Elyanna | |
|---|---|
 Elyanna in 2022 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Elian Amer Marjieh |
| Also known as | Elian Margieh |
| Born | (2002-01-22)January 22, 2002 (age 23) Nazareth, Israel[1] |
| Genres | |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 2019–present |
| Labels | Universal Arabic Music |
| Website | elyanna |
Elian Amer Marjieh (sometimes credited asMargieh;Arabic:إليان عامر مرجية; born January 22, 2002),[2] known professionally asElyanna (إليانا), is a Palestinian and Chilean singer-songwriter,[1] merging Arabic music with Latin rhythms to create an experimental Arab-pop sound that has captured a global audience. Born inNazareth, her musical talents were nurtured by her family, with early influences including iconic figures likeJulio Iglesias[3] andSabah Fakhri,[4] Elyanna's career took a significant turn when she was discovered at age 15 by Grammy-winnerNasri Atweh.[5] She has released two EPs:Elyanna (2020) andElyanna II (2022), and one studio album:Woledto (2024). She is currently signed toUniversal Arabic Music. Her singles "Ana Lahale", "Ghareeb Alay", "Ala Bali", and "Mama Eh" have all charted onThe Official Lebanese Top 20.[6] Elyanna is the first artist to sing in Arabic onThe Late Show with Stephen Colbert.[7] She recently sold outThe Wiltern in Los Angeles[8] andKOKO in London.[9]
Elian Marjieh[10] was born and raised inNazareth[11] and is ofPalestinian descent. Her paternal grandmother is of Chilean descent.[12] Her mother is a Palestinian poet, and her maternal grandfather is a Palestinian poet and singer who used to performzajal at Palestinian weddings.[13] Her paternal grandmother is a pianist from Chile, who she frequently visited as a child.
Elyanna began singing at age seven[14] and started posting covers of songs onSoundCloud as a teenager while participating in singing and talent competitions at school.[11] She gained popularity in her community alongside her brother, Feras, who was by her side as a pianist. Feras is now Elyanna's pianist, producer, and creative director. Her sister, Tali, handles her styling.
In 2017, at the age of 15, she and her family moved toSan Diego, California (eventually settling inLos Angeles) to further pursue her musical career after coming acrossWassim "Sal" Slaiby on TV.[12] After arriving in the United States, she began posting covers on herInstagram, where she garnered a following of around 300,000 users,[13] and grabbing the attention of musician and producerNasri Atweh. Nasri would later introduce Elyanna to Sal, and she would spend weekdays in San Diego while driving up to Los Angeles on weekends to work on music with Nasri andMassari.
Elyanna draws inspiration from jazz and blues alongside many household names for families in the Middle East:Dalida,Fairuz,Sabah Fakhri,Abd El Halim Hafez. In 2018, Elyanna contacted singer and producer,Nasri, who took an interest and connected her to his manager,Wassim Slaiby.[12] She was signed to Slaiby's management company, SALXCO, soon after the two met.[11] She was then mentored by Nasri and fellow singer and producer,Massari.[14] One of her first singles, "Ana Lahale," featured guest vocals from Massari.[15] That track was on her debut self-titled EP released in February 2020 via ElMar Music, anEmpire Distribution imprint.[13] In April 2021, Elyanna was announced as one of the first signees of the newly-formed imprint, Universal Arabic Music (UAM), which Slaiby founded in collaboration withRepublic Records and theUniversal Music Group.[16]
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In 2021, she performed alongside Alnajjar at his concert inAmman, Jordan the following month.[17] In January 2022, she collaborated with Tunisian artist,Balti, on the track "Ghareeb Alay." In March 2022, she released her second EP,Elyanna II, via UAM. The collection features the single "Al Kawn Janni Maak" (an Arabic version of "La Vie en rose"). Its music video was directed by Caroline "Chuck" Grant, the sister ofLana Del Rey, who ultimately got involved in the project by styling Elyanna.[15] In 2023, the singer made history as the first artist to perform a set entirely in Arabic at theCoachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.[18]
That the same year, her song "Ala Bali" was featured on Netflix comedy-drama seriesMo.[19] She also performed at theEl Gouna Film Festival and paid tribute to her homeland of Palestine with her single "Olive Branch (غصن زيتون)".[20] In 2024, Elyanna sold out her debut North American tour and ended it with the announcement of her debut studio album,Woledto, released on April 12 alongside amusic video for "Ganeni".[21]
Boutayna Chokrane praised the record on her review forPitchfork, stating that it "plays withArab pop,R&B,EDM, andjazz to express the nuances of love, loss, and longing".[22] She was positive of the "subtle yet poignant references to identity, displacement, and cultural resilience" as well, as those "underscore [Elyanna's] sorrow and ferocity".[22] Moreover, the singer has been featured on the covers of numerous magazines worldwide, includingBillboard Arabia,[23]Vogue Arabia,[24]Rolling Stone,[25]Cosmopolitan ME[26] andGQ.[27] On 29 June 2024, she was invited by Britishrock bandColdplay to perform the songs "We Pray" and "Arabesque" at the2024 Glastonbury Festival.[28] On July 22, the singer officially announced the Woledto Tour, with concerts in North America and Europe between October and December 2024.[29] Elyanna performed alongside Coldplay forSaturday Night Live on 5 October 2024.[30]
| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| Woledto |
|
| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| Elyanna |
|
| Elyanna II |
|
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arab [32] | LBN Air. [6] | |||
| "Ta Ta" | 2019 | — | — | Non-album single |
| "Ahwak" | — | — | Elyanna | |
| "Enta Eih" | — | — | Non-album single | |
| "Oululee Leh"[11] | — | — | Elyanna | |
| "Shee" | 2020 | — | — | |
| "Ana Lahale" (featuringMassari) | — | 1 | ||
| "Ghareeb Alay" (featuringBalti) | 2022 | — | 2 | Elyanna II |
| "Al Kawn Janni Maak" | — | — | ||
| "Youm Wara Youm" (with Hijazi) | — | — | Non-album single | |
| "Ala Bali" | — | 6 | Elyanna II | |
| "Sokkar" | 2023 | — | — | Non-album single |
| "Mama Eh" | — | 1 | Woledto | |
| "Al Sham"[33] | 2024 | — | — | |
| "Good Torture"[34] (withSevdaliza) | — | — | TBA | |
| "Olive Branch (Ghosn Zeytoun)" | — | — | Non-album single | |
| "Ganeni"[35] | 4 | 3 | Woledto | |
| "Wala Ghalta" (withJoseph Attieh) | — | 14 | Non-album single | |
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAN [36] | FRA [37] | GER [38] | ITA [39] | LBN Air. [6] | NLD [40] | NZ Hot [41] | SWI [42] | UK [43] | US [44] | ||||
| "Hada Ghareeb"[45] (Issam Alnajjar featuring Elyanna) | 2021 | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | Baree? | |
| "We Pray" (Coldplay featuringLittle Simz,Burna Boy, Elyanna andTini) | 2024 | 92 | 126 | 40 | 71 | 1 | 30 | 7 | 22 | 20 | 87 | Moon Music | |
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | |||||||||||||
Headlining
Opening act
| Award | Year | Recipient(s) and nominee(s) | Category | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Billboard Arabia Music Awards | 2024 | Herself | Top Arabic Indie Female Artist | Won | [48] |
| Top New Artist | Won |
