Lebanese singer Nancy Ajram has won the Golden Lion Award by the Egyptian magazine "Huriyati" for the best Female Arab singer for the year 2003. Mohammad Nour El Din, chief editor of the magazine, personally presented Nancy with the award and stressed that she has deserved it through her hard work and her genuine talent to sing.
According to the Egyptian based daily, Al Gomhouria, Nancy expressed her honor at receiving the award and stated that she is grateful to all Egyptians for making her path a successful one. After giving a word of thanks to the organizers of the event, Nancy stood on stage and performed a number of her popular songs that witnessed success in Egypt and the Arab world.
The magazine had also presented Lebanese singer Ragheb Alama with the Golden Lion Award from Egyptian journalist Samir Ragab for the best Arab singer for the year 2003. The singer was given the award at a big celebration that was held specifically for the occasion in which he expressed his honor at receiving the award stressing that it marks a step forward in his career. The singer sang a number of new and old songs as a way of showing his appreciation to the organizers of the big event.
Jiji Lamara, the business manager of Lebanese singer Nancy Ajram, has revealed that Nancy will be holding a live performance in Bahrain on the third day of Eid (Muslim holiday). Jiji added that despite the commotion that was caused by Islamist members of Parliament from her first performance in Bahrain, Nancy has been invited once more showing the extent of popularity she has achieved.
Jiji did not reveal the identity of the sponsor of the event that will host Nancy, but noted that he and Nancy consider Bahrain as their second home and he intends on arranging a number of concerts for Nancy in some of the neighboring Gulf countries in the very near future.
A Bahraini criminal court released 10 citizens who were being held in prison for holding riots over Ajram’s concert that took place last month. Protests were held by individuals who were against having Nancy sing in their country stressing that she should not have been allowed to enter.
Police forces had captivated dozens of citizens between the ages of 16 and 25, who were holding protests right before Nancy’s concert in Manama. Protesters also attempted to block all streets that lead to the arena where Nancy was performing trying to stop people from going, but they were faced with tear gas thrown at them by Bahraini police.
The riots occurred after a Bahraini parliament official with the support of his colleagues submitted an urgent request to be presented at their next session calling for the banning of Ajram. The request specifically stated that Nancy should be forbidden from entering Bahrain and disqualified from participating in a musical event.
The parliament official, who belongs to an Islamists party, revealed that he had contacted the Ministry of Information, which is responsible for giving permission to companies wishing to hold entertainment activities, specifically stating that Parliament will not allow for the company to hold its scheduled activities unless they disallow Nancy to take part in their events. –Albawaba.com
