Latest gossip from the Arab world

Amal's change of tack This year is going to be exciting for Amal Maher. Following a successful comeback late last year, there's plenty in store for the Egyptian singer, with a new single and music video out this month and plenty of shows coming up. The 27-year-old first burst on to the music scene in 2006 after making a name for herself in the Egyptian opera circle thanks to her powerful renditions of Umm Kulthoum songs. In fact, it was her husband, Mohammad Diae, who gave her the opportunity to record Ely Binak W Binha, which became a huge hit and Amal's debut album Isa'lni Ana followed shortly after that. Six years on and the singer is now promoting her second album release Aaraf Meneen. The first single of the album, Rayeh Fein Beya, hit the top 10 and its video, which was shot in Turkey and directed by Sherif Sabry, saw Amal sport a brand new look, a far cry from her opera singer looks of previous years. Here she talks to tabloid! about what's coming up for her. You've received positive reviews for your latest album, and you're now in the process of releasing the second single/music video. Have you decided which track you are going for? Yes, after a lot of debate, I decided to take the opinions of my fans online and the majority chose Inti'ey Rabena Feya, so we decided to go with that one. It's a song close to my heart, and I really do love it. I am immensely proud of the whole album so I am happy with the decision. Is it true that you performed two concerts on New Year's Eve? Yes, I performed a couple of NYE shows in Egypt. I love singing for my Egyptian fans because Egypt is close to my heart. I think being booked for two shows really shows how well my fans are receiving my second album. You had been absent from the live scene for a while. Were you just busy recording? Well, the main reason is because I owned very few songs, so I couldn't really perform a whole show. The beauty of my previous career is that I used to sing songs by the legendary Umm Kuthoum. Now it is a little different. But now I have more songs thanks to the new album, therefore I can appeal more to general audiences. During your absence, you cut ties with Alam Al Fann, but now you are back with the production company. What happened? I didn't leave Alam Al Fann due to problems. I just left because I had some conflicting views with some members of the team. But I never cut ties with [producer] Mohsen Gaber. I always used to consult him when choosing songs. So after a while I returned. It was hard to leave him. He was the first producer to introduce me to the people who are now my fans. You've gone from local opera singer to a star that's recognised all over the Arab world. Do you feel you have changed in any way? Did you have difficulty in adapting to the change at all? Well, first of all I needed to change the way I recorded. I needed fresh new material in order to appeal to a wider audience. Personally, I also have changed in many ways ever since I started out. Experience has made me change the way I work, and it has changed parts of my personality. I benefited from the experience of course — whether good or bad. I've also developed a thick skin, because I learned that this industry is tough. I used to make decisions quickly, but experience has taught me to think things through thoroughly. I think this is something every adult experiences as they mature. "My husband has asked me to get breast implants. He has also told me that as I get older, I should consider getting some work done [on my face]." Fans hit out at tamer Not content with alienating enough fans last year, Egyptian singer Tamer Hosny has kicked off 2012 by releasing a duet with Shaggy that has left the majority of Hosny's remaining fans confused. The music video for the duet Smile (above), which was filmed in New York, was released exclusively on Hosny's official page on YouTube earlier this week prompting a large number of viewers to hit out at the star. "Why is he trying to be all foreign? He doesn't know how to speak English properly, so why is he singing in English?" one fan commented on Facebook, while another said: "Stop trying to be something you're not!" Meanwhile, a number of groups on the social networking site have already posted parodies of the song and video. Interestingly, negative comments left on Hosny's YouTube page seem to disappear shortly after being posted. Hosny outraged fans last year by pledging support for former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak before visiting Tahrir Square for what was dubbed PR damage control. Since then, the singer has failed to achieve his usual success with his latest album underperforming and his latest film Omar w Salma 3 put on hold. However, it's not all bad news. Smile had already received 900,000 hits on YouTube at the time of going to print, meaning it could become the most watched Arab video of 2012 so far. Rania gets hitched Rania Yousuf has confirmed she has got married four months after her divorce from her previous husband. The Egyptian actress, currently featuring in the film Wahed Saheeh along Hani Salama, told Arab media she enjoyed a private wedding ceremony with friends and family. She told MBC.net, "I am very much in love, and happy with my new husband. He treats me and my two daughters with love and affection. "The way he treated my daughters was what was most important to me." Rania was previously married to Egyptian producer Mohammad Mukhtar.