Shatha Hassoun facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Shatha Hassoun
Hassoun performing in 2021
Born	Shatha Amjad Al-Hassoun شذى أمجد الحسون (1981-03-03) 3 March 1981 (age 44) Casablanca, Morocco
Occupation	Singer, songwriter, dancer, musician, actress, writer
Years active	2007–present
Musical career
Genres	Iraqi music, Arabic, World
Labels	Rotana Music Group

Shatha Amjad Al-Hassoun (Arabic: شذى أمجد الحسون), known as Shatha Hassoun (Arabic: شذى حسون), is a singer from Morocco and Iraq. She was born on March 3, 1981, in Casablanca, Morocco. Shatha became very famous after winning the 4th season of the TV talent show Star Academy Arab World. She was the first Arab woman to win this competition.

Shatha is a popular singer across the Arab world. Many people call her the "daughter of Mesopotamia", which is an old name for the land where Iraq is today.

Early Life and Education

Shatha's father is a well-known Iraqi reporter. Her mother is Moroccan and teaches history. Shatha grew up spending her time between Morocco and France.

She studied English Literature in Casablanca. Later, she continued her studies in Tangier, where she learned about Hotel and Tourism Management. She then moved to France to finish her studies and earned her master's degree there.

Her family, including her parents and one brother, lives in Morocco. Shatha currently lives in Dubai.

Music Career

Shatha Hassoun is a talented singer who can perform in many languages. She sings in Arabic, English, French, Spanish, Italian, and German.

Winning Star Academy

Shatha took part in the fourth season of Star Academy Arab World. Even though she grew up in Morocco and had not visited Iraq before the show, she proudly represented her father's country. She sang classic Iraqi songs with a lot of emotion. This made her a symbol of national unity and pride for many Iraqis.

In 2007, Shatha won Star Academy 4, becoming the first female winner of the show. Her performance of Lebanese singer Fairouz's song "Baghdad" helped her reach the finals. She won the competition by getting 40 percent of the votes. It is said that about one out of every four Iraqis voted for her.

When she won, Shatha ran onto the stage in a blue sequin dress, crying tears of joy. She held a large Iraqi flag, and this moment became a famous image. It showed her as a symbol of Iraq.

After Star Academy

After winning Star Academy, Shatha released her first song called "Rooh". This song was written and composed by Nikola Saada Nikhla from Lebanon. It was the first song to reach number one on Rotana's PEPSI Top 20 charts. It stayed at number one for two weeks.

Her second big song was "Asmallah Asmallah" or "Ebin Bladi". The Iraqi poet Karim Al Iraqi wrote and composed it as a gift to the Iraqi people and their national football team. The team had won the Asian Cup in 2007. Some people even called this song "a second national anthem" for Iraq.

Shatha also sang "Oushaq", which was written and composed by Lebanese singer Marwan Khoury. She has also brought back several traditional Iraqi songs, like "Allela 7elowa" and "Aleik As'al", which she sang as a duet with Ilham al-Madfai.

She released another Iraqi song called "Mza'elni". She also sang "Lo alf mara,", which was the first song composed by Melhem Barakat for a singer who was not from Lebanon. Shatha has worked with many famous artists, including Karim Al Iraqi, Salah Al-Sharnoby, Ramy Ayach, Assi El Helani, Abadi Aljawher, and George Wassouf.

Acting Roles

Besides singing, Shatha Hassoun has also acted in a TV series. It was an Iraqi-Syrian-Egyptian show called Rasael Men Ragol Mayet (which means "Letters from a Dead Man"). She acted alongside Syrian actor Ghassan Masoud and many Iraqi actors.

The series talked about different issues in Iraqi society between 1979 and 2005. It was filmed in Syria and shown on Al-Baghdadia TV in 2008.

Concerts and Tours

In July 2009, Shatha achieved a big dream: she visited her home country's capital, Baghdad. She sang there in two large charity concerts for the children of Iraq. One concert was at the Al-elowea club, and the other was at the Hunting Club. She held a press conference in Baghdad and spoke about how happy she was to be among the Iraqi and Arab singers who visited Baghdad, even though the security situation was difficult at that time.

Shatha has toured and performed in many countries. These include North America, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Kuwait, Sweden, and Egypt. In 2010, she held a concert in Dubai with Fares Karam.

Commercials

Shatha Hassoun has also appeared in TV advertisements for the Iraqi mobile company, Zain.

• During Star Academy Arab 4, Shatha was named the "top 1 of the week" for being the best student. As a reward, she filmed a TV ad for a new SMS service from Zain (then called MTC Atheer). In the ad, she sang a traditional Iraqi song in a modern style with the famous Iraqi singer Ilham al-Madfai.
• After Shatha won Star Academy and the Iraqi national football team won the Asian Cup 2007, Zain worked with Shatha and three players from the team for another mobile ad. This ad was about hope for a new Iraq after its past challenges. It showed scenes of Reconstruction of Iraq and featured them performing the national anthem.

Awards

• 2007 Murex D'or Award – Best Uprising Artist
• 2008 DG Festival Award – Best Rising Female Singer
• 2008 Art Festival Award – Best Rising Female Singer
• 2009 Murex D'or Award

Music Releases

Singles

First Album (Wajh Thani)

Filmography

Television

• Rasael Men Ragol Mayet (Letters from a Dead Man) – 2008

See also

In Spanish: Shatha Hassoun para niños