Byeb’a Nas

On her third studio album, Byeb’a Nas, Lebanese singer and musicologist Abeer Nehme opts for hope in times of global crisis. “The album has lots of positive vibes,” she tells Apple Music. “I wanted to tackle different themes than those I tackled in the past albums as I’m always challenging myself to produce what’s new and special.” That said, Byeb’a Nas isn’t confined to one simple message. Instead, the artist tackles multiple themes, she explains, “Some of which are the love romantic songs, and there is the patriotic track under the title ‘Hayda Watani’. ‘Haidi El Deni’ carries a message of optimism for audiences and that was put together during the quarantine mandated by the COVID-19 pandemic.”
There is a subtle harmony that bring all these ideas together while still leaving room for a range of aesthetics. “The album contains Arabic and Western music and there’s a touch of classical music and pop music, too,” says Nehme. “The tracks vary between different genres and styles that include the romantic, the high tempo, the patriotic and the humanistic.”
Fallou “This song has a special place in my heart and it affected me a lot. The lyrics are by the poet Ghassan Matar, and it was composed by me and produced by Tarek Skaikar. When I read the poetry of Ghassan Matar, I know that the lyrics are interpreting a human tragedy that he lived through that is related to the pain of loss and grief and being away from loved ones in life. The song carries so much grief and love and it touched me a lot, especially since the period of prep carried a lot of loss, pain and separation for people because of the COVID-19 pandemic. There is no doubt [there are] a lot of cases of grief and loss that we cannot express, like my personal story with this song as I suffered in silence from abortion in the late stages of my pregnancies several times. When I talked with director Elie Fahed for the music video, his vision was about showcasing the true power of women, and he wanted the video to be a call—an indirect call—to empower women in society and to interpret their suffering and my personal suffering and grievance too. Add to that that we wanted to encourage people to express their pain so that we can face it differently and courageously. All these factors gave the song another dimension, and it was important for me to have it on the album to be followed by ‘Byeb’a Nas’ where we celebrated the people who stayed in our lives.”
Addaysh Bhebak “[This is] a classical song written and composed by Marwan Khoury and produced by Georges Kassis. I love to collaborate with Khoury’s lyrics and composition. The melody in this song carries a lot of nostalgia, and it has a sense of euphoria and a touch of classicism at the same time. The song tells a tough love story where a partner calls for more attention, interaction and love from the other person. This is a story that many couples all over the world suffer from and it is common in all love stories. I’m very excited to share the music video for this song that was directed by Eli Fahd, and I can’t wait to see the audience’s reaction to the work—especially [since] it was a major challenge for me. The music video is a sequel to the song ‘Wenak’ [and] I appear in a new and different look.”
Mehtara “It is a romantic song written by Ghassan Matar, composed by my brother Elie Nehme and produced by Tarek Skaikar. This is my second collaboration [with] Matar, Eli and Skaikar. The song is a fusion of Arabic music and pop music and it has Arabic maqams; and it is the only song in the album with this style. The composition is very familiar and the themes touch on everybody since each one of us has faced confusion and trepidation at some point. Each tough circumstance we live through is a test for us and not a prison. We must always attempt to leave this state and not become hostage to it. This test we live through to be liberated.”
Byeb’a Nas (feat. Rayan Hebre) “The song belongs to Arabic fusion pop with gypsy jazz influence. [The] lyrics, composition and production [are by] Rayan Hebre. The instruments used in this song are the guitar, drums, accordion, piano and bass. Not to mention the beautiful chorus that adds to the song. This song was the last one to be recorded for this album and it was a labor of love. I felt this album needed a fast tempo song that touches the audience with a simple language, and I believe ‘Byeb’a Nas’ is the most mainstream song compared to the other ones. We released this song during this tough period that we are in, where we’re going through a lot of inner struggles to spread positivity around us. I reached out to Rayan Hebre, we started our musical collaboration and when I listened to the song I started recording it immediately. The pace was quick and the ambiance was very positive. We used the studio for one day, and recorded all the instruments and chorus, and added my voice to the song—which I consider a piece of dessert in the album. The music video expressed with images the simplicity and the smoothness of Rayan Hebre’s lyrics.”
Haidi El Deni “This song belongs to the classical pop genre. The lyrics are written by Ghady Rahbani and the compositions are by Oussama Rahbani. I was very happy with this collaboration with this second generation of Rahbanis. The prep environment was full of harmony, mutual trust and focus on the work. The theme of the song is very human, where I wanted to send a positive message during these tough times that we are going through—which says that the will of life always prevails thanks to our persistence and positive energy, and that new dawn always rises. The [video] was shot with Gil El Ghobri during exceptional circumstances that required working in a state of emergency to finish the shoot, and delivering the song’s message to the audience to accompany them and inspire them during this tough period that they are living through.”
Ana Elt Bterjaa “This song reflects a lot of love, pain and waiting. The lyrics are by Fady Raai, the composition is by my brother Elie Nehme and the production is by Georges Kassis. Truthfully, I consider this song one of the best tracks on the album and I’m excited to know the audience’s reaction to it. The song lyrics are very honest and they express a love test that we lived through. No doubt I did go through this experience and when I heard the song, I took a trip to memory lane when I was in a relationship that ended in the same simple manner and without any real reason. With regard to the composition, I love to sing the compositions of my brother Elie because his compositions have a specific voice and character. He always presents to me the compositions that I wait for and that fit my voice.”
W Nehna Sawa “This song is very precious to my heart, especially that I wrote it during the quarantine period of the COVID-19 pandemic. The pop and rock ’n’ roll style that the song has matches with the feelings the song’s lyrics generate in the audience. The production of this work depends on guitar riffs that express deep feelings [and] make the song more lively and harmonious. The drums on the other hand added to a song a touch of rock ’n’ roll in a creative framework. The song’s main theme is pure love in its purest and most beautiful shape. The song describes the experience of feeling love and connection through music—which also carries a beautiful touch of melancholy.”
Hayda Watani “This is a patriotic song written by Germanos Germanos, composed by Joseph Khalife and produced by Georges Kassis. Music is a language of peace and faith and it represents humans, and in the name of love, beauty, peace and [humanity] we sing for the homeland because music always tells the history of people and their homelands. I’m very attached to my homeland Lebanon even though I always feel that we live in our country by pure coincidence. This country suffered a lot of wars throughout the years, and we are always in a state of continuous conflict generation after generation in our country. That doesn’t mean that our country is not beautiful—on the contrary, Lebanon is a paradise—however it is oppressed. That is why we sing for this country that is going through a merciless storm, to say that Lebanon will rise again from the ashes and will always be our first and last shelter.”