1. Salma Rachid is a Moroccan pop singer and actress who gained fame at the age of 18 following her participation in the second season of Arab Idol, broadcast on MBC.
14 Facts About Salma Rachid
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Salma Rachid was nicknamed El Sultana by her fans and considers Umm Kulthum among her main inspiration.
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Salma Rachid's family originally from the oasis of Tafilalt, a region south east Morocco, Salma was born and raised in the neighbourhood of Hay Mohammedi, in the Ain Sebaa-Hay Mohammedi district of Casablanca, Morocco.
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Salma Rachid told MBC during an interview that she used to steal clothes from her family, tearing them apart and then stitching them to create new clothes.
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Salma Rachid said in the same interview that she almost got hit by a car when she was younger, but her best friend saved her, losing her own life.
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Salma Rachid graduated from high school in June 2012, getting her baccalaureat and enrolled into university where she pursued her studies in economics.
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At the age of 18, Salma Rachid decided to take a chance and auditioned for the second season of Arab Idol.
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The Moroccan audition took place in Casablanca, and Salma Rachid performed "Ya Moniyati", a Yemeni song that is extremely popular throughout the Persian Gulf region, in front of the jury panel composed by Arabic superstars Ragheb Alama, Ahlam, Nancy Ajram and Egyptian producer Hassan El Shafei.
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Salma Rachid was then accepted by all of them and flew to Beirut, Lebanon, to pursue the casting process.
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Salma Rachid performed then "El Ward Gamil" from Umm Kulthum with five other contestants, than she performed "Awal Marra" by Abdelhalim Hafez and managed to be picked among the 27 finalists who would compete to get into the finale stage.
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Unfortunately, Salma Rachid didn't manage to get enough votes, and she was one of the eight contestants picked by the jury to perform in order to get one of the 4 wildcards.
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Salma Rachid was picked by Ragheb Alama and performed Umm Kulthum's "Ya Msaharni" for survival.
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Salma Rachid was eventually saved alongside Bahraini contestant Hanane Reda, which allowed her to finally be part of the thirteen finalists.
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Salma Rachid was contacted by many people from the Arabic music scene who praised her for her voice, such as Syrian singer Rouwaida Attieh and Lebanese lyricist Salim Assaf as well as various people from the Moroccan scene.