Lebanese dance troupe Mayyas captured the world's attention when they wowed the America's Got Talent judges during the auditions phase.
Modern Family actress Sofia Vergara — a judge on the show alongside Simon Cowell, Heidi Klum and Howie Mandel — was so stunned she pressed her golden buzzer, giving them a fast track to the live shows. Each judge has one golden buzzer to use in the series.
The crew, founded in Beirut by Nadim Cherfan, is now set to perform during the semifinals on September 6, and ahead of their appearance, a campaign has been created to support them.
The Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation International, better known as LBCI, has launched Kermalak Ya Lebnen — For You Lebanon, a campaign from inside America aimed at Lebanese and Arab expatriates living in the US who are eligible to vote for acts performing on the show.
With this, the LBCI has created a variety of promotional adverts that are being shared on television, YouTube and via social media platforms. In the clips, the women that form the group introduce themselves and show off some of their moves.
LBCI hopes the campaign will increase Mayyas's chances of winning, a triumph that will serve "as a message of hope and faith in Lebanon rising again", according to a statement.
Voting is only open to people aged 13 and above living in the US, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, via the America's Got Talent app and website.
Voters will also be able to participate in the Final Wildcard Save, which allows viewers, in real-time, to save one of the acts in danger of being eliminated during the live broadcast of the results show on September 7. This "saving period" will last for about five minutes from the time the start of saving is announced, around 7pm Central Time. Only one vote per email address is allowed during this time.
The story of Mayyas on the world's stage
Cherfan, who is the Mayyas's choreographer, started dancing aged 14 and attended workshops in the UK, the US and India. He launched his own dance classes in studios around the Lebanese capital in 2012, before forming the Mayyas.
In 2019, the group appeared on the sixth season of Arabs Got Talent and went on to win the series. In the same year, they participated in Britain's Got Talent: The Champions, an international spin-off of the talent show on UK TV.
Appearing on America's Got Talent, the group now have their sights set on winning the coveted $1 million prize. Their 2019 Arabs Got Talent win came with a new car and a 200,000 Saudi riyal ($53,333) cash prize.
Watch Mayyas' full America's Got Talent audition here
Despite not making it past the semifinal on Britain's Got Talent: The Champions, Cowell — a judge on both shows — described the act as "genius" and his fellow judge, English comedian David Walliams, said: "It was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. This is one of those acts where it only works if every one of you is doing their piece perfectly and every one of you did.”
When asked on America's Got Talent about their dream, they said that being there "on the biggest stage in the world" is their "only chance to prove to the world what Arab women can do, the art we can create, the fights we fight".
Wearing black bedlah-style attire, the group performed to a medley of Arabic melodies.
As they finished, the company received a standing ovation from all four judges and the audience members, with host Terry Crews and Cherfan cheering in the wings.
"There are no words to explain to you what we were feeling over here," says Vergara. "It was the most beautiful, creative dancing I have ever seen."
"This really, really will make a difference. Full stop," said Cowell, who described the performance as "arguably, the best dance act we are likely to have ever seen".
As she hits the golden buzzer, Vergara says she would be "so honoured to empower [the dancers] even more".
Teaching in coronavirus times
The specs: 2018 Mercedes-AMG C63 S Cabriolet
Price, base: Dh429,090
Engine 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission Seven-speed automatic
Power 510hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque 700Nm @ 1,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 9.2L / 100km
TOUR DE FRANCE INFO
Dates: July 1-23
Distance: 3,540km
Stages: 21
Number of teams: 22
Number of riders: 198
The major Hashd factions linked to Iran:
Badr Organisation: Seen as the most militarily capable faction in the Hashd. Iraqi Shiite exiles opposed to Saddam Hussein set up the group in Tehran in the early 1980s as the Badr Corps under the supervision of the Iran Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC). The militia exalts Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei but intermittently cooperated with the US military.
Saraya Al Salam (Peace Brigade): Comprised of former members of the officially defunct Mahdi Army, a militia that was commanded by Iraqi cleric Moqtada Al Sadr and fought US and Iraqi government and other forces between 2004 and 2008. As part of a political overhaul aimed as casting Mr Al Sadr as a more nationalist and less sectarian figure, the cleric formed Saraya Al Salam in 2014. The group’s relations with Iran has been volatile.
Kataeb Hezbollah: The group, which is fighting on behalf of the Bashar Al Assad government in Syria, traces its origins to attacks on US forces in Iraq in 2004 and adopts a tough stance against Washington, calling the United States “the enemy of humanity”.
Asaeb Ahl Al Haq: An offshoot of the Mahdi Army active in Syria. Asaeb Ahl Al Haq’s leader Qais al Khazali was a student of Mr Al Moqtada’s late father Mohammed Sadeq Al Sadr, a prominent Shiite cleric who was killed during Saddam Hussein’s rule.
Harakat Hezbollah Al Nujaba: Formed in 2013 to fight alongside Mr Al Assad’s loyalists in Syria before joining the Hashd. The group is seen as among the most ideological and sectarian-driven Hashd militias in Syria and is the major recruiter of foreign fighters to Syria.
Saraya Al Khorasani: The ICRG formed Saraya Al Khorasani in the mid-1990s and the group is seen as the most ideologically attached to Iran among Tehran’s satellites in Iraq.
(Source: The Wilson Centre, the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation)
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
THE TWIN BIO
Their favourite city: Dubai
Their favourite food: Khaleeji
Their favourite past-time : walking on the beach
Their favorite quote: ‘we rise by lifting others’ by Robert Ingersoll
The%20specs
%3Cp%3E%0D%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E4.0-litre%20twin-turbo%20V8%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E666hp%20at%206%2C000rpm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E850Nm%20at%202%2C300-4%2C500rpm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E8-speed%20auto%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EQ1%202023%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Efrom%20Dh1.15%20million%20(estimate)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
COMPANY PROFILE
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
The story in numbers
18
This is how many recognised sects Lebanon is home to, along with about four million citizens
450,000
More than this many Palestinian refugees are registered with UNRWA in Lebanon, with about 45 per cent of them living in the country’s 12 refugee camps
1.5 million
There are just under 1 million Syrian refugees registered with the UN, although the government puts the figure upwards of 1.5m
73
The percentage of stateless people in Lebanon, who are not of Palestinian origin, born to a Lebanese mother, according to a 2012-2013 study by human rights organisation Frontiers Ruwad Association
18,000
The number of marriages recorded between Lebanese women and foreigners between the years 1995 and 2008, according to a 2009 study backed by the UN Development Programme
77,400
The number of people believed to be affected by the current nationality law, according to the 2009 UN study
4,926
This is how many Lebanese-Palestinian households there were in Lebanon in 2016, according to a census by the Lebanese-Palestinian dialogue committee
Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021
Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.
The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.
These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.
“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.
“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.
“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.
“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”
Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.
There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.
“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.
“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.
“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”
TV: World Cup Qualifier 2018 matches will be aired on on OSN Sports HD Cricket channel