Singer/Songwriter Rotana Tarabzouni is a very busy person. She just dropped her second single a month after her first. She debut her upcoming EP at the Sundance Film Festival and is going on tour.
Who is she? A self-proclaimed animal/artist/woman who was born and raised in Saudi Arabia. Her passion for singing and songwriting is forbidden in her home country, so three years ago she moved to Los Angeles to be able to pursue music as a career. Through her music she expresses the emotions she says she feels "too much and just enough at the same time."
Her style of music? She says, "There's a lot of cinema and tension in my music. It comes from the experiences i've had contemplating rebuilding my belief system and the way I love according to what feels right to me and no one else."
Her life journey and personal beliefs come out in her songs.
Tarabzouni told us her second single, "The Cure," is a song about "the crazy, addictive dysfunctional animal that exists in all of us. We hang on to the people and places that surge us back to life and can come to crave it like a substance. I don't think we should be ashamed of it, say it out loud! Let it be. And in turn, take away its power."
This song followed "Daddy," which she said is "a song about coming into your own power and refusing to dilute yourself for anything or anyone."
At Sundance's “A Celebration of Music and Film Concert” she shared the stage with artists such as Common, Andra Day, Jim James, Hunter Hayes, Peter Dinklage, Ava DuVernay and more.
So what more should you know about this spirited and rebellious artist? Here are the top 5 things she wants you to know about her:
What is your favorite color?
Don't have one. They're all way too good.
What is the strangest thing you ever ate?
a cricket.
Which legend of old would you want to mentor you?
Nina Simone
What is your favorite vacation destination?
My inner voice when i can fu**ing hear it.
Name the one living person you feel you must work with.
S A D E
Can't wait to hear Rotana in person? She's got shows upcoming in Abu Dhabi and Paris as well as U.S. dates. Want to totally fangirl over her? Check her out across social media at @iamrotana.