Mashrou' Leila
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Mashrou' Leila (, ), sometimes transliterated as Mashrou3 Leila () or translated as "Leila's Project", was a Lebanese four-member
indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...
band from
Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...
. It was formed in 2008 as a music workshop at the
American University of Beirut The American University of Beirut (AUB; ) is a private, non-sectarian, and independent university chartered in New York with its main campus in Beirut, Lebanon. AUB is governed by a private, autonomous board of trustees and offers programs le ...
, and released four studio albums: ''Mashrou' Leila'' (2009), ''Raasük'' (2013), ''Ibn El Leil'' (2015) and ''The Beirut School'' (2019), as well as an EP, ''El Hal Romancy'' (2011). The band has been controversial due to their
satirical Satire is a genre of the visual arts, visual, literature, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently Nonfiction, non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ...
lyrics and themes.


History


Background and name

The band was formed in February 2008 at the
American University of Beirut The American University of Beirut (AUB; ) is a private, non-sectarian, and independent university chartered in New York with its main campus in Beirut, Lebanon. AUB is governed by a private, autonomous board of trustees and offers programs le ...
, when
violin The violin, sometimes referred to as a fiddle, is a wooden chordophone, and is the smallest, and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in regular use in the violin family. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino picc ...
ist
Haig Papazian Haig Papazian (, ) is a Lebanese-Armenian multidisciplinary artist, composer, and architect born in Beirut and currently based out of New York. He is a founding member and violinist of Lebanese pop band Mashrou' Leila. Papazian has been featured ...
,
guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...
ist Andre Chedid, and
pianist A pianist ( , ) is a musician who plays the piano. A pianist's repertoire may include music from a diverse variety of styles, such as traditional classical music, jazz piano, jazz, blues piano, blues, and popular music, including rock music, ...
Omaya Malaeb posted an open invitation to musicians looking to jam to vent the stress caused by college and the unstable political situation. Out of the dozen of people who answered the call, seven would remain to form Mashrou' Leila. Band members were encouraged by friends to perform in front of a live crowd; they put on a show as the opening act for a concert on the AUB campus. During the event, Mashrou' Leila proved to be the only band that composed and performed their original compositions. The band continued to play small venues and gain ground on the
underground music Underground music is music with practices perceived as outside, or somehow opposed to, Popular music, mainstream popular music culture. Underground styles lack the commercial success of popular music movements, and may involve the use of avant-g ...
circuit until they emerged onto the indie music scene during the Lebanese 2008 event (the yearly Music festival held by the
Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...
municipality) sparking controversy for their unabashed and critical lyrics on Lebanese society, failed love,
sexuality Human sexuality is the way people experience and express themselves sexually. This involves biological, psychological, physical, erotic, emotional, social, or spiritual feelings and behaviors. Because it is a broad term, which has varied ...
, and politics. Mashrou' Leila's members enjoy the
wordplay Word play or wordplay (also: play-on-words) is a literary technique and a form of wit in which words used become the main subject of the work, primarily for the purpose of intended effect or amusement. Examples of word play include puns, phone ...
and ambiguity surrounding their band's name. In English, the name can be interpreted as either "One Night Project" or "Leila's Project", Leila (written as ) being a very common given name in Lebanon and (written as ) the Arabic word for 'night'. When asked during an early interview about the origin of the name ''Mashrou' Leila'', band members teasingly retorted that the band is a project started to collect money for a girl they knew called Leila. According to the band's official Facebook page, however, ''Mashrou' Leila'' means "An Overnight Project", named for the nocturnal nature of the project characterized by all-night jam sessions.


