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Lebanese-Australian singer ‘Faydee’ turned international sensation

Fady Fatrouni, known by his stage name Faydee, is a master of combining pop and Arab sounds and creating exciting and catchy music.

That has been his goal since he was 13-years-old. He always wanted to combine the Middle Eastern culture with western music, he told Lebanese Examiner in an exclusive interview.

His voice might be familiar to U.S. listeners due to his feature in the mega hit song, Habibi (I Need Your Love).

Faydee pushed heavily for the song to contain Arabic undertones and for the name to include the word Habibi.

Faydee is best known for his international hit "Habibi (I Need Your Love)" credited to Shaggy, Mohombi, Faydee and Costi. (Facebook/Faydee)
Faydee is best known for his international hit “Habibi (I Need Your Love)” credited to Shaggy, Mohombi, Faydee and Costi. (Facebook/Faydee)

RELATED: Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary – Lebanese heritage influenced my career

“One of my proudest moments is that the song charted in the top 100 in the U.S.,” Faydee said. “For me that was a surreal thing that the Arabic-English version (of the song) got the most recognition.”

“I want Arabic music to be as accepted as Spanish music is in the pop culture,” he added.

Faydee said his parents initially disapproved of his plans to be a singer, telling him to pursue other careers that were “more tangible.” However, when they realized the talent that their son had, they turned into his biggest supporters.

“For them, the proudest they were of me is when I accepted an award from the Beirut (& Beyond) International Music Festival,” he said. “Seeing me receive an award from the place they grew up was big.”

In the future, Faydee wants to venture into acting and continue to expand his brand by making new Arab-Western fusion music often.

Listen to his single Habibi Albi featuring Leftside by clicking the link below:

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Australian politician: Bringing Lebanese to Australia a ‘mistake’

SYDNEY – Australia’s Immigration Minister Peter Dutton sparked controversy Monday after telling parliament members the Australian government made a mistake by resettling Lebanese refugees in the 1970s.

Dutton said former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser “did make mistakes in bringing some people in,” as part of his immigration policy. He said crime statistics in the country show a large number of Lebanese Australians are involved in terror incidents.

“The advice I have is that out of the last 33 people who have been charged with terrorist-related offenses in this country, 22 of those people are from second and third generation Lebanese Muslim background,” he said.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, Lebanese immigration peaked at 4,906 in 1977, with a smaller peak of 2,600 in 1987. The Bureau estimates Australia has about 196,000 citizens of Lebanese descent, including people whose parents were born in Australia.

Since this controversy, Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull praised Dutton and called him a “committed and compassionate immigration minister.”

“There is no question that there are lessons to be learned from previous immigration policies and the minister was reflecting on,” Turnbull said. “He’s entitled to do that.”

Some Lebanese Australians said they’re upset by the comments.

“It’s ill thought of and the purpose, I think, is solely to try to appeal to a nationalistic sense — that’s to provide a sense of exclusion rather than one of inclusion,” Jihad Dib, a Lebanese Australian Muslim, told ABC News Australia.

This is not the first time the Australian government singles out the Lebanese population. In February, a cabinet document called the Lebanese community the “most prominent ethnic group amongst Australian Sunni extremists.”

The document points to “lessons learned” after the wave of immigration to Australia as a result of the Lebanese civil war.

“Australia’s historical experience with the Sunni Lebanese community illustrates potential community safety and national security risks associated with unsuccessful integration,” the document added.

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Former Lebanese-Australian politican faces criminal charges

(NEW SOUTH WALES, AUSTRALIA) — Former Lebanese-Australian politician Eddie Obeid has been ordered to surrender his Australian and Lebanese passports following fears that Obeid could flee to Lebanon amid criminal charges for misconduct while in public office.

Obeid, 71, is accused of corruption and misusing his position as Member of Parliament to benefit family financial interests in Australia.

In June 2014, a commission recommended the Director of Public Prosecutions to prosecute Obeid for misconduct in public office over his attempts to influence bureaucrats and labor colleagues to benefit his family.

Obeid’s family have property in Lebanon and five regions of Australia, including coastline cafes in New South Wales and Namibia. They also own a company that exports live sheep to Syria and Iraq.

Obeid was charged with misconduct after the Independent Commission Against Corruption found he corruptly lobbied former Maritime NSW boss Steve Dunn over cafe leases his family secretly owned in Australia.

The former lawmaker is a dual Australian and Lebanese citizen with business and property ties to Lebanon. Media reports say he was building a sandstone mansion in his ancestral hometown of Matrit, Lebanon, last year.

Eddie Obeid's house in Matrit, Lebanon. (Photo © Rami Aysha)
Eddie Obeid’s house in Matrit, Lebanon. (Photo © Rami Aysha)

Australian Prosecutor Daniel Noll told the court that Obeid had a “large personal fortune” and “substantial property” in Lebanon.

He believed Obeid posed an “unacceptable risk” of fleeing which would require him to be held in custody.

Australian media reports that Obeid faces serious charges that are likely to result in a jail term if found guilty.

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