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 first rain
Rim Banna Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
فـي ليلة المطر الاول اتـذكـرك حبيبـي
طـيـفـا يـسـافـر فـي صـقـيـع ليلـي
و يـأتـي صـوتـك دفـئـا عـلـى ليلـي
حبيبتـي هل تسمعين حبيبتي هل تسمعـيـن
وقع المطر الاول على شباكي يذكرني بكي
بـطـيـفـك الـمسافر فـي صـقيع ليلـي
يـتـسـاقـط الـمـطر الاول على شباكـي
فـي ليلة المطر الاول اتـذكـرك حبيبـي
طـيـفـا يـسـافـر فـي صـقـيـع ليلـي
و يـأتـي صـوتـك دفـئـا عـلـى ليلـي
حبيبتـي هل تسمعين حبيبتي هل تسمعـيـن
وقع المطر الاول على شباكي يذكرني بكي
بـطـيـفـك الـمسافر فـي صـقيع ليلـي
تـعـالــي الـي او خــذيـنـي الـيـك
الــى الـف نـجـمـة تـتـوسد عـينيـك
تـعـالــي الـي او خــذيـنـي الـيـك
الــى الـف نـجـمـة تـتـوسد عـينيـك
وليتساقط المطر الاول اغنيات لا تنتهي على شباكنا
تـعـالــي الـي او خــذيـنـي الـيـك
الــى الـف نـجـمـة تـتـوسد عـينيـك
تـعـالــي الـي او خــذيـنـي الـيـك
الــى الـف نـجـمـة تـتـوسد عـينيـك
تـعـالــي الـي او خــذيـنـي الـيـك
الــى الـف نـجـمـة تـتـوسد عـينيـك
تـعـالــي الـي او خــذيـنـي الـيـك
الــى الـف نـجـمـة تـتـوسد عـينيـك
تعــــالي الـــي وليتساقط المطر الاول
The lyrics of the song "The First Rain" by Rim Banna describe the feeling of nostalgia and love for someone who is absent. The first rain of the night reminds the singer of her lover's spectral presence that travels through the coldness of the night. However, his voice brings warmth to her night. The singer asks her lover if he can hear the sound of the rain and claims it reminds her of him.
The chorus repeats this feeling of being reminded of the lover's presence by the sound of the first rain. The singer asks her lover to take her to the stars where she can feel his presence. She wishes for the first rain to sing endless songs on their window.
The song is a beautiful representation of love and the effect that nature has on us. The sound of the first rain is particularly significant in the Arab world, where it is considered a blessing that brings good luck, particularly for farmers.
Line by Line Meaning
يـتـسـاقـط الـمـطر الاول على شباكـي
The first rain falls on my window
فـي ليلة المطر الاول اتـذكـرك حبيبـي
In the first night of rain, I remember you, my love
طـيـفـا يـسـافـر فـي صـقـيـع ليلـي
Your ghost travels through my freezing night
و يـأتـي صـوتـك دفـئـا عـلـى ليلـي
And your voice comes as warmth over my night
حبيبتـي هل تسمعين حبيبتي هل تسمعـيـن
My beloved, do you hear me? My beloved, do you hear me?
وقع المطر الاول على شباكي يذكرني بكي
The first rain on my window reminds me of you
بـطـيـفـك الـمسافر فـي صـقيع ليلـي
Your ghost, travelling through my freezing night
تـعـالــي الـي او خــذيـنـي الـيـك
Come to me or take me to you
الــى الـف نـجـمـة تـتـوسد عـينيـك
To the thousands of stars lining your eyes
وليتساقط المطر الاول اغنيات لا تنتهي على شباكنا
If only the first rain would fall songs that never end on our window
Contributed by Avery S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Rose Rose
يتساقطُ المطر على شباكي
في ليلةِ المطر الاول اتذكرك حبيبي
طيفً يسافر في صقيع ليلي
ويأتي صوتك دفئاً على ليلي
حبيبتي هل تسمعين
وقعُ المطر الأول على شباكي يذكرني بكِ
بطيفكِ المسافرِ في صقيعِ ليلي
تعالي إليّ او خذيني اليكِ
إلى ألفِ نجمةٍ تتوسدُ عينيكِ
وليتساقط المطرُ الاول أغنياتٍ لا تنتهي على شباكنا
Rose Rose
يتساقطُ المطر على شباكي
في ليلةِ المطر الاول اتذكرك حبيبي
طيفً يسافر في صقيع ليلي
ويأتي صوتك دفئاً على ليلي
حبيبتي هل تسمعين
وقعُ المطر الأول على شباكي يذكرني بكِ
بطيفكِ المسافرِ في صقيعِ ليلي
تعالي إليّ او خذيني اليكِ
إلى ألفِ نجمةٍ تتوسدُ عينيكِ
وليتساقط المطرُ الاول أغنياتٍ لا تنتهي على شباكنا
VİX '
احب هذه الاغنية جدا، الله يرحمك يا ريم🖤
nancy aladdin
Rest in peace Rim Banna ❤️
Nour N
6/12/2018 في هاد الجو الممطر ، بحب أقول اشتقت لك بشكل فظيع ووقع المطر الأول على شباكي يذكرني بكِ 💚🌸
Sana deeb
أكثر من مجرد صوت وأغنية 🥺🤍
Muddather Abuzaid
تحفه بجد .. :)
Gakat Noor-nib
كل نغمة منك ستذكرنا بك يا صادقة في صقيع ظلماتنا يا ريم.
Yara sa
ما طبيعي الجمال
Meryem Ibrahim
رحلت الى بارئك التي رحمته وسعت كل شي حيث لامرض ولا الم بعد اليوم رحلت الى الراحه الابديه،،، 💙💚❤💜💙💙❤💔❤❤❤💔💔💔💔💔شكراً لك يارب ابقيت صوتها الدافئ لكل محبيها،، اللهم تغمدها برحمتك يارحيم الرحمين
Ben Mohamed
Femme entière .intellectuelle accomplie humaniste .Elle contuera à nous donner èspoir joie