Cairo: Egyptian singer Sherine Abdul Whab, who has gained iconic status in a few years, has declared her retirement. The news has stunned her fans and colleagues in the Arab world.
The news of the 35-year-old singer’s retirement first surfaced when journalist Rabae Heneidy of the UAE-based magazine Zahrat Al Khalij posted on his Instagram account a recording of a call he had received from Sherine announcing her surprise decision.
In the recording, the singer said her decision to retire was “final and irreversible”.
She did not give an explanation. In another audio recording released Tuesday by Lebanese magazine Al Jaras, Sherine confirmed the news and called on her fans to pray for her to live in peace.
“I want to live in peace,” she said in the recording. “I wish to live for [my] daughters,” added Sherine, a divorcee and a mother of two girls.
“I can no longer continue in the [entertainment] community,” she said without elaborating.
Reports about Sherine’s retirement went viral online, prompting fervent calls from her devotees for her to reverse the decision.
‘Shock and provocative’
“Sherine’s retirement decision is a shock and provocative,” commented a fan named Heba Kamal in a Facebook post. “How can a voice as wonderful as Sherine’s stop singing while belly-dancers calling themselves singers continue to sing although we don’t like them?”
Other Arab singers expressed surprise at Sherine’s move.
“In case what we heard is true we can’t accept this decision@sherineawahab U are an addition to the industry and we need you in these times,” renowned Lebanese singer Elissa said in a tweet.
Sherine was catapulted to fame with her hit song Oh, Night.
