Mohamed Mounir

{{#invoke:other uses|otheruses}} Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox musical artist

Mohamed Mounir (Template:Langx; born October 10, 1954) is an Egyptian singer and actor, with a musical career spanning more than four decades. He incorporates various genres into his music, including classical Egyptian music, Nubian music, Blues, Jazz and Reggae.<ref name="cu5">Al-Ahram Weekly Online, 19–25 July 2007 Template:Webarchive. Retrieved June 18, 2010.</ref><ref>[[[:Template:Allmusic]] Biography at Allmusic]. Retrieved June 17, 2010.</ref><ref>Al-Ahram Weekly Online, 28 March – 3 April 2002 Template:Webarchive. Retrieved June 18, 2010.</ref><ref name="LE"/> His lyrics are noted both for their philosophical content and for their passionate social and political commentary.<ref name="cu5"/><ref name="DailyNews">The Daily News Egypt, July 17 2006 Template:Webarchive. Retrieved June 18, 2010.</ref> He is affectionately known by his fans as "El King" in reference to his album and play "El Malek Howwa El Malek" (The King is The King).<ref name="official"/> Mounir's family is from Nubia, Southern Aswan, Egypt.

In April 2021, he appeared in the opening musical sequence as a singer for the Pharaohs' Golden Parade on an Egyptian funerary boat on the lake in front of the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Early life

Born into a Nubian family in Aswan,<ref name="cu5"/> Mounir spent most of his early childhood in the village of Manshyat Al Nubia,<ref name="official"/> where he shared his father's interests in both music and politics.<ref name="cu5"/> As a teenager, he and his family were forced to relocate to Cairo when his village was lost in the floods that followed the construction of the Aswan Dam.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> It was here that he studied photography at the Faculty of Applied Arts at Helwan University.<ref name="cu5"/> During this period, he would often sing for friends and family at social gatherings. His singing voice was noticed by the lyricist Abdel-Rehim Mansour, who would go on to introduce Mounir to the renowned folk singer Ahmed Mounib.<ref name="cu5"/><ref name="official">Biography at Mohamed Mounir's official site. Retrieved June 18, 2010. Template:Webarchive</ref>

Musical career

Following his college graduation, he was called up for military service in 1974,<ref name="cu5"/> during which he continued his professional musical career by performing in various concerts.<ref name="official"/> He performed his first such concert in 1975.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}. Retrieved June 20, 2010.</ref> Although the public were initially critical of Mounir for performing in casual attire at a time where many Egyptian singers were expected to wear suits, they eventually warmed to his laidback image.<ref name="cu5"/>

After completing his military service, Mounir released his 1977 debut solo album Alemony Eneeki on the Sonar record label. Mounir went on to release five more consecutive official albums and featured on one soundtrack album under the Sonar label.<ref name="official"/> To date, Mounir has released a total 22 official albums and featured on six soundtrack albums under a number of different record labels.<ref name="official"/>

Mounir's single "Maddad" from this album caused controversy, as its lyrics could be interpreted as a call for intercession from Muhammad. Among Muslims there are differing views as to whether Muhammad can provide intercession between God's and his believers. This resulted in the music video being banned from Egyptian television for a time.<ref name = "HVG">Biography at Hubert von Goisern official website Template:Webarchive. Retrieved June 20, 2010.</ref> Mounir responded by saying "It is this fight against rigid thought that makes something out of you".<ref name="HVG"/>

On his 2003 follow-up album "Ahmar Shafayef" (Red Lipstick), he returned to his more familiar style of mainly secular lyrics. In the summer of 2003, following the release of this album, Mounir toured Austria, Germany and Switzerland alongside the Austrian pop musician Hubert von Goisern, and later that year the two musicians performed at a concert in Asyut.<ref name="Hubert">Interviews at Hubert von Goisern official website Template:Webarchive. Retrieved June 20, 2010.</ref>

In May 2004 he held a large concert at the pyramids of Giza, during which he was physically attacked by a drunken fan.<ref name="EGT">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}. Retrieved June 22, 2010.</ref> Despite sustaining minor injuries, he continued his performance until the end of the concert.<ref name="EGT"/>

He continued recording albums infused with social commentary with the release of his 2005 album Embareh Kan Omry Eshren (Yesterday I Was Twenty) and his album Ta'm El Beyout (Taste of Homes), released in 2008. Ta'm El Beyout was noted for its creativity, but initially did not perform as well as expected in terms of album sales.<ref>The Daily News Egypt, December 23 2008 Template:Webarchive. Retrieved June 18, 2010.</ref> In 2012, Mounir released his album Ya Ahl El Arab we Tarab.

In 2008 Mounir postponed his New Year's Eve concert at Cairo Opera House in solidarity with the Palestinians suffering the effects of the Gaza War.<ref>Ya Libnan, 31 December 2008 Template:Webarchive. Retrieved June 22, 2010.</ref><ref name = "AAO">Al-Arabiya Online, 31 December 2008 Template:Webarchive. Retrieved June 22, 2010.</ref> He issued the statement: "Delaying the concert is a message sent to the whole world, so that it would move forward and help the people in Gaza."<ref name="AAO"/>

He headlined the Liverpool Arabic Arts Festival 2010 on July 9, at the Liverpool Philharmonic Hall.<ref name = "LE">The Liverpool Echo, 18 June 2010 Template:Webarchive. Retrieved June 18, 2010.</ref><ref>Liverpool Arabic Arts Festival Official Website Template:Webarchive. Retrieved September 12, 2010.</ref> He is the predecessor to recent musical groups like Black Theama

