Hakim, Kuti, Dobet to sing in African Cup of Nations opening ceremony

CAIRO – 18 June 2019: Famed Egyptian singer Hakim, acclaimed Nigerian singer Femi Anikulapo-Kuti and the Ivorian singer Dobet Gnahoré will perform together in the opening ceremony of the African Cup of Nations.

The three acclaimed singers will sing together a song named ‘’ Metgamaeen’’ ( We Are Together) produced by Synergy.

Kuti will sing in English, Gnahore in French and Hakim in Arabic.

Hakim is a renowned “Sha’abi” [folk] singer in Egypt. With the help of Hamid el-Shaari, Hakim released his first album “Nazra” under the Slam Records label in 1992.

His success was immediate and propelled him to fame in Egypt. He released an album in 1994 called “Nar” which represented Egypt at the Festival des Allumées in Nantes in the same year, and obtained a nomination at the Kora Awards in 1997.

The singer collaborated with Narada Michael and Olga Tañon in 2002, James Brown in 2004 and Don Omar in 2007. He is one of the most prominent representatives of Jeel or Gil music, a synthesis of Sha'abi and Western influences.

Hakim performed at the Olympia Theater in Paris on September 23, 2017 and was the third Egyptian singer to perform on that prominent theatre after great late Egyptian singer Abdel Halim Hafez and the legendary Umm Kulthum.