Naima Samih (; 1953 – 8 March 2025) was a Moroccan singer. She is considered one of the most important voices in Moroccan music in the second half of the twentieth century. Her singing career began in the 1970s, and her songs gained wide popularity in Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, and other Arab countries. She was even dubbed “The Lady of Tarab” and became the third and youngest Arab singer to perform at Olympia, after

Umm Kulthum Umm Kulthum (; 31 December 1898 – 3 February 1975) was an Egyptians, Egyptian singer and film actress active from the 1920s to the 1970s. She was given the honorific title (). Immensely popular throughout the Middle East and beyond, Umm Kul ...

and Fairuz.

Life and career

Born in a family of thirteen children in

Casablanca Casablanca (, ) is the largest city in Morocco and the country's economic and business centre. Located on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Chaouia (Morocco), Chaouia plain in the central-western part of Morocco, the city has a populatio ...

, Samih started singing at the age of nine. She stopped attending school at an early age and worked with a seamstress to support her family but gave up taking a chance for music. In the early 1970s she got a breakthrough, taking part in the musical show ''Mawahib'' (a show that revealed Moroccan talents such as Samira Said and Rajae Belmlih). She became a star in the 1970s with the release of her song "Jrit Ou Jarit" also known as "Yaka Jarhi," which became a hit throughout the

Arab world The Arab world ( '), formally the Arab homeland ( '), also known as the Arab nation ( '), the Arabsphere, or the Arab states, comprises a large group of countries, mainly located in West Asia and North Africa. While the majority of people in ...

. Unlike her fellow singers from ''Mawahib'', who travelled to Egypt where voices from across the Arab world were welcomed to work with its leading composers and writers, Samih stayed in Morocco to pursue her career. Her Khaleeji song from Qatar, "Wagif Aala Babikom", was a huge success. Samih died on 8 March 2025, at the age of 72.وفاة الفنانة نعيمة سميح

References

External Links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Samih, Naima 1953 births 2025 deaths 20th-century Moroccan women singers Musicians from Casablanca