''Mashrou' Leila''

In 2009, Mashrou’ Leila participated at Radio Liban's Modern Music Contest held at Basement (club) winning both the jury and popular awards in part due to their breakthrough single "Raksit Leila" (Leila's Dance). The first prize was a record deal. Mashrou' Leila's self-titled debut album produced by B-root Productions (established by Raed El Khazen and Jana Saleh) was released in December 2009 at a steel factory in
Bourj Hammoud Bourj Hammoud (also spelled Burj Hammud; ; ) is a town and municipality in Lebanon located north-east of the capital Beirut, in the Matn District, and is part of Greater Beirut. The town is heavily populated by Lebanese Armenians. Bourj Hammoud ...
(a suburb of Beirut) where an unprecedented number of attendees crowded the factory yard. The gig turned out to be
Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...
's biggest non-mainstream event in recent years and has been a big hit among
indie Indie is a short form of "independence" or "independent"; it may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media *Independent media, media free of influence by government or corporate interests *Indie art, fine arts made by artists independent of commer ...
and rock fans in Lebanon. Shortly after the release of their first album, the band burst into the spotlight of the Lebanese music mainstream when they were announced to be headlining the
Byblos International Festival The Byblos International Festival is a Lebanese festival held in Byblos, believed to be the first Phoenician city, founded around 5000 BC. The festival is the biggest in Lebanon, and attracts thousands of tourists from all over the world. History ...
on July 9, 2010. The concert was one of the most anticipated events of the summer and was attended by scores of fans as well as the Lebanese prime minister
Saad Hariri Saad El-Din Rafik Al-Hariri ( ; born 18 April 1970) is a Lebanese people, Lebanese businessman and politician who served as the Prime Minister of Lebanon, prime minister of Lebanon from 2009 to 2011 and 2016 to 2020. The son of Rafic Hariri, he ...
.


''El Hal Romancy''

In 2011, Mashrou' Leila released the ''El Hal Romancy'' EP, a recording the band describes as "tackling lyrically more intimate, personal, and theatrical subject matter that is less about the city and its politics proper, and more about the social residue of the city. This is a collection of songs that happen in a weathered bedroom with ruffled bed sheets, stained carpeting, and a book shelf of references, while a string section plays on a rusty vinyl player to a couple of young lovers trying to survive the city". One week before the release concert in
Beirut Hippodrome Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, is home to two hippodromes, a historic one from the Ancient Rome, Roman era and a modern one that was built in the late 19th century. Roman Hippodrome of Beirut The Circus (building), Roman Hippodrome, which occup ...
, Mashrou' Leila announced that the album was available for free download on the band's website. In 2012, the band headlined
Baalbeck International Festival The Baalbeck International Festival (; ) is a cultural event in Lebanon. Since 1955, people from around the world have gone to the city of Baalbek in the Beqaa Valley of Lebanon to attend the annual festival. Classical music, dance, theater, opera, ...
. The concert was filmed and released as a live concert.


''Raasuk''

Mashrou' Leila's anticipated 3rd release ''Raasuk'' (shown on artwork as ) was recorded at
Hotel2Tango The Hotel2Tango (sometimes referred to as Thee Mighty Hotel2Tango and abbreviated H2T) is a 24-track Analog recording, analogue recording studio situated in the Mile End, Montreal, Mile End district of Montreal, Quebec. The current facility is th ...
in
Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
, Quebec, Canada. It was described as "an arresting, heady mixture of retro-Beirut music – the signature sound being Haig Papazian's razor-sharp violin". The album was released in August 2013. The video of the lead single "Lil Watan" (, 'for the nation') was awarded the gold prize at the Dubai Lynx 2015 festival. To promote the album, the band managed to crowd fund over $60,000; an unprecedented feat for a Middle East art project. On April 6, Mashrou' Leila became the first Middle Eastern artist to be featured on the cover of ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
'' magazine. On November 25, 2013, Mashrou' Leila played the Red Bull Soundclash with Who Killed Bruce Lee in the Forum de Beyrouth. During a show at The Middle East club in Boston, Sinno introduced "Abdo" off the ''Raasuk'' release by explaining that, "This one is about something typical in Beirut which is people selling stuff on trolleys in the street. It’s about a flower salesman called Abdo."


