Dounia Batma ( ar, دنيا بطمة) (born 23 April 1991) is a Moroccan singer and actress who rose to popularity around the world as the runner-up of the first 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 ...

'' (the Arabic version of

Pop Idol ''Pop Idol'' is a British music competition television series created by Simon Fuller which ran on ITV from 2001 to 2003. The aim of the show was to decide the best new young pop singer (or "pop idol") in the UK based on viewer voting and par ...

) on MBC. She lost the title against Egyptian contestant

Carmen Suleiman Carmen Essam Soliman ( ar, كارمن عصام سليمان ; born on 7 October 1994), better known by her stage name Carmen Suleiman ( ar, كارمن سليمان ), is an Egyptian singer. Soliman won the first season of Arab Idol song conte ...

. She married Mohamed Al Turk, the father of Bahraini singer

Hala Al Turk Hala Al Turk ( ar, حلا الترك; born May 15, 2002) is a Jordanian-Syrian Bahraini singer. She become known for being a contestant on '' Arabs Got Talent'' in 2011. Al Turk then released many singles, including "Bnayty El Habooba (2011)" fe ...

. Batma was born and raised in

Hay Mohammadi Hay Mohammadi or Hay Mohammedi ( ar, الحي المحمدي) is an arrondissement of eastern Casablanca, in the Aïn Sebaâ - Hay Mohammadi district of the Casablanca-Settat region of Morocco. As of 2004 it had 156,501 inhabitants. Notable resi ...

, in the

Ain Sebaa-Hay Mohammedi Ain (, ; frp, En) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Eastern France. Named after the Ain river, it is bordered by the Saône and Rhône rivers. Ain is located on the country's eastern edge, on the Swiss border, where i ...

district of Casablanca, Morocco. Her father, Hamid Batma, played for different bands including Mesnawa and Nass El Ghiwane, and her uncle,

Laarbi Batma Laarbi Batma (or Laarbi Batma) ( ar, العربي باطما; born in Chaouia; 1948 - 7 February 1997) was a Moroccan musician, poet, singer, writer, actor, and the front man of the group Nass El Ghiwane. Early life Batma grew up in the Hay ...

, is the leader of Moroccan fusion group

Nass El Ghiwane Nass El Ghiwane () are a musical group established in 1970 in Casablanca, Morocco. The group, which originated in avant-garde political theater, has played an influential role in Moroccan chaabi (or ''shaabi''). Nass El Ghiwane were the first ...

, considered by

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Scorsese emerged as one of the major figures of the New Hollywood era. He is the recipient of many major accolades, inclu ...

as "Africa's Rolling Stones". She studied tourism after high-school, without stopping to dream about a musical career. In 2010, at the age of 18, inspired by her already-famous older cousin Khansa Batma (Mohamed Batma's daughter), she took part in a Moroccan musical competition, called Studio 2M, broadcast on 2M TV, in the Oriental category. She sang various songs of both Moroccan and

Middle-Eastern The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Province), East Thrace (Europea ...

repertoires, and reached the semi-finals. Even if she didn't reach the final, she managed to release a single "Aalash Tgheeb" (Why are you hiding?) 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 Maghreb ...

which didn't become very successful. But she realized that she would need to go further to get the career she was expecting and Arab Idol was a great venue to reach the Arab World heart.

Breakthrough

On 8 September 2011, Batma auditioned for the Arabic music competition

. The show is the pan-Arab version of ''

'' and a rebirth of

Future TV Future Television ( ar, تلفزيون المستقبل, ''Televiziyon al-Mustaqbal'') was a Lebanese free-to-air television station founded in 1993 by the Future Movement leader Rafik Hariri, a former Prime Minister of Lebanon. Future TV was als ...