In February 2021 Mounir announced that he would be playing at concerts in Jerusalem, Haifa, Ramallah and Gaza City, to be the first Egyptian musician to perform in Israel, as he mentioned: "I will be a peace delegate, like Sadat". However, he later declared that he would only tour the Palestinian cities of Ramallah and Gaza.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Acting career

As well as his career as a popular singer, Mounir also has an active acting career. He has appeared in 12 movies, 4 television series and 3 plays.<ref name="official"/> His movie career began in 1982, when he acted in Youssef Chahine's film Template:'Hadouta Masreia (An Egyptian Story), also being featured on the soundtrack album. In 1997 he played the role of the bard in another movie by Youssef Chahine, the French-Egyptian historical drama Al Maseer (Destiny), which was screened out of competition at the 1997 Cannes Film Festival.<ref name="festival-cannes.com">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Mounir played the part of the blind poetry professor "Bashir" in the controversial 2005 film Dunia, which centers around the title character Dunia, a belly dancer and poet played by Egyptian actress Hanan Tork.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> When the film was shown at the 2005 Cairo International Film Festival, it left the audience split between those supporting the film's calls for women's rights and its message against female genital mutilation, and those disapproving of either the title character's desire to express herself through dance, or of the scenes shot in Cairo's slums, judged as tarnishing Egypt's international image.<ref>The Daily News Egypt, December 7 2005 Template:Webarchive. Retrieved June 18, 2010.</ref><ref>Al-Ahram Weekly Online, 15–21 December 2005 Template:Webarchive. Retrieved June 18, 2010.</ref>

Discography

Official albums

• Alemony Eneeki (Your Eyes Taught Me) – 1977
• Bnetweled (We Are Being Born) – 1978
• Shababeek (Windows) ^YKB – 1981
• Etkalemy (Speak) ^YKB – 1983
• Bareea(innocent) ^YKB – 1986
• West El Dayra (In The Middle of The Circle) ^YKB – 1987
• Shokolata (Chocolate) – 1989
• Ya Eskenderia (O Alexandria) – 1990
• Meshwar (Trip) – 1991
• El Tool We El Loon We El Horya (The Length, Colour, and Freedom) – 1992
• Eftah Albak (Open Your Heart) – 1994
• Momken (Maybe) – 1995
• Men Awel Lamsa (From The First Touch) – 1996
• El Farha (The Joy) – 1999
• Fi Eshg El Banat (The Love of Girls) – 2000
• Ana Alby Masaken Shabya (My Heart is Public housing) – 2001
• El Ard... El Salam (The Earth... Peace) – 2002
• Ahmar Shafayef (Lipsticks) – 2003
• Hawadeet (Stories) – 2004
• Embareh Kan Omry Eshren (Yesterday I Was Twenty) – 2005
• Ta'm El Beyout (Taste of Homes) – 2008
• Ahl El Arab Wel Tarab (People Of Arabs and Music) – 2012
• El-Rooh Lel-Rooh Dayman Bet'hen (Souls Always Long for Each other) – 2017
• Watan (Homeland) – 2018
• Bab El Jamal (Door of Beauty) – 2021 AA

YKB: Featuring Yahia Khalil's band

Filmography

Movies

Year	Film	Role	Notes
1982	Hadouta Masreia (An Egyptian Tale)	Mahdi
1986	Al Yawm Al Sades (The Sixth Day)	The Boatman
1987	Al Tokk Wa Eswera (Ring and Bracelet)	Mr. Mohamed
1988	Youm Mor We Youm Helw (A Bad Day & A Good Day)	Oraby
1990	Shabab Ala Kaf Afreet (Youth on the palm of a ghost)
1991	Ishtebah (Suspicion)	Medhat
1991	Leih Ya Haram (Why Pyramid)	Ahmed Shafek
1992	Hekayat Al Ghareb (Stranger Tale)	Saed
1994	Al Bahth An Tut Ankh Amun (Search for Tutankhamen)	Gad
1997	Al Maseer (Destiny)	Marwan (The Bard)
2005	Kiss Me Not on the Eyes	Dr. Bashir
2006	Mafesh Gher Keda (Nothing but this)	Himself

Television

• Bakkar
• Ali Elewa
• Gomhoreyat Zefta (Republic of Zefta)
• Al Moghani (The Singer)

Theatre

• El Malek; El Malek
• Al Shahateen
• Masa' Al Kheer Ya Masr

Awards

• He received the Peace Award from CNN for his album Earth Peace
• Received the Diamond Award from "Bama Awards"
• He won the Best Singer award in the July 2008 MEMA competition.
• He was honored by the management of the Alexandria Film Festival at the opening of its 30th session
• He won the Platinum Award for the best Egyptian and Arab singer for the song "Yasmina", in which the international singer Adel Al-Taweel participated with the "Ich und Ich" team, the most famous international band at present, and he deserved the Universal International Award, after he distributed the disc that includes the song "Taht Al-Yasmina" 700,000 copies, achieving the highest distribution rate in Germany. Mounir also won, in the same year and for the same song, in Arabic and English, third place in the public referendum organized by the "Proseven" channel for the competition for the best song in Germany.
• The song "El-leila Samra" won a BBC poll of the 50 best African songs of the twentieth century.
• He also won the Honorable Award in 2005 for the movie "Dunya".

External links

• Template:Official website
• [https://www.imdb.com/{{#if: 0609832

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• Meshwary Live Concert – Benchmark Theatre, Jeddah