Al Bawaba
The final show-down for Arab Idol was not without all the drama and Arab sentiment that such a show fittingly warrants.
The Egyptian young thing, Carmen Suleiman won, in a crowd-pleasing moment of both Arab classic Egyptian pride star-factor as well the feel-good fever on the back of the heady 2011 Egyptian revolution affair.
The show was not free of the usual controversies that surround reality TV and talent shows these days. For the Arab version of things, this translated into religious debate over the word idol or concept of idolatry, as well as a touch of corruption amid rumors of vote-tampering.Egyptian contestant Carmen Sulaiman has won the title of Arab Idol.
The final sing-off between Egypt and Morocco left the Moroccan finalist Dunia Batma in a ‘close’ second place.
The finale proved to be certainly a night to remember, in an Arab Idol first season full of nuggets and gems.
The guest was Tunisian singer Latifa.
The talk of the evening was the exclusive performances of both Arab stars Ragheb Alamah and Ahlam with the lucky final pair. This judge-contestant mixing was the main attraction of last night’s finale as the lucky girls got to duet with the non-judgmental stars. Dunia paired up wtih Ahlam, while Carmen got Ragheb Alameh to herself.
Old ongoing stories from the show such as the debate over why Yousef Arafat sobbed to the tune of his own voice and millions of curious viewers, did not die a death, just because the show had come to an end.
Other controversy surrounding the show involved the contestants own ‘professional’ backgrounds. Questions of to what extent they may have been involved in previous talent shows, or more, and that these did not qualify as amateurs in the field of music were rife.
– Youssef Arafat has been on Taratata, which is a talent singing show on Dubai TV.
– Dunia Batma has released a cassette tape and music video in her native Morocco.
– Carmen Slaiman has been in previous singing competitions, including one for opera singers. She has performed concerts and such before.
There were additional nice touches: The Tunisian cutie with the nice smile made a comeback. Since he was an early on favorite, it was a nice sentiment. It got the show to nice end.
Still the show was left hanging on a bitter-sweet note. Dunia left her share – wider afield than the North African continent – of heartbreak. She was a really popular bet, and most of the comments on the slideshow were about her. Not to mention that she had to endure so much as she got sick on the show a couple of weeks ago and persisted until the end.
Still, it would seem that her contender had more idol-factor for the sprawling Arab world, as winner Carmen Suleiman won the night and the Arab hearts. A round-up of the best bits in pictures.
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