''Ibn El Leil''

The first hint of new material arrived when the band started a campaign asking the members of their social media pages to submit lyrics and video ideas to be incorporated in the band's upcoming single. "3 Minutes" () was released on March 17, 2015. Contrary to their common method of writing and producing songs, the band decided not to test their new material in live concerts, opting instead for secrecy and mystery about their fourth album. The band recorded the 13 tracks in studio La Frette in France over the summer with French-Lebanese producer Samy Osta, and worked on orchestral and brass arrangements with the Macedonian Radio Orchestra in F.A.M.E's Studios in Macedonia. The band has said that this album is their most pop album to date, and deals with topics that range from the euphoric to the destructive and depressive, all taking place in the politically, socially, and sexually charged spaces of Beirut's night. The band experimented with drum machines, loops, samples, and several synthesizers in a new method of composition, trying to accommodate for the departure of keyboard player Omaya Malaeb. "Maghawir" () narrates a possible version of a club shooting in Beirut, drawing on references to real Lebanese case histories from two different shootings that took place within the same week, both of which resulted in the deaths of extremely young victims, each of whom was out celebrating their birthday." During a show in Boston, the band explained that the song "Tayf (Ghost)" () is about a shuttered gay club, and "Bint Elkhandaq" () tells the story of a friend who learned, "as hard as it is to be a woman in Beirut, it’s just as hard to be brown in the West." The album is heavily loaded with allusions and references, both to contemporary figures of pop, and to mythological figures of gods and demons. On the November 28, the band released ''Ibn El Leil'' (, 'son of the night') at the
Barbican A barbican (from ) is a fortified outpost or fortified gateway, such as at an outer defense perimeter of a city or castle, or any tower situated over a gate or bridge which was used for defensive purposes. Europe Medieval Europeans typically b ...
in London with live broadcasting on
MTV Lebanon Murr Television, marketed and known as MTV Lebanon, is a Lebanese television station based in Naccache, Metn District. It was founded in 1991 by businessman Gabriel Murr Gabriel Murr (; born 26 February 1939) is a Lebanese politician and ...
available to the entire world to positive reviews. "In the seven years since Mashrou’ Leila formed at the American University of Beirut, the quintet – whose name, in fact, means 'overnight project' – have won comparisons to everyone from
Arctic Monkeys Arctic Monkeys are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Sheffield in 2002. They comprise lead singer Alex Turner, drummer Matt Helders, guitarist Jamie Cook and bassist Nick O'Malley. The co-founder and original bassist Andy Nicholson ...
and
Radiohead Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon-on-Thames, Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band members are Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Gre ...
to
Roxy Music Roxy Music are an English rock music, rock band formed in 1970 by Bryan Ferry (lead vocals/keyboards/principal songwriter) and Graham Simpson (musician), Graham Simpson (bass). By the time the band recorded their Roxy Music (album), first albu ...
and
Wild Beasts Wild Beasts was an English indie rock band, formed in 2002 in Kendal. They released their first single, "Brave Bulging Buoyant Clairvoyants", on Bad Sneakers Records in November 2006, and subsequently signed to Domino Recording Company, Domino ...
." On December 1, ''Ibn El Leil'' debuted at the number one spot on local
iTunes iTunes is a media player, media library, and mobile device management (MDM) utility developed by Apple. It is used to purchase, play, download and organize digital multimedia on personal computers running the macOS and Windows operating s ...
channels, and charted as number 11 on the international world ''Billboard'' charts. "It’s such an impressive performance that stadiums seem not only possible but imminent." The band released a music video for their single "Roman" on July 19, 2017. The single was included on the deluxe version of ''Ibn El Leil'' released July 21, 2017.


''The Beirut School''

On February 8, 2019, Mashrou' Leila released a new single, "Cavalry", the first from their upcoming album ''The Beirut School''. ''The Beirut School'' was released on March 1, 2019. The album includes some songs from the group's previous album. The group toured North America in 2019 in support of the album.


Disbanding

In September 2022, Sinno announced on an episode of Sarde After Dinner that the band would be disbanding. Sinno cited harassment and hate campaigns as a reason for the band breaking up. They also cited the tragic death of
Sarah Hegazi Sarah Hegazi (; 1 October 1989 – 14 June 2020; also rendered Hegazy or Higazy) was an Egyptian writer, LGBTQ activist, and socialist. She was arrested, imprisoned and tortured in Egypt for three months after flying a Rainbow flag (LGBT), rainbo ...
, who was arrested and tortured in Egypt after flying a
rainbow flag A rainbow flag is a multicolored flag consisting of the colors of the rainbow. The designs differ, but many of the colors are based on the seven spectral colors of the visible light spectrum. History In the 18th century, American Revolutionary ...
at a 2017 concert, as a contributing factor to the decision.


