Abeer Nehme on Billboard Arabia’s Cover: A Voice Guided by Feeling
Categoria: Musica
The Lebanese star opens up about her artistic journey, from childhood to the height of her stardom.
Por Billboard | 08/05/2026
I first discovered Abeer Nehme through her music nearly 20 years ago. I met her in person only 24 hours before our Billboard Arabia cover interview, and it didn’t take long to realize the artist and the person were inseparable, that I was sitting across from someone who had made music not just her profession, but her identity and entire way of life. I had been anticipating this interview for more than a year, replaying countless conversations in my head: all the things I hoped to ask an artist like her. For months, I drove around listening almost obsessively to the live album from her Cairo Opera House concert, a performance filled with some of my favorite songs in her voice. I imagined asking why she chose to open the night with “Wainak,” (Where Are You?) whether she worked closely with the musicians on the orchestral reinterpretation of “Wadda’t El Leil” (I bid farewell to the long night) or what it felt like to perform the operatic section of “Ghani Qalilan Ya Asafir” (Sing a Little, O Birds), the song that ultimately convinced me Abeer truly is the songbird of Arabic music. But when the moment finally arrived and I watched her walk into the room, I decided not to tell her any of that. Not about the songs, the admiration, or the first time I heard her voice. I chose instead to do my job as professionally as possible, and let her tell her story in her own words. Abeer agreed to meet at a small café someone had recommended to her. She arrived on time and still apologized repeatedly. She gave everyone in the room her full attention, asking thoughtful questions, listening carefully, studying each of us as though she wanted to make sure whatever she was about to share would land on receptive ears. An hour later, I realized I — the interviewer — had spoken about myself far more than she had. Long before she had hit songs or charting albums of her own, Abeer Nehme was already a voice recognized across the Arab world, from the Levant to the Gulf and North Africa. Not in the sense of mainstream celebrity, but as an exceptional vocalist admired by musicians, composers and listeners drawn to depth and craftsmanship. She first appeared publicly through a talent show, though by then she was already immersed in formal academic music studies. She lent her voice to projects by Charbel Rouhana, Marcel Khalife and Jean-Marie Riachi, and spent years performing classical Arabic repertoire and tarab reinterpretations for audiences around the world. She also traveled to unconventional destinations for music research and archival work. Then, slowly, the butterfly emerged from the cocoon. In recent years, Abeer stepped in front of that same audience as a fully realized pop star, and her biggest breakthrough arrived just as she entered her forties. Late-blooming success is not unheard of in Arabic music, but what makes Abeer’s story different is that the delay was intentional. “I don’t believe in instant fame,” she tells Billboard Arabia. “I was working on