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Lydia Canaan ليديا كنعان | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | Angel |
| Born | Lydia Kanaan (1967-12-02)December 2, 1967 (age 57) Brummana, Lebanon |
| Origin | Lebanese |
| Genres | Pop,Heavy metal |
| Occupation | Singer-songwriter |
| Instrument | Vocals (mezzo-soprano) |
| Years active | 1984–2001 |
Spouse | Thomas Vitins (m. 1993) |
Lydia Canaan (Arabic:ليديا كنعان; born December 2, 1967) is aLebanese singer-songwriter.
Canaan gained local recognition in Lebanon performingheavy metal cover songs during theLebanese Civil War despite the conflict.[1] Canaan was one of the firstMiddle Eastern artists to sing solely in English,[2][failed verification] and one of the first to have music videos played onMTV Europe,MTV Southeast Asia,MTV Russia, andMTV Middle East.[3][4][5]
Born and raised inBrummana, Lebanon during the Lebanese Civil War to aGreek Orthodox family,[citation needed] Canaan studied atBrummana High School (BHS).[1] From a young age singing, lyrical composition, and dancing served as anoutlet andcatharsis for Canaan.[citation needed] Canaan's parents discouraged her from singing heavy metal and forbid her to have amusical education orformal training.[citation needed] As reported by the newspaperCampus, "For Lydia Canaan's first gig, she had to throw her trademark short rockish black leather skirt and studs out of her bedroom window in Brummana, put on a long skirt, lie to her conservative father about where she was going, and, after changing into her leather gear, singing her teenage heart out as Angel with the band Equation".[6]
In 1984, Canaan—under the stage nameAngel—joined theheavy metal band Equation,[1] who until then had been intent on finding a male lead singer. Canaan's talent, personality, and stage presence gained hernational popularity amongLebanese youth.[7][3] The same year, she donned what would become her trademark, trend-setting look: revealing, studded leather outfits with dramatic capes and hip-length blonde-streaked hair.[3][6] Off stage, Canaan's Alma Mater,Brummana High School (BHS), voted her "Best Dressed". On stage, her provocative costumes contributed to the perception of her as asex symbol.[3][6]The Daily Star wrote: "On stage, with her daring looks and style, Canaan became a role model".[3] At the height of their success the band drew a crowd of over 15,000.[1] Canaan's first original composition, "Why All The Hurt", a tribute to a deceased friend that she wrote as a teenager, was a No. 1 hit on the radio charts in Lebanon.[3]
Following Canaan's first concert with Equation, aThe Gulf Today writer noted: "the first show produced a phenomenal reaction . . . It is incredible that amidst the state of civil war that existed in Lebanon at that time when most people had no idea if they would see another day she managed to keep her ambitions alive".[1]Society magazine stated: "tickets were sold out but more teenagers stormed in to see the young Angel perform... To accommodate the crowd concert organizers had to stamp on each fan's hand as they ran out of tickets. It was... her first success".[8]
Since her first public appearance, Canaan held over 25 sell-out concerts in the country from 1984 to 1988, and despite the risks and dangers ofwarringmilitias and armies,[citation needed] recorded her songs for radio, and topped the charts in Lebanon.[3] Her last concert with Equation was held in 1986.[7]
In 1987, Canaan embarked on asolo career,[7] performing her original compositions, such as "To Oblivion and Back", "Does it Need Some Action", "A Hard Situation", "Hey Richie", and "The Christmas Wish", all which were radio hits.[1]
As Canaan'smusic evolved, her local fame grew.[7][8] With Lebanon underSyrianoccupation, Canaan's concerts were held inEast Beirut, Mount Lebanon, and the north of Lebanon. InTripoli, the second largest city in Lebanon, Canaan performed in front of a sold-out crowd under tight security despite having receiveddeath threats.[3]
In 1987, Canaan performed to a crowd of 20,000 at the Beirut Rock Festival.[citation needed] In 1988, she held sell-out concerts for three consecutive nights atCasino du Liban,[9] the last performer to grace its stage until it resumed activity following the end of theLiberation War in 1990.[9]
Canaan's local success and aspirations for international success were reported on by theArab media,[10][9][11][12][13][14]Al-Hayat writing that she had " ... invaded the European market with her ballads".[10] In 1989, she left Lebanon and settled inZurich, Switzerland,[6] where she became a naturalizedSwiss citizen.[15] There she took vocal lessons with soprano Anita Monti.[6] In 1990, she was interviewed by Radio Z in Zurich where her songs received airplay.[15]
