Search
UrFilez News Updates
  • New music coming up..stay tuned
  • RAMADAN KAREEM!!
  • Ramadan Mubarak
 
Wadie El Safi
Wadie El Safi: 3554
Wadih El Safi (born Wadih Francis in Niha, Lebanon, in 1921) is an Lebanese singer, songwriter, and actor. He is a Lebanese cultural icon, and is often called the "Voice of Lebanon".

Wadih El Safi started his artistic journey at the early age of seventeen when he took part in a singing contest held by the Lebanese Radio and was first among fifty other competitors. He was named then the first singer of Lebanon El Safi is a classically trained tenor, having studied at the Beirut National Conservatory of Music.

He became nationally known when, at seventeen, he won a vocal competition sponsored by the Lebanese Broadcasting Network. El Safi began composing and performing songs that drew upon his rural upbringing and love of traditional melodies, blended with an urban sound, and creating a new style of modernized Lebanese folk music. He performed in venues throughout the Middle East.

In 1947, El Safi traveled to Brazil, where he remained until 1950. After his return to Lebanon, El Safi continued to develop folk music and chose poetry and zajal to inspire patriotism and focus on love, devotion, morals and values. El Safi toured the world, singing in many languages, including Arabic, French, Portuguese and Italian.

He took part in major international festivals and earned many high distinction honors in Lebanon, Tunisia, Jordan, Yemen, Morocco, Syria, Mascat and France. He spent some time acting as well, playing in the 1966 Lebanese film "Mawal". In the spring of 1973 El Safi recorded and released a vinyl single with the songs "Grishlah Idi" and "Iman Ya Zawna", both in Assyrian. The music arrangements were done by Nuri Iskandar and the songs were produced especially for the Assyrian UNESCO Festival, which occurred in Beirut at that time where El Safi participated as a singer.

El Safi was awarded a doctorate honoris causa from the Holy Spirit University of Kaslik.
Overall rating:
Your rating:
Facebook Twitter MySpace delicious Urfilez

Artist highlights

What others think about this Artist