's show '' Super Star''. The winner of the competition should win a contract with recording label Platinum Records and

Chevrolet Corvette (C6) The Chevrolet Corvette (C6) is the sixth generation of the Corvette sports car that was produced by Chevrolet division of General Motors for the 2005 to 2013 model years. It is the first Corvette with exposed headlamps since the 1962 model. ...

as well as an important advertisement campaign with Pepsi. She auditioned in Casablanca, and performed ''La Tfaker'' (by late Tunisian singer Thekra) in front of the jury composed by Lebanese pop singer Ragheb Alama, Emirati diva Ahlam and

Egyptian Egyptian describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of years of ...

music producer and musician Hassan Shaf'ei. They invited her to join in, which introduce her to the Arab audience. She was selected in the top 10 against contestants from

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

, Syria,

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 ...

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...

and

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...

. Batma's vocal abilities amazed the members of the jury and made her among the favorites since the very first prime, where she performed

Talal Maddah Talal Maddah (5 August 1940 – 11 August 2000; ar, طلال مدَّاح) was a Saudi Arabian musician and composer. He was named Maddah after his mother's family. His fans called him "The Earth's Voice" ( ar, صوت الارض), and he was al ...

's "Magadir". Her performance was so strong and so intense that it made Ahlam cry out of emotion. She then excelled in various dialects and various styles from classic Egyptian songs (

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 ...

Mohammed Abdel Wahab ''Mohamed Abdel Wahab'' ( ar, محمد عبد الوهاب), also transliterated ''Mohamed Abd El-Wahhab'' (March 13, 1902 – May 4, 1991), was a prominent 20th-century Egyptian singer, actor, and composer. He is best known for his Romantic ...

, Warda, Faiza Ahmed), to Arabic pop music (

Samira Said Samira Abdelrazak Bensaïd ( ar, سميرة عبد الرزاق بنسعيد, Samīra ʿAbd ar-Razzāq ibn Saʿīd; born 10 January 1958), professionally known as Samira Said ( ar, سميرة سعيد, Samīra Saʿīd), is a Moroccan singer, who ...

Fulla Fulla (Old Norse: , possibly 'bountiful') or Volla (Old High German, 'plenitude') is a goddess in Germanic mythology. In Norse mythology, Fulla is described as wearing a golden band and as tending to the ashen box and the footwear owned by the g ...

Najwa Karam Najwa Karam ( ar, نجوى كرم, , born 26 February 1966) is a Lebanese singer, songwriter, producer, fashion icon, one of the best selling recording artist in the middle east with more than 60 million records worldwide. Known as the "Sun of ...

Asala Nasri Assala Mostafa Hatem Nasri ( ar, أصالة مصطفى حاتم نصري; born 15 May 1969), commonly known as Assala ( ar, أصالة), is a Syrian musical artist. She is one of the most popular and famous Arab singers. Early life and career ...

) and Gulf music ( Ahlam,

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 ...

). Among her most notable performances were her rendition of

's ''Darrat El Ayam'', for which she received unanimous praises from the jury and her singing of Ahlam's ''Akhtar Men Awal Ahebak'' (in

Gulf Arabic Gulf Arabic ( ' local pronunciation: or ', local pronunciation: ) is a variety of the Arabic language spoken in Eastern Arabia around the coasts of the Persian Gulf in Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, southern Iraq, eastern Sa ...

), for which Ahlam (the singer of this song and member of the jury) said : "It is an honor that you sung this for me". On 24 March, she lost the title against the

contestant

. During a press conference, Batma seized the chance to clarify that her try in the Middle East is due to the opportunities that can be offered there, and added that "the launch of my artistic career from the East won't affect my contribution to the promotion of Moroccan art, and won't also affect my pride of my mother tongue". Many viewers noticed that Batma didn't use her

whenever she was speaking in front of the audiences and switched to another

Arabic dialect The varieties (or dialects or vernacular languages) of Arabic, a Semitic language within the Afroasiatic family originating in the Arabian Peninsula, are the linguistic systems that Arabic speakers speak natively. There are considerable variatio ...

