After years of singing covers and performing across Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the UAE, Halah Banna is finally telling a story of her own. Her debut single, “Forsa Tani,” marks her first release as a singer-songwriter and introduces an artist drawn to the messier, more honest sides of human relationships.
Exploring love through its contradictions: hurt and attachment, forgiveness and doubt, longing and distance; the Arabic alternative-rock release offers a glimpse into the musical world Halah is beginning to create. We spoke with the artist about finding her voice, making the leap from performer to songwriter, and the choices behind “Forsa Tani.”
- For those discovering you for the first time through “Forsa Tani,” how would you introduce yourself, not just as a singer, but as the artist you’re becoming?
I am exploring and integrating all the facets of me. Art has always been part of my identity, writing and singing have always been my escape and the place where I explore who I am.
- You describe this release as the beginning of a new chapter. What feels different about Halah Banna the artist today compared to the artist who was performing covers a few years ago?
I think I am finally ready to start sharing my vulnerability through things I express. It has always been a challenge to find what I truly sound like, being very versatile in the genres I sing. What feels different is that I found the spot where I am sounding like myself and not rehearsed versions of how I could sound best.
- The song explores a lot of contradictions: loving someone who hurts you, forgiving them before they’ve even done anything wrong, and missing someone while still recognizing the distance between you. Were these contradictions something you consciously wanted to capture when writing the song?
I must admit it wasn’t easy to reach a point where I write about these things. If you had asked me few years ago, I would say I don’t want to sing about love and relationships, and that they are so cliché, and I think it comes from some self-criticism I held, or a fear of being emotionally exposed. However, when I started writing, I consciously wanted to explore that space when you are in the middle of the contradictory feelings and not reaching a result or a conclusion, and I think a lot of us can relate to that.
- Why did “Forsa Tani” feel like the right song to introduce your original music with?
I think it happened organically because deciding to work on it is when I accepted that I am ready to be true to myself and that there will be no perfect time. And since I wrote and composed it myself, I could relate to every bit of it.
- Was there anything unexpectedly vulnerable about releasing a song that you wrote yourself?
Definitely, letting go of the fear of judgement and realizing that we are the ones who judge ourselves the most.
- Having spent so much time performing other artists’ music, did that experience influence the way you approached songwriting or helped you discover what your own voice should sound like?
I think I am lucky I got to perform and explore different artists’ music in different cultures, and experiment live with what feels closer to me. I have always had the issue of feeling I can’t find my own sound or genre, but again it just happened when I decided to be true to myself.
- When did you first feel that you had found your voice not just as a singer, but as a songwriter and artist?
This year, when I wrote Forsa Tani, I started feeling more comfortable writing other songs and enjoying the process.
- How did your collaboration with Bassem Daouk shape the song from the version you initially imagined to what we hear now?
I was so lucky to work with Bassem Daouk who is an old friend and a super talented musician, producer, and sound engineer. We have had many projects together since 2017 that were mostly unreleased. I knew he was the first person I want to work with, he understands my style and what I like and he captured exactly what I am looking for while keeping space for his own creativity and touch. I am a big fan of his work and the process was a very smooth and we were very aligned. I am 100% proud of what we produced.
- You chose to express this story in Lebanese Arabic. What does Lebanese give you emotionally or lyrically that another language might not?
I never wrote in Lebanese Arabic before, almost everything I wrote since I was a kid was in English, until I started digging deeper within myself and it hit me that our mother tongue is the language of our subconscious mind, so when you are able to express it, it comes from a truer and more vulnerable place, unfiltered. That was a big realization for me and it pushed me to explore with it more. I’d describe it more as trying to find the right and true words that express the emotion while respecting the structure of a song.
- You’ve described Forsa Tani as the beginning of a larger musical world. What can we expect from that world as you continue releasing music?
I have a vision of what I want, but I am trying to enjoy the process especially with everything else I do since I am not a full-time artist. I have more song that I’ve written, I will focus next on few songs that have a similar feel as Forsa Tani and I also have in mind other ones that would fit in different genres. I think the challenge now is to keep up with what I started and to commit to following what makes me feel alive.
