Banna was born in Nazareth, where she graduated from Nazareth Baptist School. She lived in Nazareth with her three children.
She died on 24 March 2018, aged 51, in a hospital in her hometown of Nazareth, Palestine following a lengthy and brave battle with breast cancer, which she openly shared with her numerous fans through social media. She met her husband, Ukrainian guitarist Leonid Alexeyenko, while studying music together at the Higher Music Conservatory in Moscow and they married in 1991, and divorced in 2010.
Banna first achieved popularity in the early 1990s, after recording her own versions of traditional Palestinian children's songs that were on the verge of being forgotten.
Banna also composed her own songs and set Palestinian poetry to music. Her message is often focused on the suffering of Palestinians. Her music is described as "haunting, emotional, at times bordering on kitsch." She described her music as a means of cultural self-assertion:
A part of our work consists of collecting traditional Palestinian texts without melodies. So that the texts do not get lost, we try to compose melodies for them that are modern, yet inspired by traditional Palestinian music.
In this way, Banna does more than mimic the traditional techniques and representations of the pieces she interprets. She blends them with modern singing styles because,
Oriental singing techniques are mostly ornamental… But my voice is more two-dimensional, thicker. I try to write songs that fit my voice. I want to create something new in every respect. And that includes bringing people elsewhere closer to the music and soul of the Palestinians.
She performed live in the West Bank and she reached audiences in Gaza through live webcasts. She performed her first concert in Syria on 8 January 2009 and also performed in Tunisia on 25 July 2011. Her first concert in Beirut took place on 22 March 2012.
Banna's popularity in Europe began after Norwegian music producer Erik Hillestad invited her to participate on the CD Lullabies from the Axis of Evil (2003) and Norwegian singer Kari Bremnes, who also took part on this production in a duet with Rim Banna, invited her to Oslo. Banna accepted the invitation, and the two artists did a show together.
The album, dubbed "a musical antiwar message to U.S. President Bush from female singers in Palestine, Iraq, Iran, and Norway," brings these women together with others from North Korea, Syria, Cuba, and Afghanistan, to sing traditional lullabies from their lands in duet form with English-language performers whose translation allows the songs to reach a Western audience.
The Mirrors of My Soul, which was dedicated to all the Palestinian and Arab political detainees in the Israeli prisons, is a stylistic departure from her previous body of work. Produced in cooperation with a Norwegean quintet, it features "Western pop styling" fused with Middle Eastern modal and vocal structures, and Arabic lyrics.
Although the style differs from previous recordings, the subject matter has basically remained constant. The album includes "songs of despair and hope" about the lives of "a struggling people, and even a song about late Palestinian leader and PA president Arafat in a way that is both thoughtful and subtle".
Discography
Jafra (1985)
Your tears Mother (1986)
The Dream (1993)
New Moon (1995)
Mukaghat (1996)
Al Quds Everlasting (2002)
Krybberom (2003) Rim Banna & SKRUK
Lullabies from the Axis of Evil (2003 – Various female artists)
The Mirrors of My Soul (2005, Valley Entertainment)
This was not my story (2006) Rim Banna & Henrik Koitz
Seasons of violet (2007)
Songs across Walls of Separation (2008 – Various artists from the Middle East, Africa, Central America, North America, and Europe)
April Blossoms (2009) an album for children, was dedicated to the children martyrs in Gaza
A Time to cry (2010), was recorded in one of the houses in Sheikh Jarrah under constant threat of eviction from the part of their house (with three Palestinian singers)
"Tomorrow" (Bokra) 2011, a single song of the American legend composer Quincy Jones, who chose Rim Banna to represent Palestine in this project which will be released in an Album and a video clip in September 2011
Revelation of Ecstasy and Rebellion (2013); produced by Bugge Wesseltoft
Songs from a Stolen Spring (2014, Valley Entertainment/Kirkelig Kulturverksted - Various Artists), featuring "Break Your Fears"
The Sun of Love
Rim Banna Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
When the hearts had brightened
Love is more delicious for me
Than what is told by the intelligent and wise ones
Thou love, your majesty, don't go away from me
Then life will be non joyful
No man can have clear and quiet heart
Poem by Ibn Arabi (Al Andalus 1164 1240)
The song "The Sun of Love" by Rim Banna is a beautiful ode to the power of love in our lives. Through her lyrics, Banna suggests that it is the sun of love that brings brightness to our hearts and makes life more enjoyable for us. She asserts that love is a feeling that cannot be fully understood or described by rational thinking alone, and its richness is more profound than what can be articulated by the wise and intelligent people in the world.
The poem by Ibn Arabi that Banna refers to in the lyrics underlines that true love is not a fleeting emotion. Rather, it is the essence of life that sustains us, providing us with joy and happiness, but its absence can make our life dull and meaningless. The poet implies that only when we experience the presence of our beloved, we can have a clear and serene heart, which is free from all anxiety and doubts.
Overall, the song's message is one of hope and encouragement, reminding us that we should cherish the love that we have in our lives and hold onto it with all our might.
