Raghib Hassan, Staff Reporter
Armed with a cheerful disposition and charming persona, Nadine Chammas is an accomplished singer, theatre personality and a trained wellness expert, who has been guiding and coaching actors, singers and presenters.
A graduate with a degree in acting and direction from the Lebanese University Of Fine Arts, her passion for the arts started at the age of 16 with her singing career in Lebanon. She is also a certified trainer in hypnotherapy. Nadine moved to Dubai 2000, and opened her first musical theatre production for kids.
Since then, she has written, directed and produced over 250 theatre plays that have been showcased at the Dubai Summer Surprises, Dubai Shopping Festival, Muscat, Jordan and Lebanon. An accomplished singer, Nadine has recently released two singles, “Mesh Bas Hek” and “Khaleek Ijabi,” which have become instant hits with her fans. She is also a lyricist for her songs that are composed by her husband. The Dubai-based Lebanese singer and entrepreneur wears too many hats on her head, yet she balances it smoothly. Gulf Today talks to her and find out her success story and mantra of life.
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When and how did your love for music start?
My love for music started since I was born. I was raised in a family who love music. My late mother had an amazing voice and she used to host parties at our house every weekend with a professional band. I learned to sing from her and actually that was how we used to communicate together – through songs.
How did you manage to shift from theatre to music then to being a motivational expert?
It all happened at the same time, I didn’t shift though, I worked on my personal development and implemented it in my music and theatre. I created my signature coaching course which Is Life Directing. It is inspired by my acting background and stage performances and my coaching experience where I compare life to a stage and share tools and insights on how we can play in life. All this while learning how to disconnect from the events that mark our life and be able to learn positively from these events and use the learning to move forward in life.
Lebanese singer and entrepreneur Nadine Chammas.
How do you manage to wear so many hats at a time?
I think all my hats are aligned with my passion and life purpose which is to push people to be true and do what they are born to do and live happy and satisfied. And I do this in different ways; in singing, in group coaching, in one to one coaching and in public speaking or through my course .
What rejuvenates or de-stresses you?
I love being in nature, whether it’s on the beach or the mountains and I recharge by being connected to the nature and exploring my voice. When I was young I used to sit by the beach and sing louder than the waves and when I’m in the mountains I love doing the same and hear the echo of my voice.
Your all-time favourite singers?
I’m so inspired by Edith Piaf, Dalida and Frank Sinatra and I love Warda Al Jazairia and Sabah.
Which authors have inspired you?
Many authors inspired me since I was very young, maybe 14 years old. I used to read Guy Descartes and now I love Eckhart Tolle, Bruce Lipton and Paulo Coelho.
What was the idea behind coming out with singles like “Mesh Bas Hek” and “Khaleek Ijabi?
The idea of producing my original songs was always there since I started singing professionally. I started working on this project at many stages in my life but I was not really ready because I wanted to write my own songs and send a message, not singing any song just to have a song in my name.
The last 10 years of studying the power of the mind and the positive lifestyle and hypnotherapy were very insightful in regard to what I really want out of my singing and I discovered that I want to motivate and inspire people to adopt a positive lifestyle so that they can find happiness and harmony in their lives. “Khaleek Ijabi” is about looking at the cup half full and being grateful for our lives and counting our blessings.
And “Mesh Bas Hek” sends a clear message to partners to communicate positively what they want from each other rather than expecting and being disappointed. It’s important to know yourself and know what you want from your partner and build a strong relationship based on clarity and support.
Can we expect more such inspirational musical contributions from you?
During lockdown, I took my time in producing four new songs and I hope that they will also have a positive, happy and hopeful impact on people. And I always receive requests from people asking me to write about a certain topic. This makes me feel so happy and gives me a sense of responsibility to talk about challenges that we are not aware of.
Your songs have managed to strike a chord with your fans, how did you feel about it?
I felt so happy that my messages through my songs were well received and it put me under more responsibility to deliver the same quality of lyrics and music.
The entire world is going through a challenging time at present. What piece of advice do you have for everyone as an inspirational leader?
The advice I have is the same one that I use every day regardless of the challenges because each one of us is going through many challenges in their lives and nobody has an idea about them. Life itself is challenging, work is challenging, health is challenging and relationships are challenging. So my belief is to put love in everything that we do, appreciate what we have, and instead of focusing and obsessing on how things will happen, just put your genuine and authentic intention out there and things will happen for you in the best way.