Mai Selim Hamdan (Arabic: مي سليم حمدان‎) (born in 1983 in Dubai), commonly… Read Full Bio ↴Mai Selim Hamdan (Arabic: مي سليم حمدان‎) (born in 1983 in Dubai), commonly Known as Mai Selim, is a young Arabic artist who started off her singing career in early 2005. Sister of Comedian Mais Hamdan. Born in Dubai to a Jordanian father, and a Lebanese mother Mai soon came to settle in Egypt where she grew up and met most of her close friends. Her love for arts and performing started at a very young age, and she wanted to be a ballerina, later on she shifted towards singing, where she joined the school choir.

She moved form performing with a group to performing within a duet. After graduating high school Mai toyed with the idea of joining Institute of Cinema in Egypt, but her parents didn’t agree. "They talked me into seeing it their own way by talking me into the idea of having a stable future and a career life" she says.

Instead she registered for a degree at the Maritime Academy majoring in Business Administration. The corporate world of facts and figures seems so far removed from her personality, yet she insisted on finishing and getting her degree. Looking back, Mai wonders what she would have done with a business degree if she had not signed with a music company. She has no problem admitting that she owes her first record deal to pure luck.

"I won't lie and give you the clichéd line of I've been working towards this all my life since I was a child and all that stuff. I knew I had a very strong artistic side to me, and I had a strong passion towards music, but I never thought I'd make a career out of it one day" she admits. One night, as she was invited for dinner, she met Tarek Al Arian, the well known film director.

Shoftak Be Albi
Mai Selim Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

شفتك ب قلبي و بعنيا
حسيت ب حبك حوليا
ولقتني جمبي ف ثواني والله كان بادري عليا
شفتك ب قلبي و بعنيا
حسيت ب حبك حوليا
ولقتني جمبي ف ثواني والله كان بادري عليا
خلتني اصدق اني معاك محتاجه نظرت حنيه
احضني نفسي اكون وياك شوف ايه عدد حبك ليا

خلتني اصدق اني معاك محتاجه نظرت حنيه
احضني نفسي اكون وياك شوف ايه عدد حبك ليا
من كل لحظه والتنيا بعيش معاك اجمل دنيا
خليني جمبك و ف حضنك مش عايزه ابعد ولا ثانيه

خلتني اصدق اني معاك محتاجه نظرة حنيه
احضني نفسي اكون وياك شوف ايه عدد حبك ليا

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Mai Selim's song "Shoftak Be Albi" express the intense feelings of love and affection the singer harbors for the object of her affections. The opening couplet "Shoftak Be Albi W Be 3enya/ Has yet be 7obak 7awlya" (I saw you in my heart and in my eyes/ And felt your love surrounding me) sets the stage for the rest of the song. The singer then goes on to describe how she feels blessed to have the love of the person she's singing to, and that meeting them was like a blessing from God.

The chorus of the song is a repetition of a couplet, "Khaltney asde2 enny ma3ak/ Me7taga nazarit hanea" (You made me believe that I'm with you/ Needing your affectionate gaze). The singer then openly expresses her desire to be with this person and never leave their side, and just to be embraced by them is all she wants. The final part of the song repeats the chorus, and the longing for the person in question comes across as genuine and heartfelt.

Line by Line Meaning

شفتك ب قلبي و بعنيا
I saw you in my heart and my thoughts

حسيت ب حبك حوليا
I felt your love around me

ولقتني جمبي ف ثواني والله كان بادري عليا
You found me next to you in seconds and it was like you already knew

خلتني اصدق اني معاك محتاجه نظرت حنيه
You made me believe that I'm with you and in need of your affectionate gaze

احضني نفسي اكون وياك شوف ايه عدد حبك ليا
Embrace me, I want to be with you and see how much you love me

من كل لحظه والتنيا بعيش معاك اجمل دنيا
Every moment and every passing day, I live with you the most beautiful world

خليني جمبك و ف حضنك مش عايزه ابعد ولا ثانيه
Let me be close to you in your embrace, I don't want to be away for even a second

خلتني اصدق اني معاك محتاجه نظرة حنيه
You made me believe that I'm with you and in need of your affectionate gaze

احضني نفسي اكون وياك شوف ايه عدد حبك ليا
Embrace me, I want to be with you and see how much you love me

Contributed by Carter E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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