cavani, PSG, Ligue 1, 24 goals, 48 points
Ciro Immobile, Lazio, Serie A, 23 goals, 46 points
Mohamed Salah, Liverpool, Premier League, 23 goals, 46 points
Lionel Messi, Barcelona, La Liga, 22 goals, 44 points
Sustainable Development Goals
1. End poverty in all its forms everywhere
2. End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture
3. Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages
4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all
5. Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
6. Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all
7. Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all
8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all
9. Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation
10. Reduce inequality within and among countries
11. Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable
12. Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns
13. Take urgent action to combat climate change and its effects
14. Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development
15. Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss
16. Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels
17. Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalise the global partnership for sustainable development
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Venue: Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Date: Sunday, November 25
Schedule:
Friday, January 12: Six fourball matches
Saturday, January 13: Six foursome (alternate shot) matches
Sunday, January 14: 12 singles
WITHIN%20SAND
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylturbo
Transmission: seven-speed DSG automatic
Power: 242bhp
Torque: 370Nm
Price: Dh136,814
AL%20BOOM
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