Band members

; Members as of 2022 *
Hamed Sinno Hamed Sinno (; born April 25, 1988) is a Lebanese-American musician and writer. They were the lead singer of the alternative rock band Mashrou' Leila until the group disbanded in 2022. Early life Sinno was born to a Lebanese father who had liv ...
as the
lead vocalist The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of t ...
. *
Haig Papazian Haig Papazian (, ) is a Lebanese-Armenian multidisciplinary artist, composer, and architect born in Beirut and currently based out of New York. He is a founding member and violinist of Lebanese pop band Mashrou' Leila. Papazian has been featured ...
on the
violin The violin, sometimes referred to as a fiddle, is a wooden chordophone, and is the smallest, and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in regular use in the violin family. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino picc ...
* Carl Gerges on
drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...
*
Firas Abou Fakher , genre = Alternative rock, Indie , years_active = , label = , website = , current_member_of = Mashrou' Leila Firas Abou Fakher ({{langx, ar, فراس أبو فخر) is a Lebanese BAFTA-winning composer, ...
on
guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...
and
keyboard Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Mus ...
s File:Mashrou´Leila Rudolstadt 12.jpg, Hamed Sinno File:Mashrou´Leila Rudolstadt 06.jpg, Haig Papazian File:Mashrou´Leila Rudolstadt 07.jpg, Carl Gerges File:Mashrou´Leila Rudolstadt 09.jpg, Firas Abou Fakher ; Past members *
Ibrahim Badr Ibrahim Badr (Arabic: ابراهيم بدر) is a Lebanese musician who was the bass player of alternative rock band Mashrou' Leila He is also a Product Manager at Google and has worked on Google Calendar, Google Assistant, and Google Lens Goo ...
on
bass guitar The bass guitar (), also known as the electric bass guitar, electric bass, or simply the bass, is the lowest-pitched member of the guitar family. It is similar in appearance and construction to an Electric guitar, electric but with a longer nec ...
* Omaya Malaeb on
keyboard Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Mus ...
s *Andre Chedid on
guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...
s


Themes and style

Mashrou’ Leila's themes and satirical Lebanese lyrics reflect the many faces and flaws of
Lebanese society Lebanese society is very modern and similar to certain cultures of Southern Europe as the country is "linked ideologically and culturally to Europe through France, and its uniquely diverse religious composition reatea rare environment that sat o ...
which are not addressed by mainstream Arabic music. The band is critical of the problems associated with life in Beirut and they are known for their liberal use of swear-words in some of their songs. Their debut album's nine songs discuss subject matters such as lost love, war, politics, security and political assassination, materialism, immigration and homosexuality. "Latlit" one of the Mashrou' Leila album tracks is a caricature of the Lebanese society overridden by gossip. "Shim el Yasmine" (literally Smell the Jasmine), a song reminiscent of
Jay Brannan Jay Brannan (born March 29, 1982) is an American singer-songwriter and actor. He was born in Texas and briefly studied in Ohio, but moved to California to become an actor. Brannan appeared in the 2006 movie ''Shortbus'', which included one of hi ...
's "Housewife", was described as an ode to tolerance for same-sex love where a young man wants to introduce his bride to his parents but the bride turns out to be a groom. "Fasateen" (literally meaning "dresses") is a ballad that discusses the issue of interfaith or inter-religious marriage, a growing phenomenon in Lebanon. The song's music video shows the band members deconstructing nuptial symbols and defying the pressure of romantic relationships. Some of the distinctive features of the band's music is the prominence of the violin in passages redolent of
Armenian folk music Armenian folk music is a genre of Armenian music. It usually uses the duduk, the kemenche, and the oud. It is very similar to folk music in the Caucasus and shares many similar songs and traditions with countries around Armenia, namely Georgi ...
and the use of a
megaphone A megaphone, speaking trumpet, bullhorn, blowhorn, or loudhailer is usually a portable or hand-held, cone-shaped horn (acoustic), acoustic horn used to amplifier, amplify a person's voice or other sounds and direct it in a given direction. ...
in some songs to alter
lead vocalist The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of t ...
Hamed Sinno's voice. They continued tackling social issues in their later albums, with their fourth album featuring songs such as "Kalam", which addressed issues of gender identity, while "Bint Elkhandaq" addressed misogyny in the Middle East as well as Islamophobia in the West.


