For a few tense minutes at Jordan’s Jerash Festival in September 2021, thousands of fans feared the worst. Lebanese singer Majida El Roumi, a towering figure in Arabic music, suddenly lost her balance and fainted during her performance on the historic Southern Theatre stage.
Video from the night shows the artist struggling to stand as musicians rush to support her. The audience begins chanting her name as she is escorted off stage, and the show is abruptly halted.
A Health Scare, Then a Return
Festival organizers later explained that El Roumi experienced a sudden drop in blood sugar, causing her to lose consciousness briefly. Medical staff attended to her backstage. Around ten minutes later, to loud applause and visible relief, she returned to the microphone and continued the concert.
The moment instantly circulated across social media, not only as a health update but as a symbol of resilience: a 60-something Lebanese icon, in the middle of regional economic and political turmoil, insisting on finishing her set under the Jerash lights.
An Artist with Decades of History
Born in Kfarshima in 1956, Majida El Roumi grew up in a musical household led by her father, composer Halim El Roumi. Over the years, she became one of the Arab world’s most respected voices, combining classical Arabic repertoire with patriotic songs and spiritual themes.
Beyond music, she has been active in humanitarian and cultural initiatives, serving as an ambassador for organizations such as the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization and participating in campaigns around poverty, education, and children’s rights.
Jerash: A Stage with Meaning
The Jerash Festival of Culture and Arts, held among Roman ruins in northern Jordan, is one of the Arab world’s most prestigious summer stages. Artists from across the region view an invitation there as both an honor and a responsibility, especially in the festival’s first editions after the COVID-19 shutdowns.
El Roumi’s decision to resume singing after her fall added a layer of drama to an already symbolic night—the reopening of a major regional festival during a difficult period for live music and cross-border travel.
Fans: Reaction Across the Region
Reactions from Lebanon and the wider Arab world mixed concern with admiration. Many fans framed her return to the stage as an extension of how they have long perceived her: dignified, committed, and unwilling to abandon an audience.
For Nowleb readers, the incident is less about a single health scare and more about what Majida El Roumi represents: continuity in a musical landscape that has changed dramatically, and a reminder that even the most carefully staged performances remain vulnerable to human fragility.
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