Emad Alaeddin

© Image courtesy of Stefanie Velten

In February 2011, Rolling Stone stated that “We all know you need a thick skin to make it in the music industry. Jordanian singer-songwriter Emad Alaeddin must have a hide like a rhino.”

Emad Alaeddin spent the better part of a decade trying to ‘make it’ in Los Angeles, playing in his hard rock band for a handful of friends. For a period of time, he lived in the band’s rehearsal space in between thrash metal bands that would blast their deafening sounds till daybreak. Emad’s had bottles of beer thrown towards his head while performing and has even been punched out on stage by a crazed fan. Industry representatives thought his voice was annoying and also thought his stage mannerisms were odd.A normal human being would evaluate these signs and call it quits, but Emad pushed forward, partly because of his refusal to accept defeat and partly because he didn’t think it was over yet.

 www.emadalaeddin.com

Biography

Despite being the first Arab to be nominated at the Los Angeles Music Awards in 2007 and winning a couple of songwriting awards in 2008, Emad’s quest for ‘making it’ in Los Angeles had come to an end and it was time to move on, back to his home country of Jordan in 2009.

Without his rock band that he’d been with for so many years, Emad started his solo career and released his debut solo work “Centered”. Pulling songs from his folder that were deemed too ‘poppy’ for his rock band and writing new songs about his decade long tribulations trying to become a bonafide respected musician, Emad came out with an album that found fans throughout Europe, Asia, and even the United States.

His breakout single “Sunshine” made it on heavy rotation on MTV and covered the radio waves of Jordan and the internet. Alaeddin donned the cover of UMen magazine as only the second arab with such an honour, as well as being featured in Rolling Stone.

As a one-man band, Alaeddin has successfully toured the UK, Germany, Spain, China, Jordan, Syria, UAE, and the United states to support his debut solo album. He’s even started his own charity called “Bring Change” that benefit local underfunded school.

Emad is currently working on his new album which will be released Summer 2011 and released the first single off the album, entitled “Don’t Leave Me Here” in March.