Popular
Emirati singer, Ahlam, also a judge on the Arab Idol singing show, made the
following comments in
reference to a contestant's Kurdish identity:
I'm against when they always say we support Morocco, we support Iraq, we support Syria, we support the Khaleej ... But today, really, I want to send a message of love to Iraq ... I'm against when Parwas's [contestant name] is written saying she is from Kurdistan, because Kurdistan is part of Iraq and from today, I want you [pointing at Parwas] name to be Parwas from Iraq and not from Kurdistan.
The
show itself showcases the musical talents of people from across the region.
Whether from Morocco or Iraq, all singers competing in the show sing in Arabic--meaning, the show is supposed to be a pan-Arabic show not a "pan-Arab" show.
However, clearly from the statement of Ahlam, we see how identities and language
are examined through media and entertainment industries in the region.
A
Weapon of Racial Exclusion
Arab
Idol reflects multiple layers of the interconnectivity of pop culture and
politics. The show is broadcasted on the Middle East Broadcasting Center (MBC),
a company that was initially founded in London and whose headquarters later
moved to Dubai. Its owner is Waleed bin Ibrahim, a member of the Saudi royal
family through the marriage between his sister and the late King Fahd.
Considering the extent to which "private sector" and authoritarian
regimes operate so closely, especially as they are often sustainers of one
another through a close marriage of patronage, political loyalty, and nepotism,
MBC can hardly be called a private network.
Understanding
the network through this lens allows us to view Arab Idol as something beyond a
mere singing competition. Ahlam's comments are not simply hers--they are
positions propagated by hegemonic discourses that aren't confined to just
punditry, but play a major role in policy-making. The GCC regimes do not have
direct relations with Kurdish populations or statements on the Kurdish
struggle; when Saddam was supported by the Gulf rulers for his fight against
Iran, this made them make no comments on his massacre against the Kurds. The
same goes with their position towards events facing Kurds in Syria and Turkey.
For the Gulf regimes, Arabic and Arab are only understood as racial fronts for
their propaganda and power, specifically linked to tribalism. This is why
minorities and rebellious voices are criminalized by referring to them as not
Arabs or Arabized or race-traitors etc.
Singing against the Uprisings
The
timing of these singing competitions also raises questions, which almost all
entirely sprung up around the time the uprisings began in the region-- they
have since multiplied. In addition to Arab Idol, which began in December 2011,
it was soon followed by The Voice (September 2012), and more recently X-Factor,
which was relaunched this year following about a 6-year hiatus. All these
singing competitions share a common factor in that funding and production is
supported by major Arab networks (either MBC or Rotana), whose majority
shareholders are Gulf-based businessmen with ties to the Saudi government.
Beyond
the fact that these singing competitions offer (mostly young) contestants a
shot of regional fame and money prizes, they have quickly become a platform for
nationalism and identity politics. Since participants come from across the
region, fan participation evolves into a brand of nationalism through the
process of voting in, for example. This inevitably opens the door for
co-optation through authoritarian politics, which was exemplified through the
success of Moroccan contestant, Dounia Batma. Upon her return to Morocco
following the completion of Arab Idol (in which she was as runner up), she was
seen singing the praises of King Mohammed VI, fans paraded around her carrying
portraits of the king, and she quickly got an endorsement deal with Morocco’s biggest telecom company, Maroc Telecom.
Billboards of her soon appeared in major roads throughout the country’s major
cities, and commercials featuring her in Maroc Telecom ads became frequent on
state media. She also spoke on Morocco's state run media channel.
There
is a history of Gulf money playing major political roles in the region. Lebanon
was a central example when TV channels or publications got their funding from
Saudi Arabia flooding the region with entertainment shows objectifying women.
Since then, those policies were not enough and now we see these music contests coming to serve the same policy in which
identity is used to create a hegemony over different populations while
emphasizing a hierarchy topped by the Gulf and imposing an orthodox understanding of
representation, identity, and art.
By Mona and Samia
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