Elissa

arabic

Elissa (Arabic: إليسا) was born in Deir Al-Amar, Lebanon and raised amidst the spectacular natural scenery of the Bekaa Valley. She holds a degree in Political Science from the Lebanese University. Her first forays into art and artistic activities consisted of acting in theaters of political critique, namely with well-known chansonnier Wassim Tabbara, and the Theatre de 10 Heures. This was the first time she came in contact with an audience, whose overwhelming warmth and energy she immediately took a shining to. Her theatrical beginnings motivated her to move to singing. In 1992, she appeared on LBC's Studio Al Fan talent show. Elissa won a silver medal over the course of her stay on the program. Following this, she performed in concert tirelessly until 1999, when Lido Productions released her first album, Baddy Doub. Elissa's debut on the commercial music scene was definitely an event of considerable importance. The album was a success and featured a smash hit with famous French gypsy act, Gerard Ferrer. The release of this first album took her straight to Cannes, to participate in the International Music Festival of 2000. Following this first success, Elissa then released her second album, W'akherta Ma'ak which in turn included the hit duet Betghib Betrouh, sung with Lebanese superstar Ragheb Alameh. It was a massive hit, and is still played on radio and TV today, over three years after its initial release. Elissa's album, Ayshalak, has been the number one selling al...