The Return of Angham

I came across the work of Angham in the search for a voice that captured the Egyptian spirit for a project in 2002.  This was undertaken for the the Grand Egyptian Musem project, then supported by funding from the United Nations.  Her personal history is fraught with many musical struggles but her voice speaks richly about the contemporary soul of Egyptian music.  It's still a delight to listen to even if I don't know the words...  RG

Angham (born January 19, 1970) is an Egyptian singer, record producer and actress. Her debut was in 1987 under the guidance of her father, Mohammad Suleiman. She is the most successful vocal female artist in Egypt starting from the 1980s till nowadays. Following her divorce from Magdy Aref in 2000, Angham took much more control over her image and musical style after that Leih Sebtaha (Why Did You Leave Her) record established her into a strong position amid the constant emerge of new voices in the Middle East music scene. After a highly publicized feud between Alam elPhan Music Records president Mohsen Gaber and the artist [1], Angham moved to another record company, Rotana. In 2005, she released "Bahibbik Wahashteeny" (I Love You, I Miss You) record . The record was critically acclaimed, but commercially was not as expected. After a three years, Angham return to the forefront of Arabic pop music in 2007 with her hit record Kolma Narrab (Whenever We Come Closer) which sold more than half a million CD across the Middle East in less than three months and was awarded a platinum certification.

From Wikipedia:
Angham Mohamed Ali Suleiman (Arabic: أنغام محمد علي سليمان‎) (born January 19, 1972) is an Egyptian singer, record producer and actress. Her debut was in 1987 under the guidance of her father, Mohammad Suleiman. She is the most successful vocal female artist in Egypt starting from the 1980s till nowadays. Following her divorce from Magdy Aref in 2000, Angham took much more control over her image and musical style after that Leih Sebtaha (Why Did You Leave Her) record established her into a strong position amid the constant emerge of new voices in the Middle East music scene. After a highly publicized feud between Alam El Phan Music Records' president Mohsen Gaber and the artist [1], Angham moved to another record company, Rotana. In 2005, she released "Bahibbik Wahashteeny" (I Love You, I Miss You) record [2]. The record was critically acclaimed, but commercially was not as expected. After a three years, Angham return to the forefront of Arabic pop music in 2007 with her album Kolma N'arrab (Whenever We Come Closer) which sold more than half a million CDs across the Middle East in less than three months and was awarded a platinum certification. [3]
Angham was named the best selling female pop artist in Middle East for the years 2000, 2001 [4], 2003, and 2007 [5]. She is well known for her vocal range, simplicity, melismatic style, and use of the whistle register. However, some critics have said Angham's efforts to showcase her vocal talents have been at the expense of communicating true emotion through song rather than showing her full vocal capacities.^{[citation needed]}