(mostly the ''Khaliji'' dialect) as most Moroccan artists usually do when they travel to the Middle East. She considers

Asma Lamnawar Asma Lamnawar ( ar, أسماء لمنور; born 25 July 1978) is a Moroccan singer. She made her singing debut in 1995 with "Angham", a festival produced by Moroccan Radio and TV, where she won the prize for best interpretation, though she delay ...

and Hoda Saad as role models. After the show, the CEO of Saudi Platinum Records,

Rashed Al-Majed Rashed Al-Majed ( ar, راشد الماجد; born 27 July 1969) is a Saudi singer, actor, musician, and record producer. He has been active since 1984. Rashed Al-Majed is one of the most famous singers in the Middle East and has released almo ...

, signed her to the label, saying that her voice was "rare".

Performances in ''Arab Idol''

* First casting ( Casablanca) : "La Tfaker" by Thekra * Second casting (

Beirut 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 o ...

) : "Hob Eih" by

* Top 10 Girls : "Magadir" by

* 1st Prime : "Youm Leek" by Thekra * 2nd Prime : "Darrat El Ayam" by

* 3rd Prime : "Lashhad Hobbak" by

* 4th Prime : "Habina Wa Thabina" by Mayada El Henawi * 5th Prime : "Akhtar Min Awal Ahebak" by Ahlam * 5th Prime : "Khayna" by

and

* 6th Prime : "Olli A'amalak Eh Albi" by

* 6th Prime : "Aal Bal" by

* 7th Prime : "Ma Aad Badri" by

* 7th Prime : "Akthar" by

* 8th Prime : "Tab Wa Ana 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 ( ...

* 8th Prime : "Wagif Aala Babikom" by Naima Samih * 8th Prime : "Tashakurat" by

* Final : "Allah Ya Moulana" by

* Final : "Ebta'ad Aani" by

* Final : "Marsoul El Hob" by

Abdelwahab Doukkali Abdelwahab Doukkali ( ar, عبد الوهاب الدكالي; born 2 January 1941) is a Moroccan composer and performer. He was born in Fes, one of the 13 children of a conservative family. At the age of 18, in 1959, he went to Rabat, where he w ...

* Final : "Hob Eih" by

;Medleys in Saturday's results show * 1st Prime's Results : "Yalli Bjamalek" by

Saber Rebaï Saber Rebai ( ar, صابر الرباعي, ''Saber al Ruba'i''; born 13 March 1967) is a Tunisian pan-Arab singer, actor, and composer of Yemeni Origin. He is known for his song " Sidi Mansour". Some albums carry the variant transliteration Sab ...

* 2nd Prime's Results : "Bataminak" 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 ...

* 3rd Prime's Results : "Bab Am Yabki" by

Assi El Helani Mohammed Muzen El Hallani ( ar, محمد مزين الحلاني), widely known as Assi El Hallani; born November 28, 1970), is a Lebanese singer and actor. El Helani's musical career started after winning Studio Al Fan, a TV program for young a ...

* 4th Prime's Results : "Bin Edeya" by Majid El Muhandes * 5th Prime's Results : "Bilba'lak" by

Nawal El-Zoughby Nawal El Zoghbi ( ar, نوال الزغبي, also spelled Nawal Al Zoghbi; born 29 June 1972) is a Lebanese pop singer. She achieved popularity first by dancing and singing traditional Arabic music with a pop sensibility, and later singing in ...

* 6th Prime's Results : "Law Taarafo" by Elissa * 7th Prime's Results : "Zidini Ashqan" by Kadhem Al Saher * 8th Prime Results : "Akhasmak Ah" and "El Donia Helwa" 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 ...

* 8th Prime Results : "Sit El Habayeb" 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 ...

Discography

References

External links

Youtube Channel for Dounia Batma's performances in Arab Idol

Présentation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Batma, Dounia 1991 births People from Casablanca 21st-century Moroccan women singers Moroccan film actresses Moroccan television actresses Living people Contestants from Arabic singing competitions