by Nyree McFarlane —thenational.ae — Lebanese soprano Hiba Tawaji, 31, found fame four years ago via the French version of talent quest, The Voice, and her latest career milestone also comes out of France. The Arabic singer is the voice of Princess Jasmine in the French version of Disney’s new film Aladdin. She sang Parler (Speechless) and Ce Reve Bleu at the Paris premiere last week, and sings all of the numbers performed by Princess Jasmine in the film, which is dubbed into French for release in theatres in the French-speaking world. It is common for films to be dubbed into French in France, rather than played in cinemas with subtitles. After Tawaji announced that she was the voice of French Jasmine, she was congratulated by many of her Lebanese fans on social media, with one suggesting there should be an Arabic language dub of the film and songs too.

We spoke to Tawaji at the Mawazine Festival in Morocco last year, and she told us that she was avoiding going down the radio-friendly Arabic pop route, and wanted to stick to her more classical, east-meets-west style: “The crowds coming to my shows are growing, which is great considering I have been doing this now for ten years. But ultimately, I have come to view success not just as numbers, but to stay true to myself and not compare myself to anyone. I have my own path and I intend to take it.” Tawaji is well known in the Arabic speaking world for her many collaborations with composer Oussama Rahbani (the son of Mansour). The pair have made two albums together, and she is often the lead singer and actor in his musicals.