After months of ongoing disputes, a Lebanese Court for Immediate Matters has released a verdict banning the broadcasting of Tunisian singer Saber Ruba’ee song “Athada Al Alam” (I Dare the World), composed by Khaled Bakri.
The court’s order specifically stated that Rotana Music Production cease promoting the song.
According to Al Raya, the Qatar based daily, Al Raya, it appeared that the musical score for the song was copied from the song “Maria,” by Lebanese composer Elias Rahbani.
Rahbani accused Bakri of stealing his composition, making only minor alterations to his original score to make it appear his own. Elias initially tried to settle the copyright dispute out of court, but when he confronted Khaled, he denied all allegations.
Hence, Elias filed suit against him, and the court ruled overwhelmingly in his favor.
Al Ruba’ee recently released the song “Izzet Nafsi” (My Pride) in Beirut, which has witnessed great success. Saber attributes this success to the song’s subject matter, which addresses the issue of pride and how it does not allow people to forget the pain inflicted by others, particularly by a lover.
Saber revealed that the director, Waleed Nasef, has chosen a completely new idea for the music video and the perfect location. The song, written by Nizar Francis and composed by Saber himself, is sung in the Lebanese dialect.
