What’s on across the social sphere
Join us as we revisit select trending stories and popular hashtags that captured our attention over the past couple months in our joint summer issue special.
TOP HASHTAG PICKS OF THE MONTH #Qatar
Qatar became the top trending Twitter hashtag both in the region and worldwide after a number of Arab Countries, namely Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain cut off diplomatic relations with the Gulf state, citing its alleged support for terrorism as the main reason behind their dramatic decision. Qatar’s abrupt diplomatic crisis was met with strict measures from the aforementioned countries including various sanctions, trade/travel bans and the withdrawing of ambassadors and received international attention from the world’s leading political leaders, resulting in an extended online debate on the underlying motives and potential political/practical repercussions of the crisis.
#Fairuz
After a prolonged hiatus, Lebanese legend Fairuz marked a longawaited comeback by releasing ‘Lameen’, the first single from her upcoming album titled ‘Bebalee’ on June 21. Based on French singer/composer Gilbert Becaud’s ‘Pour Qui Veille L'etoile’ and adapted to Arabic by none but the singer’s daughter Reema, the single became the most talked about topic on Twitter just minutes after its release on Anghami and apple Music. And while a majority of the public was exhilarated to hear new music from Lebanon’s incontestable legend, other members of the audience expressed mixed feelings about the new release, claiming that it did not live up to their high expectations, which resulted in a nationwide online debate over the issue. On July 13, Fairuz released a second single from her album, a cover of John Lennon’s Imagine titled ‘Yemken’, sparking equally compelling reactions from social media users. The full album is set to be out on September 22.
#HASHTAG OF THE MONTH
The veil continues to be the focal point of Muslim women. Recently, women in Saudi Arabia supported by women worldwide have taken a stance against forced veiling and niqab (full facedvei), launching a hashtag Alniqab la yumasilouni --'Niqab doesn't represent me.' The hashtag has been a hot topic of discussion on social media trending first on Twitter in the KSA but not only. The hashtag has quickly gained traction, becoming the third worldwide trending hashtag on July 20.