Magazine appearances

Hamed Sinno got their first solo magazine theater cover in 2012 when he fronted the December issue of the first LGBTQI magazine in the
MENA The Middle East and North Africa (MENA), also referred to as West Asia and North Africa (WANA) or South West Asia and North Africa (SWANA), is a geographic region which comprises the Middle East (also called West Asia) and North Africa together ...
region, ''
My.Kali ''My Kali'' (Arabic: ماي كالي) is an online pan-Arab LGBT magazine, published in Amman, Jordan in English language, English since 2007 and in Arabic language, Arabic since 2016. It is named after its publisher, openly gay Jordanian model ...
''. Hamed was also featured on the cover of October 2013 issue of French gay magazine . The interview in this issue was titled "", literally 'You can pursue your dream after coming out'. Papazian fronted the December 2013 ''My.Kali'' issue. Carl Gerges landed his first sol
cover
on the November issue of , 2013.


Controversy

In August 2010, during a concert at the Byblos Festival, the band's lead Hamed Sinno unfurled a
rainbow flag A rainbow flag is a multicolored flag consisting of the colors of the rainbow. The designs differ, but many of the colors are based on the seven spectral colors of the visible light spectrum. History In the 18th century, American Revolutionary ...
that was handed to him by a member of the audience. This was the first public display of a gay pride flag by an artist in Lebanon. During that same festival appearance, the band performed songs denouncing police brutality and corrupt politicians while then prime minister Saad el-Din Hariri was in attendance. Mashrou' Leila's satirical lyrics and themes regarding politics, religion, sexuality and homosexuality led to an unofficial ban on performing in
Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...
on April 26, 2016. The band announced on its Facebook page that their planned concert was denied approval by the
Amman Governorate Amman Governorate, officially known as Muhafazat al-Asima (, English language, English translation: the Capital Governorate), is one of the governorates in Jordan. The governorate's capital is the city of Amman, which is also the country's capi ...
. The ban was reverted by the relevant authorities two days later. On June 13, 2016, the band again posted a message on their official
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page that claimed their upcoming concert in Amman had been cancelled by the Jordanian Ministry of the Interior: "The inconsistency of the Jordanian authorities in this respect (inviting us, then banning, then cancelling the ban, then inviting us again, then banning us again - all within the course of 14 months - has culminated in a clear message, that the Jordanian authorities do not intend to separate Jordan from the fanatical conservatism that has contributed in making the region increasingly toxic over the last decade." In September 2017, while the band was playing in Egypt, members of their audience were arrested for unfurling rainbow flags in support of LGBT rights. In total seven concert attendees were arrested, including
Sarah Hegazi Sarah Hegazi (; 1 October 1989 – 14 June 2020; also rendered Hegazy or Higazy) was an Egyptian writer, LGBTQ activist, and socialist. She was arrested, imprisoned and tortured in Egypt for three months after flying a Rainbow flag (LGBT), rainbo ...
; one of the arrested men was sentenced to six years in jail for 'practicing debauchery' on his way home from the concert.


