Paul Baghdadlian (

Western Armenian Western Armenian ( Classical spelling: , ) is one of the two standardized forms of Modern Armenian, the other being Eastern Armenian. It is based mainly on the Istanbul Armenian dialect, as opposed to Eastern Armenian, which is mainly based ...

: Փօլ Պաղտատլեան; July 10, 1953 – June 28, 2011), often known simply as Paul, was an

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

singer, songwriter, composer, musician, entertainer, and businessman. He is referred to as the King of Love Songs. His music is loved by many Armenians and particularly by the

Armenian diaspora The Armenian diaspora refers to the communities of Armenians outside Armenia and other locations where Armenians are considered an indigenous population. Since antiquity, Armenians have established communities in many regions throughout the world. ...

Early life

Paul was born as Krikor Baghdadlian on July 10, 1953 in

Aleppo )), is an adjective which means "white-colored mixed with black". , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , image_map1 = ...

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

, to Armenian parents Baruyr Baghdadlian and Arousiag Baghdadlian. He had a brother named Aram Baghdadlian and a sister named Anahid Baghdadlian. He had great success in singing modern Armenian music after moving to

Beirut, Lebanon Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint of ...

. In 1965, at the age of 12 his mother died (his father eventually remarried and settled in Pasadena, CA). Struggling to live his daily life, he started performing to make his living.

Career

During the early 1970s, Paul Baghdadlian was known as Paul the Prince and was singing only English songs. After listening to fellow singer of the Armenian diaspora music

Harout Pamboukjian Harout Pamboukjian ( hy, Հարութ Փամբուկչյան; hyw, Յարութ Փամպուքճեան; born July 1, 1950), known as Dzakh Harut ( hy, Ձախ Հարութ, literally "Left Harout"), is an Armenian pop singer living in Los Ange ...

, however, Baghadadlian started to sing in Armenian, mostly performing love songs. Having achieved great success in Beirut and the Middle East in this new phase of his career, he moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

in 1977 for an international career. In Los Angeles he produced hundreds of recordings, mostly ballads, most of which he sang in Armenian, though he sang in a number of other languages, most notably Arabic and English. Many of his songs were recorded and produced by Parseghian Records in Los Angeles. He often toured the major centers of the Armenian diaspora and Armenia. On November 27, 2010, Paul Baghdadlian performed a concert in

Laval Laval means ''The Valley'' in old French and is the name of: People * House of Laval, a French noble family originating from the town of Laval, Mayenne * Laval (surname) Places Belgium * Laval, a village in the municipality of Sainte-Ode, Luxem ...

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. This concert happened to be his last prior to his death 7 months later.

Death

Baghdadlian died on June 28, 2011 after a long battle with lung cancer. He died in

Glendale Adventist Medical Center Adventist Health Glendale is a hospital located in Glendale, California, it is part of the healthcare network Adventist Health. Adventist Health Glendale is one of the city's oldest businesses, founded in 1905, a year before Glendale was incorpor ...

, where he was being hospitalized. The cause of death was ruled to be respiratory failure due to the cancer. He left behind three children: sons Paul Baghdadlian Jr and Christopher Baghdadlian from his first wife Ani Baghdadlian, and one daughter, Virginie Baghdadlian from his second wife Dzaghig Florence Baghdadlian.

Discography

Studio Albums

*Ourishin Yes (1978) *Siroum Yem Kez (1979) *Mor Sere (1979) *The Last Tango (1980) *Sbasoum Yem Kez (1980) *Mareta (1980) *Zavgis (1982) *Sev Acher (1983) *Miayn Ints Siree (1983) *Arants Kez (1985) *Siretzi Yes Megin (1987) *Happy Birthday (1989) *Naz Aghchig (1991) *Sirem (1992) *Ch’kideyi, Ch’kidem (1993) *Garodi Harts E (1994) *Gyanki Dzaghig (1995) *Tou Im Ashkharn Es (1997) *Kez Pari Louys (1998) *Gyankes... (2000) *Mortsir... (2001) *Anoushig's (2004) *Oor’Es (2008) *Hokis Im (2010)

Posthumous

*Hishadagner (2017)

Live Albums

*Live In Beirut: Sona Chan (1981) *Live In Australia (1988) *Live In Damascus (1999) *Live In Allepo (2000) *Live In Holland (2009)

Compilations Albums

*Best Of Paul (1998) *Dance Party Mix (1998) *Romantic Flashback (2000) *The Very Best Of Tangos (2000) *Golden Mix (2000) *Paylogh Asdgher (2005) *Arabic Songs (2015)

Featured In

*Sirel Em Kez (Compilation Album with Harout Pamboukjian & Varoujan Manoukian) (1981) *Angeghdz Ser (Compilation Album with Harout Pamboukjian & Varoujan Manoukian) (1981) *Payts Tou Chgas (Compilation Album with Harout Pamboukjian & Varoujan Manoukian) (1981) *Tartsel Ourishin (feat. Paul Baghdadlian Jr.) (2002) *Meghk (feat. Joseph Krikorian) (2002) *Heranumes (

Aram Asatryan Aram Asatryan ( hy, Արամ Ասատրյան; 3 March 1953 – 7 November 2006) was an Armenian singer and songwriter of Armenian pop and rabiz music, known for his energetic concerts. He is widely regarded as the pioneer of the "rabiz" music g ...

50th Anniversary Album) (2003) *Arev Tartsar (Aram Asatryan 50th Anniversary Album) (2003) *Srdis Takouhin (feat. Ararat Amadyan) (2007)

Singles

*Mouraz (feat. Sammy Flash) (2016) *Siretzi Yes Megin (feat.

Super Sako Sarkis Balasanyan ( hy, Սարգիս Բալասանյան; born August 17, 1978), professionally known as Super Sako ( hy, Սուպեր Սաքո), is an Armenian rapper, DJ and record producer based in Los Angeles. He is best known for his hit s ...

) (2016) *Happy Birthday (feat. Sammy Flash) (2017) *Happy Birthday (feat. Sako Ghazarossian) (2017) *Payts Apsos (feat. Joseph Krikorian) (2018) *Sirelis Veratartsir (feat. DJ Hye FX arry Ohannessian (2018) *El Chem Timana (feat. Sarina Cross) (2018) *Minchev Yerp (feat. Sammy Flash) (2019) *Asa Asdvadz (feat. Sammy Flash) (2019) *Yares Knatz (feat. Sammy Flash) (2020) *Sirelis Veratartsir (feat. Sammy Flash) (2020) *Harsntsou (Flashback Remix) (feat. DJ Hye FX arry Ohannessian (2020) *Nerir Indz Yare (feat. Anush Petrosyan) (2020) *Sirelem Sirelem (Groove Remix) (feat. DJ Hye FX arry Ohannessian (2020)

References

External links

Paul Baghdadlian website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baghdadlian, Paul 1953 births 2011 deaths Syrian people of Armenian descent 20th-century Syrian male singers People from Aleppo Syrian Christians Syrian emigrants to the United States American people of Armenian descent 20th-century Armenian male singers Armenian pop singers Deaths from lung cancer in California