How Lebanese singer and fugitive Fadel Chaker keeps releasing songs while on the run

Despite a 22-year sentence, the crooner has retained a loyal fan base

Fadel Chaker remains musically active despite a 22-year prison sentence and life in hiding. AFP

Fadel Chaker's hit single Ahla Rasma raises as many questions as it answers.

The song – a lush ballad in the style he’s renowned for – reaffirms the timeless notion that love is best expressed without conditions. But that clarity doesn’t extend to his place in the Arabic music industry or his complex relationship with regional audiences.

Despite his undeniable appeal as a talented singer and composer, Chaker, 56, remains a convicted fugitive, with a 22-year prison sentence still in place.

That he continues to release music and enjoy regional acclaim while evading justice in Lebanon highlights both the fractures in Lebanese society and a disconnect between fans and the man behind the music.

Ahla Rasma continues Chaker’s return to the musical limelight, more than a decade after embracing a strictly conservative view of Islam that rejects popular music, which brought him into conflict with the Lebanese army.

Following his retirement in 2012, he adopted the name Hajj Chaker and pledged allegiance to Lebanese Sunni firebrand cleric Ahmed al-Assir – a move that led him to take up arms with supporters during the 2013 clashes against the Lebanese army that left 18 soldiers dead.

Chaker was later sentenced in absentia to 22 years of hard labour. The ruling remains unenforced, with Chaker reportedly still in hiding at the Ain al-Hilweh refugee camp.

Despite his confined circumstances, Chaker continues to release music to significant success. Ahla Rasma has already been streamed more than 40 million times since being released on YouTube in April. It follows a steady number of releases since his return to popular music after years spent exclusively recording Islamic hymns – a shift that began with 2018 comeback single Shab’an Min Al Tamtheel.

How does Chaker still release music?

Chaker’s growing playlist is made possible through geography and technology. He remains elusive in Ain al-Hilweh – a self-governed enclave inaccessible to Lebanese police and army due to a reportedly unofficial understanding stemming from the now-annulled 1969 Cairo Agreement between the Lebanese government and the Palestine Liberation Organisation.

When it comes to recording the songs themselves, Chaker provided insight into the process in a 2018 interview with website Arabic Post, in which he described recording Shab'an Min Al Tamtheel, the theme song for Egyptian television drama Ladina Aqwal Okhra, by having the song’s arrangements recorded abroad – in this case, Egypt – before being sent to him. Chaker would then add his vocals and send it back to the producers for mixing and mastering.

That straightforward approach is also reflected in Chaker’s music videos, which are often performance-based and shot in a studio space.

The songs’ presence on major streaming platforms – including Spotify and Apple Music – despite lacking a record label, suggests Chaker is using digital distribution services. Platforms such as DistroKid, TuneCore, or CD Baby enable independent artists to release music globally by providing proof of ownership. Chaker or his representatives have yet to make an official statement on which service he uses.

How has the response to Chaker's new music been?

Chaker’s re-emergence drew mixed reactions. While his comeback single Shab’an Min Al Tamtheel went regionally viral, the public backlash prompted Egyptian production company AG Group to remove the song from the television drama Ladina Aqwal Okhra.

Series creator Medhat El Adl later described the decision to use the track as an error of judgment, telling broadcaster Sada El Balad: “We didn’t study the legal standpoint regarding Fadel Chaker in Lebanon. We basically made our decision from a purely artistic perspective.”

The outcry had a chilling effect on the music industry, with peers rarely mentioning or expressing support for Chaker.

One notable exception was Egyptian singer Sherine Abdelwahab, whose controversial visit to Ain al-Hilweh in 2022 for an undisclosed meeting with Chaker led to her being summoned for questioning by Lebanese authorities, before being released without charge.

This year’s documentary series Ya Ghayeb … Fadel Chaker – featuring a sit-down interview in which Chaker tells his side of the story – was also met with ambivalent critical reception, with some critics accusing it of downplaying the crimes he stands convicted of.

All of this points to a career in limbo. Chaker’s return is neither a full-fledged comeback nor a rebranding. His songs are recorded in undisclosed locations and released without co-ordinated promotional efforts or supporting concerts.

While the appeal is undeniable, Chaker’s career and personal life remain stalled until his legal status is definitively resolved.