Marjaa : the battle of the hotels

The first time we saw Mayssa Jallad was in 2023 for the release of the album Marjaa: the battle of the Hotels. Since then, we’e been waiting and crossing our fingers very (very) hard to be able to host this concert in Liège! Needless to say that we’re particularly happy to be able to launch the music of this “Sorties de Secours" festival with Mayssa Jallad, in the comfort of the seats of the Chiroux theatre.

This first solo album builds an unexpected and masterful bridge between the singer-composer’s two vocations: music and architecture.

It explores the sparks of the Lebanese Civil War in 1975. For five months, opposing factions fought over Beirut’s central hotel district, seeking to dominate the city’s architectural heights. The outcome of this battle determined the East-West dividing line that split the city for more than fifteen years—a violent division that still resonates in Lebanese culture today.

Mayssa Jallad’s songs address the post-war generation who have never been taught this difficult history. They are also a call for renewal (rather than recycling through forgetting) of the political class that holds the people hostage to its historical violence. On stage, they are accompanied by the video creation of filmmaker Ely Dagher.

For Gaza

The civilian population in Gaza continues to be prey to genocide and intolerable suffering. This concert is part of the exhibition For Gaza organised by the Les Chiroux Cultural Center.

From 4 September to 4 October, the exhibition showcases the work of approximately 100 photographers, whose prints will be sold to raise funds for the people of Gaza.

pourgaza.art