George Wassouf (Arabic: جورج وسوف; 23 December 1961) is a Syrian singer.[1][2][3] In a career spanning more than four decades, he has released more than 30 albums, with a significantly large audience of fans throughout the Arab world. Dubbed Sultan El-Tarab (Arabic: سلطان الطرب), he is one of the most successful Arab singers selling over 60 million records worldwide.[4]
George Wassouf
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|---|---|
| جورج وسوف | |
Wassouf in 2009
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| Born | (1961-12-23) 23 December 1961 (age 62)
Kafroun, Syria
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| Occupations |
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| Spouses | Shalimar Wassouf
(m. 1982; div. 2009)
(m. 2014; div. 2016) |
| Children | 4 |
| Musical career | |
| Genres | Arabic Music, Syrian Music, Lebanese Music, Khaliji Music |
| Years active | 1971–present |
| Labels |
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| Website | wassoufworld |
Wassouf was born in Kafroun, Syria to a Greek Orthodox Christian family.[5] Wassouf started singing at the age of 10 in his hometown Kafroun. He was discovered by his first manager and producer George Yazbeck at a wedding party that Wassouf was performing at, aged 12 years old. At the age of 16, he was called Sultan El-Tarab by the Lebanese journalist George Ibrahim El Khoury, a magazine director, Arabic for The Sultan of Music, with his classic song "el-Hawa Sultan".[6] He became famous after appearing on the Lebanese show Studio El Fan 1980 when he was 19 years old as Sultan of Tarab.[6] Wassouf also holds Lebanese citizenship.
Wassouf preferred not to shoot music videos for his songs saying: "I don't feel I can act... I really can't... I only find myself when I'm on the stage... singing, but the video clip forces me to act".[6]
George Wassouf married his first wife, Shalimar, at the age of 21. They have three children: Wadih who died on 6-January 2023 following a surgery, Hatem and George Jr. The couple separated after 28 years of marriage in 2009.[7]
He was married to Qatar rally champion Nada Zeidan, his second wife. They divorced in 2016.[8] Their daughter, Oyoon, was born in October 2015.[9]
Wassouf has been a prominent supporter of President Bashar al-Assad's government throughout the Syrian Civil War.[10]
In 2008, he was arrested in Sweden for possession of cocaine.[11]
On January 6, 2023, his son Wadih died due to complications from a gastric bypass surgery.[12]
