Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
Lebanese singer Talia Lahoud has cast a spell on music lovers across the kingdom with her cover of Chris Isaak’s Wicked Game, and hopes to someday showcase her captivating sound in Bahrain.
According to Anghami, the Arab music streaming platform, the 19-year-old living in Batroun in the north of Lebanon is making her mark internationally – and in Bahrain – with her enchanting rendition of the 1998 single by the American rock star.
Her cover hit number one in the Bahrain Top Charts when it was released and is currently sitting pretty at number two on the Top International in Bahrain Charts as well as the Top International Daily Charts.
The song was number five on Anghami’s UAE charts and number one on international charts in six different Middle East and North Africa (Mena) countries.
“I never expected my first release to top the charts in different countries including Bahrain,” said the classically trained guitarist. “I’m honoured and grateful that I get to share my music with the world and I am happy that it’s being well received by listeners in your beautiful country.
“I have never been to Bahrain before but would love to visit and perform there as soon as I get a chance. I would also like to thank each and every one supporting my journey from Bahrain. I’m sending all my love to you, and can’t wait to see you and perform for you one day! I’d love to tour all Arab countries and hopefully it will be a reality soon.”
Talia has performed at weddings and public festivals in Lebanon as well as at the Dubai Metro Music Festival in 2019. She was also featured on MTV Lebanon’s programme, Alive, where she sang Wicked Game for the first time on TV.
“I chose to release an official cover of Wicked Game after having uploaded an acoustic cover of the song on YouTube, which received more than one million views,” she said.
“I also personally love the song and the meaning it holds – not wanting to fall in love with someone or something that will end up hurting you. I believe the lyrics relate to how I feel about Lebanon, at the moment, loving it so hard but at the same time feeling a sense of loss because of how rapidly it is deteriorating.”
Talia started taking music seriously at 13.
She took up oriental singing and guitar at her local music school and shortly after, started her own YouTube channel posting covers of popular Arabic, English and French songs.
She has garnered more than 276,000 subscribers on YouTube and 18,200 followers on Instagram. She has signed with Warner Chappell Music Publishing and is producing her debut EP with Los Angeles based label Nvak Collective, which uplifts female artists from around the world.
“I am working on my first EP, a project with four to six original songs in Arabic, English and French written by me and incredible collaborators like Lindsey Lomis and Paul Phamous,” added Talia.
“I’ve also written nearly 100 different original ideas and now it’s time to narrow down the most cohesive collections for my debut. It is set to be released in early 2022 through Nvak with another single or two being released before the end of the year. I’m excited for what the future holds!”
She will be releasing her first Arabic single in December.
For details, follow @talialahoud1 on Instagram and check out her Talia Lahoud YouTube channel.
