Umm Kulthum

French military and political leader Charles de Gaulle referred to her as “The Lady.” Adoring Egyptians coined her “Kawkab al-Sharq” meaning, “Star of the East” or "the empress of Arab song." Renowned opera soprano Maria Callas considered her “The Incomparable Voice.”

Yet Umm Kulthum referred to herself simply as a “fallahah,” a peasant villager.

Born into a poor family, she was proud of her upbringing and embraced her traditional cultural values with open arms. In fact, her interviews often turned into conversations about her family and fond memories of village life.

It was this humble and generous nature, combined with her unparalleled vocal talents, that led her to retain legendary status in the Arab world even today, over 30 years after her death. Although she is widely known as an unrivaled songstress, her charitable contributions and philanthropic spirit are as equally commendable as her singing abilities.

Poster advertising Kulthum's concert in Jerusalem Photo from private collection of Saleh Abdel Jawad via Wikimedia Commons [Public Domain]

A legend is born

Umm Kulthum was born in the Egyptian village of Tamay-az-Zahayra on May 4th, 1904 to a poor family. Her father was the village “Imam,” a prayer leader, and taught her the Qur’an, which she is known for having memorized. This served two distinctive purposes: she grew strong in her faith and in cultural traditions from a very early age, and she was well-educated in her faith, a trait most often associated with male children at that time in the Arab world. Her father, who would also sing at weddings and other special events to help make ends meet, soon recognized his daughter’s unique singing abilities. Her talents were so exceptional that at the age of 12 he took a big risk and disguised her as a boy so that she could join the performing troupe he directed.

Before long, others took notice of her incredible talent as well. A relatively famous singer at the time, Abu El-Ala Mohamed, took note along with Zakaria Ahmed, a famous composer, and they invited her to join them in Cairo. Only 16 at the time, she waited until she was 19 to do so, but from that point on, her public career was born.

Not long after, she met the poet Ahmad Rami who ultimately penned nearly 140 of her 300 songs. Further pursuing her education through reading, she was also exposed to and taught French literature through Rami who grew to be her mentor. Her love for great literature never diminished and she became an advocate of literary education.

Umm Kulthum with prominent Egyptian musicians Photo via Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0 [Public Domain]

A Voice Like Few Others

What was particularly striking about Kulthum’s voice was its unbridled power and surprisingly broad range, as she was able to sing as low as the second octave and as high as the eighth. She also mastered the art of singing the the Arabic Maqamat.

The combination of her vocal talents and unique performances made an impact throughout the Middle Eastern region such as few singers have ever been able to achieve. Adored and nearly venerated by Egyptians and Muslims, Kulthum also remains very popular in Israel and with Jews throughout the region.

Her beautiful voice transcends political and religious turmoil. In fact, in 2005 a collaborative project between Egyptian and Israel artists reinterpreted her popular song Enta Omri.

Her popularity is so enduring that even today a million of her records are sold each year.

Although their themes of love and loss are universal, her performance style was very unique, as were her renowned concerts. In many ways like an Opera, her concerts typically lasted anywhere from three to six hours, during which time she would only perform two to three songs.

She would always perform with a live orchestra and the length of her songs was never premeditated; she would perform according the reaction of her audience in an improvised style. Playing off of the emotional reactions of the crowd, she would often repeat a phrase over and over again in different ways, emphasizing different portions of it to achieve intense audience response and emotion.

The unique relationship she held with her audiences during these performances was also a key reason for her unbridled popularity. People would often pay enormous amounts of money to see her perform, and Arab royalty would regularly hire her for private parties for the modern-day equivalent of millions of dollars.

Her relationship with her concert-goers was so profound and innate that upon dabbling in acting she was discouraged and quit because she felt it was too impersonal and removed from the audience.

Umm Kulthum Photo by Tribes of the World via Flickr CC BY-SA 2.0 [Public Domain]

An Advocate

Kulthum believed in a variety of causes and used her artistic popularity as a platform for such.

An advocate for art and artists’ rights, she was an outspoken supporter of the arts. Amongst other things, she felt that the government should support Arabic music and musicians, and advocated this stance. She also created a charitable foundation and often contributed to various Egyptian-based funds.

She toured internationally as an ambassador of sorts for Egypt. An influence and popular public figure throughout the Arab world, it is said that these trips were so important abroad that they were practically considered official state visits.

Likewise, because of her unwavering love for her homeland and her desire to champion traditional cultural values, she became a staunch supporter for eastern culture. These traits led her to be further adored by her admiring public.

With her orchestra (http://www.afropop.org/multi/interview/ID/73/Virginia%20Danielson%20on%20Umm%20Kulthum)

A unique influence

A vast array of musicians throughout the world have been influenced by incredible voice, masterful style, determined personality, and powerful performances of this unique artist. Popular in the Arab world, she has influenced a great number of artists there. In the western world, everything from punk rockers to reggae singers to everything in between continue to influenced by this unlikely artist. In fact, musical greats such as Led Zeppelin Bono, and Bob Dylan have all spoken of their admiration for Kulthum.

So popular was Kulthum throughout the Arab world that during her monthly concerts on Egyptian radio, the traffic was at a near min in otherwise vastly trafficked cities as people went home to listen. Her career spanned five decades, and young and old alike were fans of the songstress.

When she passed away in 1975 from complications of nephritis, her mourners came out in scores to honor her. Considered one of the largest public gatherings in the history of the world, her funeral was attended by more than 4 million people! The emotion of the crowd was so intense that they somehow managed to take her coffin and carry it to the mosque they believed was her favorite before finally allowing her to be buried.

In 2001 Egypt established the Kawkab al-Sharq (Star of the East) Museum to celebrate and commemorate her widespread popularity, talent, and legacy.

Perhaps history’s most renowned and celebrated musician from the Middle East, Umm Kulthum’s influence and popularity remains widespread today. She has influenced some of music’s greatest -- both East and West -- as well as scores of fans from all walks of life, all class-levels, creeds and nations -- her art serving as an invisible bridge of peace and unity between varying cultures and faiths.