Lebanese singer Fadel Shaker has been enjoying a huge success with the release of his latest album "Ya Ghaib" (Far Away) despite the disputes he encountered regarding his latest singles. The songs "Dihkit El Dunia" (A World's Smile) and "Ma'akoul" (Could It Be True) have reached top spot in most music charts around the Arab world despite the fact that they were illegitimately released disregarding the conditions of his contract with the record company Rotana.
According to the London based Elaph, Rotana disregarded the fact that Fadel released two of his songs without their permission and decided to renew his contract noting that it would be a great loss for them if he was did not join with them. With regards to Fadel, the singer did not feel that he had committed a mistake saying that Rotana has failed in the past to live up to the conditions in the contract when they delayed one of his releases.
Rotana decided to void the previous contract with Fadel and created a new one in which it stated full commitment for the upcoming album of the singer without delay. The new contract was signed in the UAE where Fadel took part at the Ain Festival and held a concert.
Late last month, poet Turkey Bin Abdul Rahman Al Sidari filed a lawsuit against Rotana for the distribution of “Ya Ghaib” (Away) and (Dihkit El Dunia” (A World’s Smile) written by him without buying their copyrights. Turkey was in shock when the songs were released without any prior agreement to buy the rights to. The poet demanded one million Saudi Riyals in compensation from Rotana for neglecting to include his name in the album as the writer of the songs and distributing them without his knowledge.
His popularity drove a number of devoted fans to create a website that featured news, latest events, photographs, and a personal email for the singer where people can contact him directly. The singer’s sudden rise in popularity drove a number of sponsors for festivals around the Arab world to request his appearance.
Fadel is scheduled to go on a European tour holding concerts in France, Germany and Denmark. –Albawaba.com
© 2003 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
