HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Another wonderful and successful year has ended. And it's down to you!
Your friendship and support has made us so happy.
Thank You!
A New Year has arrived and we look forward to helping you enhance
your dance life with unlimited wonder and joy!
We are starting the New Year with a BANG at Zara's Zouk.
WE ARE HAVING OUR BIGGEST SALE YET!
We will not be advertising our Sale until SUNDAY on social media so, as Zameena Subscribers you get a first look at the BARGAINS
We also whet your appetite for a great, no holds barred, read with an exclusive extract from
The Travelling Bellydancer - Zaina Brown's,
New Book "Fire in the Belly"
which launches later this month! (see pic above)
Plus our regular features:
Info Spot
and
Music Corner,
(Made extra special to hit off the New Year on the right note!)
make sure you VIEW THE WHOLE EMAIL SO NOT TO MISS OUT.
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We have sales ACROSS THE STORE on everything from costume to skirts, props and tribal! Make sure you check it out!
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We are so happy to welcome back Zaina Brown (in picture below)
who shares info on her new book, OUT NEXT WEEK:
Fire In The Belly, a Memoir of Falafel, Flings and Shiny Things
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The following is an exclusive excerpt from Fire in the Belly
We are sure you will be hooked!
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THE OLYMPICS
I had been expecting this email.
“Dear Zaina,
First I would like to thank you for your collaboration and trust in my agency!
I use always all my power to get contracts for all my bellydancers without any priority, sometimes I success to get for some contracts more than others because these became famous and hotel managers ask for them.
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To introduce my artists to managers, I organize audition festival in Lebanon for all bellydancers and singers. They perform live in front of managers, like this they can choose artists for their programs after Ramadan.
Also I print a book, which includes photos and info about each artist. This book will help managers to write their notes in front of each photo. For this I insist on each bellydancer to participate in this audition to give her chance to get as much contracts.”
It was time for the dreaded Bellydance Olympics.
As much as I disliked the idea, I knew that if I didn't go, I could kiss my agent Panos’ ass goodbye.
Panos housed all participating bellydancers in a modest hotel he owned in a sleepy Christian mountain town, an hour away from Beirut. It turned into a frantic sorority house upon the arrival of forty foreign bellydancers. Girls practiced their routines in the hallways, fretted over every small detail about their appearance, and ran between each other’s rooms for support. Adding to the anxiety, a stomach bug was making rounds, and several girls were vomiting. The panic was becoming too palpable to ignore.
The new girls, who had never worked with Panos before, had the invitation email memorized. They thought the managers would literally jot down a program for the year while watching the dancers, and in the end hand it to Panos, who complied with their requests. We veterans knew different.
“It doesn't work that way. If Panos likes you, he will give you work, even if nobody selected you.”
The news was met with skepticism.
As for me, I had felt like my life lay in the hands of this centenarian for so many years I could barely remember another time. He had given me the career of my dreams, all the while treating me like a replaceable pair of boobs. I loved him and I loathed him. When I wasn't working, I waited for Panos’ emails like a message from above. If one landed in my inbox mid-contract, it was usually bad news. My heart jumped into my throat and sweat of terror poured out of my pores before I even read it.
The day before the Olympics began, I joined some girls for a trip to the office to greet Panos. I tried to make some small talk with him, but with no fresh gossip to share, the conversation quickly ran dry. Being surrounded by bright-eyed girls with big dreams made me almost somber. At thirty-one, I was way past the average age of this convention. Experience weighed heavy on my hips. I knew too much.
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Oooooooh want to find out what happens next? You will have to get the book when it is out NEXT WEEK .........
A great big THANK YOU Zaina for sharing. We can't wait to get our hands on the book!
We also send CONGRATULATIONS to you and your husband on the birth of your son Leo. Beautiful!
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Zaina is currently living in Thailand with her husband, son and cat.
Keep in contact with Zaina and for links to buy the book next week check out:
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!!--MUSIC CORNER--!!
with Zara Dance
Because it is the first month of the year and in-line with my recently released blog: "The BIGGEST mistake I see Bellydance hobbyists make" I want to give everyone a New Year BOOST to using Arabic and authentic music, so this month I am including not one, not two, BUT THREE songs for you to check out and have a boogie along to, plus links in the descriptions to three more - so SIX SONGS!
And here are two extra tips for more music not in the blog I wrote:
1) follow these links to YouTube and see what songs follow or are suggested down the side. The songs below will act as a window to similar hits you may like even better!!
2) Also use the names of the singers / dancers listed below in YouTube to find their other hits.
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1) Released only two weeks ago, here is a new version of the famous bellydance classic, "Tamra Henna". Don't know about the classic song Tamra Henna? Check out our info spot BELOW!
This version is by Egyptian Singer Ahmed Saad. More a clubby/dance song than a performance song but still good to check out especially due to the song's strong belly dance roots.
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2) Mahmood Lithey literally has a hit every month in a new film. All are great to use for bellydance.
Here is his most recent release. As we have seen so often, it is filmed in a wedding setting. This song has a great instrument intro, a sexy slow mowal and then a fun ending.
The dancer in the video is Russian dancer Anastasia who has featured in many of Mahmood Lithey's previous songs including the
MASSIVE 2017 hit "Um Ya Syaat"
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3) Launched on Christmas Eve this video already has nearly 6 million views on YouTube which is CRAZY. It is called "Kobra" and is by Egyptian singer, Bushraa.
This song is cheesy and light-hearted with funny references to cobras and hulla-hoops. I like the visual pleasure of the video but hope the lion is a fake!?
It is a response song taking the mick out of all the bragging in Mohummed Ramadan's 2018 hit song "Number One"
Click Here for a link to that song with English subtitles .
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