Byblos Festival concert cancellation

The band was set to play at the Byblos Festival on August 9, 2019; a few weeks before the concert, local church officials called for the show to be cancelled amidst an online homophobic campaign by right wing Christian activists who claimed that the band songs are blasphemous and promote homosexuality. Two song in particular, "Djin" and "Idols", were cited as violating Christian sensitivities. During a 2016
NPR National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...
Tiny Desk Concert ''Tiny Desk Concerts'' is a video series of live concerts hosted by NPR Music at the desk of former '' All Songs Considered'' host Bob Boilen in Washington, D.C. The first ''Tiny Desk Concert'' came about in 2008 after Boilen and NPR Music ed ...
, the band lead singer Hamed Sinno explained the "Djin" lyrics as drawing from scholar Joseph Campbell's comparative mythology and religion works. The song references parallels in Christian and Greek Dionysian mythology but the crux of the songs is about "getting ..messed up at a bar". On July 17, 2019, protesters against the gig began to circulate conspiracy theories claiming the band is a "Masonic-Zionist" project to morally corrupt Lebanon, citing the band's support of gay and transgender rights. Right wing social media activists circulated an image shared by the band's lead singer on his personal Facebook account in 2015 depicting a Byzantine icon of the Virgin Mary with the singer
Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone ( ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Referred to as the "Queen of Pop", she has been recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, ...
's head in place of Mary's. They accused the band of devil worship and rallied priests and politicians in their bid to stop the concert. Some campaigners, including
Free Patriotic Movement The Free Patriotic Movement (, ) is a Lebanese political party. Founded by Michel Aoun in 1994, the party is currently led by Aoun's son-in-law Gebran Bassil since 2015. History Background For many years, while Michel Aoun was and exiled i ...
official Naji Hayek, called on their followers to forcibly stop the band's appearance if Lebanese authorities didn't cancel the show. Sinno posted a reply denouncing the mounting sectarian and fundamentalist rhetoric and explained that the Madonna image is a cover of a Facebook article discussing pop art they shared and deleted in 2015; they added that they neither drew the image nor wrote its caption. Senior clergyman and head of the Catholic Media Center Abdo Abou Kasm said that the church was prepared to take legal action against the band and that he contacted members of parliament and other Christian officials, and informed them that this concert poses a "danger to urcommunity," adding "We won’t let this go through." On July 22 the Maronite Catholic Eparchy of Byblos issued its first call to cancel the concert. Members of the band and prospective festival audience members received a flurry of threats of violence and death on social media. In an attempt to defuse the situation, a Byblos Festival spokesperson claimed that a compromise was reached and that the concert would be held if the band members held a press conference to apologize to those who might have been offended and pulled the two offending songs from the festival set. Lawyer Christiane Nakhoul filed a lawsuit on behalf of a right-wing activist against Mashrou' Leila for "insulting sanctities and religions and stirring sectarian sentiments." On July 24, 2019, Mount Lebanon Prosecutor Ghada Aoun ordered the release of the band members after their interrogation by the State Security agency dismissing charges of blasphemy and inciting sectarian strife offenses. The prosecutor added that those members who were outside Lebanon (Sinno) can return because there was no memo against them. Lebanese singer
Marcel Khalife Marcel Khalife (; born 10 June 1950 in Amchit) is a Lebanese musical composer, singer, and oud player. Khalife is considered a folk hero in the Arab world, and he has been described as the "Bob Dylan of the Middle East." Biography In 1983 ...
who was himself the target of a libel campaign earlier voiced his support and called his followers to rally behind the band. On July 29, 2019, the Maronite Catholic Eparchy of Byblos shared on its Facebook page a statement by the Episcopal Commission for Social Communication claiming that two of the band members had acknowledged, during a meeting with church officials, that some of the band's songs violated religious values. The statement added that the band members who were questioned agreed to remove content that was deemed disrespectful to religious sensitivities and to issue an apology. On that same day, supporters of the band rallied in downtown Beirut, despite attempts by Christian clergymen and right-wing groups to stop the concert. On July 30, 2019, the Byblos Festival organizers caved in to pressure from online groups, church officials and politicians and announced the cancellation of the show to prevent civil unrest and bloodshed. On July 31, 2019, following the concert cancellation, Mashrou' Leila shared a statement on its social media accounts condemning the campaign, saying that the songs at the center of the controversy were subjected to "misinterpretation and twisting of lyrics". The band added: "We have been tried on the streets, judged and convicted by anyone wishing. This is a departure from the logic of the state, one that strikes at the core of our sense of our safety and ability to be artistic and creative." Social activist Khaled Merheb filed a lawsuit against members of the right wing campaign group who threatened the band and attendees with the use of weapons, beatings and killing. On August 1, 2019, the Byblos Festival filed another lawsuit against individuals involved in threatening the band and the public with violence. In the aftermath of the concert cancellation, a number of human rights organizations voiced concern. Lama Fakih, the Middle East director at Human Rights Watch said: “The cancellation of Mashrou’ Leila's concert reflects the government's increased reliance on over-broad and abusive laws to stifle and censor activists, journalists, and artists.” Amnesty International denounced the church position and hate speech against vulnerable populations: “It is unconscionable that there continue to be such calls emanating from institutions that are meant to serve as role models to their constituencies, and can and should be upholding the right to freedom of expression and protection of vulnerable groups, instead of enabling hate speech, including homophobia". On August 4, 2019,
Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...
metal band
Within Temptation Within Temptation is a Dutch symphonic metal band founded in April 1996 by vocalist Sharon den Adel and guitarist Robert Westerholt. They have been classified by critics as gothic metal and symphonic metal, although each album contains other infl ...
who was set to perform at Byblos on August 7 pulled out of the festival in solidarity with Mashrou Leila and "in support of tolerance, freedom of speech and expression". The cancellation of the Mashrou Leila concert triggered protests and a solidarity campaign on social media. Supporters described the cancellation as a shameful and dangerous precedent. On the date of the concert, independent activists gathered to put on a show in solidarity with the band and against censorship under the banner “The Sound of Music Is Louder.” The event gathered dozens of sympathetic musicians, bands and comedians at 'The Palace' venue in Beirut's Hamra district. Over a thousand people attended the show while hundreds waited in droves at the venue's entrance in waiting. At 9pm, pubs and restaurants across the city played Mashrou' Leila songs in solidarity with the band. On August 24, 2019,
cellist The violoncello ( , ), commonly abbreviated as cello ( ), is a middle pitched bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), tuned i ...
Yo-Yo Ma Yo-Yo Ma (born October 7, 1955) is a French-born American Cello, cellist. Born to Chinese people, Chinese parents in Paris, he was regarded as a child prodigy there and began to study the cello with his father at age four. At the age of seven, ...
played ''Tayf'' at the end of his Byblos festival concert as a tribute to the band.


