By Santa Michael and Abdul-Hameed Zibari
Baghdad/Erbil, March 31 (VOI) – Iraqi amateur singer Shada Hassoun's win in the popular contest Star Academy, televised by Lebanese channel LBC, was the cause of celebration all over Iraq, causing Iraqis to forget for a while about the waves of violence hitting the troubled country.
"I was pinned to the TV screen yesterday praying for Shada to win. I would have had a heart attack if she hadn't. I recommended all my relatives and work colleagues to vote for her," Um Solin, an employee, told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI) on Saturday.
Fadi, a student, said he spent 40 dollars (50,929 Iraqi dinars) buying two cell phone pre-paid cards to vote for her.
Omar Abdul-Mohsen, a contractor, said "Shada is our sister who has brought joy to our hearts. All members of my family kept praying for her, even my aging father."
Many view Shada's win as success for Iraq. Some even went further to consider it a ray of hope for Iraq's unity.
Samer, an employee, said "she unified us after politics and sectarianism divided us. Everyone – Shiites, Sunnis, Christians and Kurds – voted for her." Samer's colleague said "I wish our politicians would use Shada as an example and think of whatever brings us together rather than keeps us apart."
Shada, 25, has attracted Iraqis' interest since her participation in the Star Academy program.
The Iraqi channel al-Sharqiya devoted a large amount of space to promote her and encourage viewers to vote for her. The official TV channel, al-Iraqiya, which usually dedicates its news subtitle to urgent and important political and security news reports, relayed urgent news about Shada's win.
"Iraqis, who have experienced a lot of sadness and pain, were searching for something to cheer them up, which they found in Shada's win," an analyst, who declined to be named, told VOI.
"Shada has sung for Iraq and the wounded and both needed somebody to sing for them," he said.
On Friday the Iraqi capital Baghdad witnessed public jubilation on the streets as Iraqis shot into the air to celebrate Shada's victory.
In Arbil, capital of Iraq's Kurdistan region, Kurds, Arabs, Turkomans and Christians celebrated the Star Academy's final results. Frolicking fans of Shada kept pressing their car horns loudly while parading the streets of Erbil with their vehicles until dawn.
Shada won this year's Star Academy title; the first female contestant to win the Arabic version of the popular TV program.
She managed to make it to the finals after fierce competition from more than 18 young men and women in the fourth edition of the singing contest.
The past three competitions were all won by young men.
Contestants from all Arab countries participate in the program. They live together in one place for a while and go through tests and personality evaluations. Each stage sees the elimination of a number of contestants, with a few left to battle it out for the finals.