Line by Line Meaning
The sun of love had appeared in ourselves
We have discovered the warmth and radiance of love within ourselves
When the hearts had brightened
When love entered our hearts, it illuminated and enlivened them
Love is more delicious for me
I cherish the taste and experience of love more than any knowledge or wisdom
Than what is told by the intelligent and wise ones
The insights of scholars and intellectuals cannot compare to the sweetness and richness of love in my life
Thou love, your majesty, don't go away from me
I beg you, love, to stay by my side and continue to bless me with your presence and affection
Then life will be non joyful
Without the warmth and light of love, life will be dull and joyless
No man can have clear and quiet heart
No one can truly experience peace and tranquility in their heart without the presence of their beloved
But when his beloved reveals himself to him
Only when the person they love shows them love in return can someone truly feel content and at peace
Poem by Ibn Arabi (Al Andalus 1164 1240)
This beautiful poem was written by the great Sufi philosopher and poet Ibn Arabi, who lived in Al Andalus in the 12th and 13th centuries
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Rim Banna
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@omarlaghmiche5561
شمس الهوى في النفوس لاحت
فأشرقت عندها القلوب
الحب اشهى إليّ مما
يقوله العارف اللبيب
يا حُبّ مولاي
لا تولّي عنّي
فالعيش لا يطيب
لا أنس يصفو
للقلب إلا إذا
تجلّى له الحبيب
@L_Nadia_Sol
The sun of love had appeared in ourselves
When the hearts had brightened
Love is more delicious for me
Than what is told by the intelligent and wise ones
Thou love, your majesty, don't go away from me
Then life will be non joyful
No man can have clear and quiet heart
But when his beloved reveals himself to him
This is what I found... is this accurate?
@benjaminvaldesalvarez2557
Aquí dejo una traducción que hice al poema directamente del árabe, junto a una muy personal transliteración al español mexicano, en caso de que a alguien le surja el deseo de cantar mientras lee. Eso sí, les advierto que no soy un traductor profesional ni por asomo, solo soy un ciudadano con un poco de tiempo libre que gusta del idioma árabe, Ibn Arabí y las canciones de Rim Banna, así que es posible que esta versión contenga varios errores.
شمسُ الهوى
Shamsu alhawaa
Sol del amor
شمسُ الهوى في النفوسِ لاحتْ
Shamsu alhawaa fi nufusi lahat
El sol del amor brilla en las almas
فأشرقتْ عندها القلوبُ
Fa ashraqat aindaha al qulub
Y refulgen con él los corazones
الحبُّ أشهى إليّ مما
Alhubu ash-ha ilai mima
El amor me deleita
يقوله العارفُ اللبيبُ
Yaquluhu al’arifu alabib
más que los dichos del sabio y el conocedor.
يا حبَّ مولاي لا تولِّ
Ya hubba maulay la tuali
Oh Amor, señor mío. No ordenes sobre mí
عني فالعيشُ لا يطيب
Any falaishu la iattib
Que la vida no sea placentera.
لا أنس يصفو للقلبِ
La unsun iasfu lilqalbi ilaa
La alegría no será plena en el corazón
إذا تجلَّى له الحبيبُ إلا
Idaa tayala lahu al habib
A menos que se le revele el ser amado.
@zozokoko1577
أتعلمين عزيزتي ريم كم أنا نادمه لاني لم أسمع لنصيحتك بالقدوم الى القاهره عام ٢٠١٣ لحضور حفلك هناك وأجلت الحضور للحفل الاتي، لم اكن اعلم ان ليس هناك حفل آتي ..
@farahnarjis2038
الله يرحمها 😭💔
@sirineabbaci8123
وما الندم بعد القظا ادعو لها ب الرحمة
@moukamouka7373
💔
@hamadel_neil2488
اول مرة اسمع عنها كان في 2005 اظن وكان امنيتي ان احضر لها حفل وكانت اغنية طير يا هوى اول اغنية اسمع لها في برنامج على قناة الحرة لكن لم اتابع مسيرتها الفنية من وقت طويل و اتفاجأت امس الاثنين 19 ابريل 2022انها قد فارقت الحياة. الله يرحمك.
@rosekalifa2076
@@hamadel_neil2488 توفيت بعد معاناه من مرض السرطان
@87Anees
My 6 month old baby heard this song and started crying. He was struck with the emotions. Beautiful beautiful song.
@nate_a3655
I bet he was just scared LMFAOOOO
@omarlaghmiche5561
شمس الهوى في النفوس لاحت
فأشرقت عندها القلوب
الحب اشهى إليّ مما
يقوله العارف اللبيب
يا حُبّ مولاي
لا تولّي عنّي
فالعيش لا يطيب
لا أنس يصفو
للقلب إلا إذا
تجلّى له الحبيب
@jhonyteconozco
No entiendo el árabe pero amo ésta música.Saludos y buenos deseos para los pueblos oprimidos del mundo desde Colombia