Baby names

Lebanese singer Dominique Hourani, who is married to an Austrian millionaire of Iranian origin, is spending more and more time in Europe. She was last seen in Monaco where she attended the Tennis Masters at Monte Carlo.

That day Dominique was wearing a turquoise dress that clearly showed her pregnancy. She told the press that she wants a baby girl and that her husband wants to name it after her. But Dominique did not agree. "We agreed that our daughter will bear the name of an oriental princess,'' Dominique said.

Due to the volatile situation in Beirut, Hourani will remain in Monaco for the time being. And she has a lot to do: she will attend the Cannes Festival and the Monte Carlo Formula 1 championship.

Dominique is also preparing a concert in Monaco to raise money for needy children in Lebanon.

Too sexy: Haifa ousted

Wehbe's Bahrain concert cancelled

Haifa Wehbe was due to sing in Bahrain, but the authorities cancelled her concert a few days before she arrived.
It is well known that the Lebanese singer is one of the sexiest women in the region and the Bahrain authorities feared reactions, even though Haifa promised to wear clothes that respect Bahraini traditions.

Before her concert was cancelled Haifa said that she was happy to go to Bahrain to meet its people.
"A lot of Lebanese singers have already been there and they loved the country,'' she said.

Haifa also said that she is an Arab artist coming from a Muslim background and she is keen on tradition too. In Bahrain Haifa was also scheduled to visit an orphanage.
Instead of going to Bahrain she went to Egypt to participate in the Cham Al Nassim festival, which marks the beginning of spring and which has been celebrated since the time of the Pharqohs.

Haifa sang for 25,000 people. She performed one of her new songs, Ya Habibi Ana (You are my darling), which will be released soon on her new CD.

Toufic joy

Walid's not shy of the limelight. Now he's showing off with a brand spanking new porsche

He has been in showbiz for more than 35 years, but he is still young. And he is proudly driving a brand new Porsche.
Lebanese singer Walid Toufic is still handsome. He has also preserved his voice and talent. This year he released a new CD. One of its songs, Ya Bahr (Oh Sea), was a hit. Walid just finished the shooting of a video for his single Ihsassi Lik (What I feel for you). Ihsassi Lik was written by Ahmad Shatta and the music was composed by Mohammad Yehia.
The shooting of the video clip, directed by famous artist Sa'id Marouk, took two days in Beirut.

Walid Toufic, who was recently the host of TV programme Enta Min (Who are you), talked about his new projects. He mentioned a movie in Egypt where he will play the role of the late singer Fareed Al Atrach.

Marwan on the rampage

Lebanese singer and composer Marwan Khoury, who released his album Ana Wal Leil (The night and I) a month ago, is depressed by the way production company Rotana is dealing with him. Rumour has it that Marwan even threatened to leave Rotana if things continued like this.

He had to organise, at his own expense, the launch of his new album. And he chose Melody Channel, Rotana's competitor, to announce the release of the new CD.
Marwan said that he intends to leave Rotana in order to produce his own singles and albums.

"What disturbs me most is that the budget shrinks when it comes to music videos. This situation makes me desperate,'' says the artist who is usually very discreet. The question is, what will Rotana's response be?

Assi Hallani grieving for father

Lebanese singer Assi Hallani, who was in France last week, had to cut short his trip to Europe and return to Lebanon when his father Mouzein died. Mouzein had been consumed in grief since the death of Assi's mother just 11 months ago. The funeral was attended by hundreds of people and took place in Assi's village in the Bekaa Valley.

Assi was due in Cairo for a charity event, but cancelled the performance.

Since the death of his mother Assi has been deeply saddened and it was obvious in the lyrics and tunes of his songs such as Bab am Yebki (A door crying) and Yemken (Maybe).

Saber's hot new video clip

Tunisian artist Saber Roubahi just finished the shooting of his new music video Khlouni (Let me). The song was written by Hatem Kizani, and its music was signed by Essam Shariati.

The video, shot in the desert on the border between Tunisia and Morocco, was directed by Lebanese artist Fady Haddad. The shooting, which took several days, shows romantic scenes in a hostile environment.

By Patricia Khoder, Gulf News Correspondent

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