Northwestern University in Qatar Cancelation

Mashrou’ Leila were invited for a discussion session titled, “Language and the Rhythm of the Street” at The Media Majlis in
Northwestern University in Qatar Northwestern University in Qatar (NU-Q), also known as Northwestern Qatar, is Northwestern University’s campus in Education City, Doha, Qatar, founded in partnership with the Qatar Foundation in 2008. Northwestern Qatar's campus offers a libe ...
. The event was reported to be sold-out, before hashtag #نرفض_محاضرة_مشروع_ليلى (we refuse Mashrou' Leila's discussion) being circulated on Twitter. Shortly after the hashtag,
Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...
and the band decided to cancel the event for safety concerns. The university's student publication, The Daily Q, reported that the session would be relocated to NU's home campus in
Evanston, Illinois Evanston is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States, situated on the North Shore (Chicago), North Shore along Lake Michigan. A suburb of Chicago, Evanston is north of Chicago Loop, downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skok ...
. The article mentions that “the provost’s office in Evanston, the band and NU-Q both felt that because of security and safety reasons concerning the band, the change was appropriate." A spokesperson from
Qatar Foundation The Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development () is a state-led non-profit organization in Qatar, founded in 1995 by then-List of emirs of Qatar, emir Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani and his second wife Moza bint Nasser Al-Miss ...
, told Reuters that ““We also place the very highest value on academic freedom… in the context of Qatari laws as well as the country’s cultural and social customs. This particular event was canceled due to the fact that it patently did not correlate with this context.” This led to people questioning if the cancelation was a mutual decision or if it was pressurized from the Qatar Foundation, as the relocation of the event to the United States has never taken place.


Discography


Studio albums


Live albums


Awards and nominations


Results


References


External links


Official websiteFacebook
* {{Authority control American University of Beirut alumni Lebanese rock music groups LGBTQ in Lebanon LGBTQ-themed musical groups Musical groups established in 2008