Lebanese singer Alissa has been officially banned from all Egyptian local and satellite TV stations after the release of her last hit single "Agmal Ihsas" (The Best Feeling). The Egyptian Censors have reached their decision after they felt that Alissa's latest video clip is unfit for Arab viewers due to the intimate scenes it contains.
According to the Saudi based daily, Al Watan, most Lebanese TV stations have also banned Alissa's clip from being aired saying that the singer has gone too far, and has requested that any station that does air her song should specify that the song is only to be viewed by adults.
A number of Lebanese newspapers have described Alissa, Nancy Ajram, and Haifa Wahbi as being overly undignified, in addition to giving the Lebanese song a bad image. It was added that these singers have drifted too far from the traditional Middle Eastern way, and blame was placed on the director Salim Turk who is the one behind producing such music videos.
The Arabic Song festival in Tunisia has described these types of videos as abusing a woman's body and using it to bring in as much hits as possible. The festival has also stressed that it refuses to award any singer who displays such indecency and will only give prizes to those who deserve it.
Alissa revealed that the song holds a special place in her heart and ever since she released her album, she had always wanted to make a music video of it. She added that the song had witnessed a huge success with the release of the album and now with the music video it is surely to gain much more popularity among listeners, in turn adding to her own success as a singer.
All her positive features and characteristics were displayed in the new music video where Alissa played the role of a woman madly in love with a man, French model Emanuel Bordalini, who shares the same feelings about her. The couple portray lots of love, caring, affections, and honesty in their relationship that is full of laughter and tenderness. Throughout the video, the couple display a kind of bond that is shared by a married one, in which they act out kissing scenes to show the closeness between them. Despite expected criticism that may rise from the kissing scenes, the director, Salim Turk, felt it necessary to be included to add to the genuine aspect of the video.
The new video marks the first time throughout her career that Alissa takes on the role of a married woman, an experience she revealed as intriguing. Turk said that the audience is in for a real surprise with an extremely romantic love story of a married couple, who show the world what the meaning of love is. Turk added that was very happy that this video marked the first time he directs an extremely romantic music video.
Alissa stressed that she does not attempt to be seductive in her music videos but she is rather a very daring person unlike other singers who try and imitate her movements with the goal of seducing their audience. With regards to Lebanese singer Ragheb Alama's comments on how he was the main reason behind her popularity after their duet "Bitgheeb Bitrooh" (You Go and You Return), Alissa said that she benefited from her experience with him, but it was her commitment to her career that made her known. She added that he has the right not to want to work with her, but what matters is that her audience recognizes her as a singer. –Albawaba.com
© 2003 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
