Issam Rajji ( ar, عصام رجي) (born 1944 in

Kfarshima Kfarshima ( ar, كفرشيما), also spelled Kfarchima, is a town in the Baabda District of the Mount Lebanon Governorate, southeast of Beirut and is part of Greater Beirut. The town is populated by Lebanese Christians: mainly Melkite Greek ...

, died 2001

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...

) was a Lebanese singer lyricist and composer most prominent during the 1970s and 80s period.

Biography

Early life

Issam Rajji began his artistic career, working backstage for the television program "Art is Two Hobbies". He was later introduced to the

Rahbani brothers The Rahbani brothers (Arabic: الأخوان رحباني), Assi Rahbani (4 May 1923 – 21 June 1986) and Mansour Rahbani (1925 – 13 January 2009) were Lebanese sibling musicians, composers, songwriters, authors, and playwrights/dramatists, bes ...

and worked with them in the choir. In 1965, the Lebanese artist Romeo Lahoud starred alongside him in the play "Mawal", as a supporting actor. After starring in first official play performance, he later star in more than 25 theatrical and musical works.

Later life

Rajji went to

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

for a while during the

Lebanese civil war The Lebanese Civil War ( ar, الحرب الأهلية اللبنانية, translit=Al-Ḥarb al-Ahliyyah al-Libnāniyyah) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 120,000 fatalities a ...

and married a Jordanian woman Nawal Elias and had three children with her Layal, Rami and Sariya. He and his family also lived in

Oman Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of t ...

for a long period of time but then returned permanently to Lebanon in 1993 after the civil war. He died in 2001 of a stroke after having a brain seizure. Apparently, when once asked about how he felt about dying, Rajji replied, ''“I hate death because it would separate me from the people I love.”''http://www.albawaba.com/en/main/128515/&searchWords=Rajji

Career

Best known for his songs Lagetek ''(When I Met You...)'', and "Yawmain wa Shahrain" ''(Two Days and Two Months)'', Rajji's special deep vocals also earned him roles in Lebanon's top musicals and plays in the 1970s and 1980s with the Rahbani brothers, Sabah, Shoushou and Nabih Aboulhosn. Rajji was also a composer, and besides writing a great deal of his own music, he also wrote for

Sabah (singer) Sabah ( ar, صباح ''Ṣabāḥ'' Lebanese pronunciation: ; born Janet Gerges Feghali, ; 10 November 1927 – 26 November 2014) was a Lebanese singer and actress. She participated in many Egyptian movies and songs. She was among the first Arabic ...

*"Laylitna Saidi" (Happy is our Night) *"ya Nas Dinyi Doulab" (Oh People, Life is like a Wheel) –

Samir Yazbek Samir (variantly spelled Sameer) is a male name found commonly in the Middle East, Central Asia and Europe. In Arabic, Samir () means holy, jovial, loyal or charming. In Albanian, it translates literally as “so good” but the connotation is clo ...

*"al-Oyoun Assoud" ''(Black Eyes)'' *"Dakhlak Berdan" ''(I Feel Cold)''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rajji, Issam 1945 births 2001 deaths Lebanese actors Lebanese composers 20th-century Lebanese male singers People from Kfarshima Lebanese male stage actors