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When East meets West: Palestinian teen Noel Kharman’s flawless mash-up of Adele and Fairouz

Noel Kharman

Adele’s sepia-toned video “Hello”, her first new single in three years, has captivated the internet since its release a few weeks ago, racking up an impressive 335 million views (and counting).

Hailed by many as the best song of 2015, the emotional music video has inspired countless covers, memes and iterations.

Now, Palestinian artist Noel Kharman has added her own twist to the British songstress’ single by merging it with the all-time Arabic classic “Kifak Inta” by Lebanese legend Fairouz.

Seamlessly fusing two beloved musical legends from different worlds, this talented 17-year-old’s East-meets-West mash-up has already gone viral on social media.

The perfect blend of haunting lyrics, soothing oriental tunes and flawless vocals, the video has already garnered more than 1.5 million views in less than a week. Since the launch of her YouTube channel less than a month ago, Kharman has gained more than 10,000 subscribers and more than 100,000 channel views on her three videos so far, which include covers of songs by Sam Smith and Taylor Swift.

Mashups are never easy, especially when it involves fusing two different languages and musical styles. But when done well, they are remarkably beautiful.

Noel Kharman’s skillful and passionate mash-up has inspired us to list some of our favorite musical blends with an oriental twist.  Check ‘em out!

1. Arabic version of Ellie Goulding’s “Love Me Like You Do” by Bosla

2. Sam Tsui’s cover of “Talk Dirty” by Jason Derulo with a Middle Eastern twist

3. Jean Marie Riache’s oriental take on Frank Sinatra’s “Fly me to the moon”

4. Ersin Ersavas’ Middle Eastern version of Coldplay’s “Sky Full of Stars”

5. Jordanian band Harqet Kart’s mashup of One Republic’s “Apologize” and Fairouz’s “Kifak Inta”

By Hyacinth Mascarenhas

Do you have a favorite song with a Middle Eastern twist? Let us know in the comments!

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