Arab Idol will reach its exciting conclusion in Friday's grand finale. Fans had to wait two years for this fourth season, but the long absence did nothing to dull the region's obsession with its favourite reality-TV talent show.
If the social-media chatter is anything to go by, Yacoub Shaheen is the hot favourite to follow in the footsteps of compatriot Mohammed Assaf, the winner of season 2 in 2013, and to become the second Palestinian to win the title.
Assaf’s win made headlines around the world. His subsequent rise to fame, including a film based on his life story, was unprecedented for a TV talent show in the Middle East.
Shaheen is one of three contestants who have reached the final of the competition, which is filmed at MBC’s studios in Beirut. He will face Ameer Dandan and Ammar Mohammed Alazaki during Friday’s live showdown.
Dandan also hails from Palestine, although his home is the US, where he is a student in New Jersey. Alazaki is from Yemen.
Shaheen grew up in Bethlehem. The Syriac-Palestinian, who is part of a small community of Assyrians, has become an audience favourite, thanks to his youth, polished good looks and soulful voice. He is musically educated and can also play the oud. He often appears wearing the Palestinian kaffiyeh tossed nonchalantly around his shoulders. He is, in short, the full package, and more than likely to be crowned the winner.
That is not to say that Dandan and Alazaki can be completely written off – they both boast powerful voices and significant talent. The judges – Emirati singer Ahlam, Lebanese singers Nancy Ajram and Wael Kfoury, and Egyptian producer Hassan El Shafei – have, in particular, compared Alazaki, who auditioned for the show in Dubai, with great Gulf talents such as Mohammed Abdo and Majed Al Mohandes.
Still, Shaheen has the upper hand, thanks to a winning formula that combines charisma with raw talent. Almost all his performances have earned standing ovations from both the audience and judges.
Kfoury told him after a recent performance: “You are a true singer, I get goosebumps when you sing, I will always come to hear you sing – I’ll be the first to buy a ticket to a concert of yours.”
El Shafei has also been vocal about his support of Shaheen, on and off screen. He tweeted: “Yacoub has some acquired qualities such as education, but that which comes naturally is that people love him. This is something that has no recipe in any book. My advice to him is that choice and decision making is the most important thing in his life right now.”
The songs Shaheen chooses for his final performances might seal his fate one way or the other. Will he go for a nationalistic approach and pick songs from Palestinian folklore? Will he stick to his winning streak of performing classic Arabic songs from the golden days? Either way, he is well on his way to fame, with an impressive fan base rooting for him from across the Arab world.
The Arab Idol winner's prize will include a chance to join the Arab world's biggest celebrities on the entertainment cruise ship Stars On Board, and a recording contract with Platinum Records. This year, they will also receive credit worth US$50,000 (Dh184,000) on hotel-booking website Yamsafer, which can be used at hotels worldwide.
• The Arab Idol finale is on MBC and MBC Masr, Friday, 10pm UAE time. Previous episodes from season 4 can be viewed on www.shahid.net
artslife@thenational.ae
