A few weeks ago I had a lovely Jazz gig for Cartier, as the official sponsor of Art Dubai they hosted an intimate dinner. It was a beautiful event. Here are a few pictures from the performance, featuring Stoyan Stoyanov on piano and accordion.
Special thanks to The Fridge and Cartier 
Here are a few pictures from a recent performance for Banana Republic with Stoyan Stoyanov.
Thank-you to The Fridge & Al Tayer for this one.
A great event, showcasing some fab pieces from the label’s new collection!
Featuring another cute dress by the lovely Daze Aliman!
Stunning and inspirational TED talk by the incredibly talented Evelyn Glennie.
I can’t explain how much I adore Cody ChesnuTT’s “Under the Spell”….
This man should be a household name. His music is good for the soul.
Divine, dope, damn good MU-ZAK!!! 
Nkosi’s Haven is an NGO in South Africa who provide care and support for HIV/AIDS infected mothers, her children, and resulting AIDS orphans (infected or not).
We had the opportunity to visit the Nkosi’s Haven village in Alan Manor, Johannesburg. The village covers 2.5 acres of land, and it houses 31 mothers and 98 children, of which roughly half are orphaned.
As soon as we arrived the community made us feel really welcome, and the children just wanted to hug, play, sing and dance…
We sang UNITE with the children singing the chorus and played some music games. Jus Rolle gave the kids a motivational speech making them smile and encouraging them to nurture their talent and perform with confidence.
Music can have a healing power, it really does change lives.
There is proof of that at Nkosi’s Haven…
A few weeks ago I featured on a Friday TV show called SOUL FOOD on the Al Sharqiya channel, with Iraqi Qanoon player Furat Qaddori and French guitarist Julien Lafforgue.
We played improvised over a few of my originals songs, ‘Kiss these scars’, ‘So Long’, and a cover of Gotye’s ‘Somebody that I used to know’, fusing the traditional Qanoon to give the music a unique Arabic flavour.
It was a great experience, we had fun! It was Dali’s birthday too so we had chocolate cake ;p
You can check it out here —>
With Iraqi Pop singer Dali, who appeared on the show before me =)
Here are a few shots from a recent performance for Vera & Brian’s wedding at the beautiful Bab Al Shams resort.
Always a pleasure to perform for a wedding when you can see the couple are so deeply in love!
and they’re Kabayan!
One highlight of the wedding were some amazing videos made by slingshot of highlights from the wedding and a short film to show how they met! Amazing!
You can check them out here on vimeo–>
<3
Last night I had the honour to perform at the ‘Sheikha Manal Young artist awards’ Gala dinner.
I performed a 1 hour set of Jazz with pianist Stoyan Stoyanov, with our own little twist on some classic standards.
.. and I was very lucky to borrow a boutique dress from a fab Dubai based Filipino designer (represent!) called DAZE TAN:
Check her out on facebook, her dresses are super cute!
http://www.facebook.com/pages/DAZE-TAN/237303409625678?ref=ts
She was recommended by another Mestiza singer and friend here in Dubai, the lovely Clarita De Quiroz (high fives!)
An enjoyable performance.. lovely audience, great event, fab dress, smiles all around
Special thanks to Sarah Ayoub Agha & The Fridge for the booking!
Although I do listen to a lot of old music (…admittedly mostly old music) I do try to listen to a lot of new music too.
Don’t mean to sound like a music snob (but maybe I am, so maybe I will )-
but the radio and music channels play the same tedious songs over and over again… So you have to dig a little deeper to find the real gems. And that my friend, is the blessing of the internet
A few good music blogs (my favourite is http://www.putmeonit.com- Amelia you are a saviour!!!) – can keep you in tune and inspired.
Actually, seems like there are so many great artists today that it’s hard to keep up! Sometimes feels like there are aren’t enough hours in the day or ears in the world to give them all just credit!
Yes, I would argue that music is far from dead…
So here’s a pick of a few artists you might not have heard of yet.. and if not, well,enjoy! =)
*
1. Yael Naim
[Discovered via YOUTUBE]
Love her Joni Mitchell-esque sweet hippy vibe..
*
2. Lianna La Havas
[Discovered via putmeonit.com]
Gosh. Doesn’t this girl just define beauty?!
*
3. Aloe Blaac
[Discovered via YOUTUBE- check out the rest of the LA BLOGOTHEQUE videos- they're all amazing ]
Been a fan of his for a while.. doesn’t this intimate performance will blow your mind! Magical.
*tingles*
*
4. Mia Doi Todd
[Discovered via putmeonit.com]
Lately I am addicted to her music. Especially this song! <3
*
5. Alex Winston
[Discovered via YOUTUBE]
Something about her, really likeable!
*
Well, there are many more.. but here are 5 for now
Hope y’all feel just as inspired and uplifted as I do!
<3
Check out the new video for ‘Falling’ from Dubai born and raised soul- star Hamdan Al Abri, directed by Muna Ismail —>
“The video shows me wandering through different parts of Dubai, lost in my own thoughts, trying to make sense of my life and everything that’s going on in the world. I’m surrounded by people, the city and yet I feel alone… I’m sure a lot of people have gone through the feeling of isolation at some point in their lives… I think the video embodies that feeling perfectly…”- Hamdan Al Abri
Follow Hamdan:
