Background and career
Abdel Halim Ali Shabana (Arabic: عبد الحليم علي شبانة), commonly known as Abdel Halim Hafez (Arabic: عبد الحليم حافظ, Egyptian Arabic pronunciation: [ʕæbd el ħæliːm ħɑːfɪzˤ]) (21 June 1929 – 30 March 1977), was an Egyptian singer, actor, conductor, businessman, music teacher and film producer.
Abdel Halim is considered to be one of the greatest Egyptian musicians of his era, along with Umm Kulthum, Mohamed Abdel Wahab, Farid Al Atrach, Mohamed Fawzi, and Shadia. As his popularity grew, he was given the nickname 'el-Andaleeb el-Asmar (Arabic: العندليب الأسمر), meaning The Brown-Skinned Nightingale. He achieved extraordinary success as a popular musician throughout the Arab world, with estimated sales of over 80 million records.
