Muhsin Jaber, owner of the music production company Alam Al Phan, had reopened negotionations with the business manager for Lebanese-Colombian pop singer Shakira Mebarak to hold concerts in Egypt this summer. Jaber had expressed his wishes to have Shakira take part in the big events in different tourist areas during the summer, which will include a large number of Arab singers, to celebrate the opening of his new music channel Mazzika.
According to the UAE based daily, Al Bayan, negotionations between the two sides had come to a temporary halt after Shakira had demanded a private plane to take her from London to Sharm El Sheikh and a wage of 750 thousand US dollars, not including the wages of the band and accommodations.
On his part Jaber renegotiated with Shakira a new offer for one million US dollars to hold four concerts in Egypt, in addition to give him full rights to market her albums around the Arab world. Shakira requested some time to rethink his offer over and discuss the issue with her consultants.
Shakira had also received another offer to sing in Lebanon and go back on her previous decision of canceling concerts. Shakira had revealed that she hopes to visit her home country soon and also wants some time to think about the possibility of holding concerts in Beirut.
The singer was previously scheduled to hold concert in Tunisia this month and in Morocco in June. Shakira was to hold performances in Casablanca, Rabat, and possibly a third Moroccan city. Organizers for the big event were trying to complete all necessary procedures in secrecy not wanting to reveal any additional information until everything is finalized.
Shakira had previously announced on live TV that she will go on a Middle East tour and had signed a contract to hold three concerts in Egypt at the Light and Sound Theater. The singer had also sent a crew of sound specialists to study the taste of the Egyptian population so as to know what type of songs to perform.
Multicultural Shakira is one of a growing number of Latin American singers making a splash on the US pop charts. Her latest album, "Laundry Service," has sales approaching 10 million albums worldwide. Her music combines rock, pop, Latin and Arabic sounds. Shakira also plays guitar and writes most of her songs, which allows her to control its content and style, something she is very keen on. – Albawaba.com
