By Arwad Khalifeh
Earlier this year, I wrote about the hilarious "Arab Adele" page on Facebook.
The parody page's admin imagines how British superstar Adele would narrate her life if she were Arab, and presents it to the cyber world in a series of comical vids and photos.
If you're still living under a rock and haven't uncovered this Adele-9Gag-style gem yet, then you must immediately go on Facebook and binge scroll through her material!
While Arab Adele proved to be just like marmite - you either love it or hate - we sure lurrrve the anonymous genius behind this page.
But what has Adeela (as she refers to herself in Arabic) got to say about her success story? I spoke to "her" about how it all started, her future plans and her message to the real Adele.
How did u come up with the idea?
I came up with the idea after Adele released her comeback single "Hello." I said to myself "what if we had a Middle Eastern Adele. What would she have said about our issues and her fellow Arab singers and the lamentable state of Arab music?"
Why Adele?
Something in her behavior and personality is Middle Eastern and reminds me of Umm Kulthum. Plus, I'm a big fan of her voice and songs and her non-conformist attitude. She sings ballads while everyone else is into dance and RnB music.
Did you expect a positive feedback?
I didn't expect any feedback at all. I started it for fun and as a joke with a few friends of mine, but then word of mouth gradually brought the page more followers with time.
How many followers did you expect to have in the first year?
I don't really project myself in the future and just take it day by day. When it started gaining followers i said to myself "10000 followers would be nice," but then it kept on growing and growing.
Will you reveal the face behind the page?
I don't think I will ever reveal who I am. I prefer to continue having a normal life and not being recognized as the "Adeela guy" when I'm out on the streets.
Plus it's safer this way since the obsessive behavior from people regarding Adeela has increased a lot in recent times.
Does your family know that you're the person behind the page?
Only my niece to whom I'm very close to knows that I'm behind this page, and I intend to keep it this way.
What else do you think you can do to take the page to the next level and make it even funnier?
Again I'm not a planner and I make my posts depending on my mood and my inspiration.
What do you think Adele would say if she saw your page?
I don't think Adele would understand a thing since it's mostly in Arabic, but I'm sure she would have a good laugh since she's a cool girl.
Do you have plans to create more pages dedicated to other celebrities in the same way?
I don't have time for other pages and I guess the concept wouldn't work with other artists 'cos Adele is special.
A message to your fans?
I'd like to thank my fans for their support and kind messages that I receive on the page daily. Love you all.
A message to your haters?
As for my haters... I don't understand why someone would spread hate on a parody page made for fun. Maybe they should take things less seriously. Or maybe it's their jealousy from my success that's making them hateful.
A message to Adele?
I'm sorry if people from the Middle East see you nowadays more as Adeela than Adele, but I don't think that Adeela is bad for your image and fame at all.
