Yousra Saouf ( ar, يسرا سعوف; born 29 April 1992) is a Moroccan singer who rose to fame in the

Arab world The Arab world ( ar, اَلْعَالَمُ الْعَرَبِيُّ '), formally the Arab homeland ( '), also known as the Arab nation ( '), the Arabsphere, or the Arab states, refers to a vast group of countries, mainly located in Western A ...

at the age of 20 following her participation in the second season of ''

Arab Idol ''Arab Idol'' is an Arabic television show, based on the popular British show ''Pop Idol'' created by Simon Fuller's 19 Entertainment and developed by Fremantle Media and recorded in Beirut, Lebanon. The first season premiered on 9 December 201 ...

'', broadcast on MBC. She was acclaimed by the jury and the public, her voice being linked to the Egyptian diva Najat Essaghira. She was ranked ninth in the competition.

Early life

Yousra Saouf is from

Casablanca Casablanca, also known in Arabic as Dar al-Bayda ( ar, الدَّار الْبَيْضَاء, al-Dār al-Bayḍāʾ, ; ber, ⴹⴹⴰⵕⵍⴱⵉⴹⴰ, ḍḍaṛlbiḍa, : "White House") is the largest city in Morocco and the country's econom ...

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...

Performances in ''Arab Idol''

Performances during the auditions

* Casting (Casablanca): "Akthar Min Awal Ahebak" by Ahlam * Casting Beirut (Group audition): "Mali" by

Warda Al-Jazairia Warda Al-Jazairia ( ar, وردة الجزائرية; born Warda Mohammed Ftouki (); 22 July 1939 – 17 May 2012) was an Algerian singer. She was well known for her Egyptian Arabic songs and music. Her name was sometimes shortened to just Warda ( ...

* Casting Beirut (Finale audition): "Ana Fintizarak" by

Umm Kulthum Umm Kulthum ( ar, أم كلثوم, , also spelled ''Oum Kalthoum'' in English; born Fatima Ibrahim es-Sayyid el-Beltagi, ar, فاطمة إبراهيم السيد البلتاجي, Fāṭima ʾIbrāhīm es-Sayyid el-Beltāǧī, link=no; 31 Dece ...

Performances during the primes

* Top 27: "Oyoun El Alb" by Najat Essaghira * Wildcards Survival Prime: "Ma Thasabnish" by

Sherine Sherine Sayed Mohamed Abdel-Wahab ( ar, شيرين سيد محمد عبد الوهاب; born October 8, 1980), known professionally by the mononym Sherine ( ar, شيرين), is an Egyptian singer, actress, TV host and personality, and a former ...

* 1st Prime: "El Amaken" by

Mohammed Abdu Mohammed Abdu ( ar, محمد عبده ; born June 12, 1949) is a Saudi singer who is renowned across the Middle East and Arab world. He has been described as "''Artist of the Arabs''." Early years Mohammed Abdu was born on June 12, 1949 in ...

* 2nd Prime: "Elli Kan" by

Nancy Ajram Nancy Nabil Ajram ( ar, نانسي نبيل عجرم, born May 16, 1983) is a Lebanese singer, television personality and businesswoman. Dubbed by Spotify as the " Queen of Arab Pop". With the support of her father, she began performing as ...

* 3rd Prime: "In Raht Minek Ya Ain" by

Shadia Fatma Ahmed Kamal Shaker ( ar, فاطمة أحمد كمال شاكر; 8 February 193128 November 2017), better known by her stage name Shadia ( ar, شادية, ''Shādiyya''), was an Egyptian actress and singer. She was famous for her roles in l ...

* 4th Prime: "Ana Albi Lek Meyal" by

Fayza Ahmed Fayza Ahmed ( ar, فايزة أحمد; December 5, 1934 – September 24, 1983) was a Syrian-Egyptian-Lebanese singer and actress. During her career, she appeared in six films. Early life Fayza Ahmed was born in 1934 in Damascus to a Syri ...

After ''Arab Idol''

After leaving the program, Yousra was contacted by the Emirati lyricist Mosaab El Anzi, who, charmed by her voice, wrote her first song "Bghito Yahlali". The song, written in

Moroccan Arabic Moroccan Arabic ( ar, العربية المغربية الدارجة, translit=al-ʻArabīya al-Maghribīya ad-Dārija ), also known as Darija (), is the dialectal, vernacular form or forms of Arabic spoken in Morocco. It is part of the Maghrebi ...

, will be included in an upcoming debut album. Yousra shared the stage with Ahlam during her concert on 30 May 2013 at the

Mawazine Mawazine ( ar, موازين, mawāzīn, meaning "rhythms of the world") is a Moroccan International music festival held annually in Rabat, Morocco, featuring many international and local music artists. The festival is presided over by Mounir Maj ...

music festival in

Rabat Rabat (, also , ; ar, الرِّبَاط, er-Ribât; ber, ⵕⵕⴱⴰⵟ, ṛṛbaṭ) is the capital city of Morocco and the country's seventh largest city with an urban population of approximately 580,000 (2014) and a metropolitan populati ...

. She sang "Akthar Min Awal Ahebak" and "Ma Isah Illa Sahih".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saouf, Yousra 1992 births Musicians from Casablanca 21st-century Moroccan women singers Living people Contestants from Arabic singing competitions