In 1991, Canaan began working with record producerDavid Richards (producer ofQueen andDavid Bowie).[citation needed] The same year she gave a live interview forNBC Europe.[10] Also in 1991 Canaan signed a two-year contract with London-based production company Spinny Music (led by Queen managerJim Beach) to write and record her original songs produced by David Richards atMountain Studios inMontreux, Switzerland.[8] The same year she recorded the duet "Love and Lust" with Queen drummerRoger Taylor.[16][17]
The same year, she recorded the duet "Love and Lust" with Queen drummerRoger Taylor.[16][17]
In 1993, Canaan recorded songs "Libnan", "Fallin'", and her cover ofJohn Lennon's "Gimme Some Truth".[8]
In February 1995, Canaan, who had up until that time performed rock under the stage name Angel, dropped themoniker, and under the name Lydia Canaan presented the pop ballad "Beautiful Life"[18] (produced byBarry Blue andThe Rapino Brothers) at theMidem inCannes, France.[19] That Spring, Canaan's international release of the single "Beautiful Life"[18] by London-based Pulse-8 Records[18] gained her international critical acclaim,[7][20][21] the buzz culminating in a promo tour in England and radio airplay in the UK, Europe, South Africa, and the Middle East.[21]
Canaan performed "Beautiful Life" at the launch of MTV Europe held inBeirut on May 12, 1995.[22][23] In promoting the event, MTV Europe billed her as "the diva from the Middle East".[22] During the press conference, President of MTV Europe Peter Einstein stated: "MTV is proud and privileged to play Lydia's videos on Music-Non-Stop Show... All at MTV have fallen in love with Lydia, her songs, and her performance."[23]
Canaan's second single, "The Sound of Love", produced by Barry Blue and The Rapino Brothers[citation needed] and recorded at Maison Rouge Studios in London,[24] was released in 1997. In 1998, Canaan's recordings made in New York City at Jay Ward's Dogbrain Music were exhibited on billboardtalentnet.com and appeared on its RadioBTN top 10 chart.[25]
Canaan's never-released studio albumThe Sound of Love was completed in the summer of 2000. Recorded in London and New York City, it included the track "Right on the Verge", featuring Bryan Adams' keyboardist Tommy Mandel.[7][15] The album was distributed by SIDI/XEMA in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman, Egypt, Jordan, and Lebanon.[citation needed] In support of the album release, Canaan performed at various venues in Beirut, Jumeira Beach Hotel in Dubai, and Savage Garden Club and Rifaa Golf Club in Manama, Bahrain.[26]
In 2004, "Libnan" was chosen as the title song of the advertisement "Rediscover Lebanon", produced and broadcast byCNN and commissioned by the Lebanese Ministry of Economy & Trade to promote Lebanon as a tourist destination.[27]
In 2014, Canaan was named a semi-finalist by the UK Songwriting Contest for her song "Never Set You Free".[28]
Lydia Canaan gave talks at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva, Switzerland, on seven occasions between 2014 and 2017,[29] and reportedly spoke at Casino du Liban in Beirut in 2014.[30] In 2001, she spoke at the American Community School in Beirut, Lebanon,[30] performed at the United Nations International Volunteers Day,[31] and was awarded for her humanitarianism. She participated in the Arab International Forum in Solidarity With Palestinian Prisoners in 2014 and the International Forum for Justice in Palestine in 2015, both held in Beirut.[31] In 2015, she performed at a rally in solidarity with Cardinal Patriarch Bechara Boutros Al-Rahi's call to elect a president of Lebanon.[32]
American author Robert W. McGee mentioned Canaan's songs "So Much To Give" and "Never Set You Free" in his two novelsJustifiable Homicide (2014)[33] andAnnie and the Senator (2015);[34] Canaan and her songs "Shine", "Fallin'", and "Libnan" were referenced in all three volumes of McGee'sThe Iraqi Girl Trilogy (2015).[35][36] McGee's characters often risk their lives to listen to Lydia Canaan's music.[33][35][36]
In 2017, Canaan was featured in British journalist forNewsweek Orlando Crowcroft's bookRock in a Hard Place: Music and Mayhem in the Middle East, about the dangers she faced and obstacles she overcame as a rock music pioneer in Lebanon.[37]
On January 16, 2002, President Emile Lahoud thanked Lydia Canaan for her services to Lebanon. The First Lady, Andree Lahoud, expressed admiration for Canaan's positive representation of Lebanon and invited her to give a shorta capella performance at the Presidential Palace on January 28 and February 15. On March 21, 2002, Canaan again gave a brief performance a capella at a presidential ceremony honoring the wives of fallen Republican Guard Officers.[3][38][39][40][41]
The Sound of Love
Label: None
Released: Unreleased
Format: Compact disc (CD)
Track listing:
LEBANON: Singer Lydia Canaan returns to her birth-place in the mountain village of Brummana for the Easter ceremonies. Her April 25 performance in the Greek Orthodox church of her childhood is broadcast on national TV and radio.
