Henna (song)
Encyclopedia
"Henna" is a song by Swedish
pop artist of Iran
ian origin Cameron Cartio
featuring the raï
French
-Algerian
singer Khaled (musician)
. Music was composed by Alex Papaconstantinou to lyrics by Khaled (Arabic
) and Cameron Cartio in a conlang of his own and by Marcus Englöf. The song was produced by Alex Papaconstantinou and mastered at Cutting Room in Stockholm.
The song was from the debut album of Cameron Cartio entitled Borderless
. The Khaled involvement came after Cameron had brocken up with his girlfriend who was a huge Khaled fan. So Cartio, then an aspiring and relatively unknown artist wrote the lyrics in his own conlang and sent them to Khaled, who agreed to add his own part as a tribute to Cartio's ex-girlfriend.
The song was released on Sony/BMG and Universal
and for the Arab World on EMI Arabia. In addition to popularity in Sweden and throughout the Iranian diaspora, the song became hugely popular the Arab World
basically because of the involvement of Khaled and in the Arab diaspora
.
2006 release in Sweden
Khaled appeared with courtesy of Universal where he was signed
", Cameron Cartio released a Spanish language
version of "Henna" featuring Khaled in Spain with the Cartio conlang being replaced by Spanish, although the Khaled verses in Arabic were kept the same.
A music video with the Spanish lyrics was released by Cameron's brother Alec Cartio
. In addition to the new Spanish version, the 4-track maxi CD included separately the original conlang version and also two remixes by Ferrero.
Tracklist of the Spain release
, Sweden. They performed the song live in the opening ceremonies to the games on 7 August 2006, also broadcast live internationally via the Swedish television station SVT.
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
pop artist of Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
ian origin Cameron Cartio
Cameron Cartio
Kamran Sabahi better known by his stage name Cameron Cartio , born on 9 April 1978) is an Iranian-born Swedish pop singer and songwriter....
featuring the raï
Raï
Raï is a form of folk music that originated in Oran, Algeria from Bedouin shepherds, mixed with Spanish, French, African and Arabic musical forms, which dates back to the 1930s....
French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
-Algerian
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
singer Khaled (musician)
Khaled (musician)
Khaled Hadj Ibrahim , better known as Khaled, is a raï singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist born in Sidi El Houari in Oran Province of Algeria...
. Music was composed by Alex Papaconstantinou to lyrics by Khaled (Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
) and Cameron Cartio in a conlang of his own and by Marcus Englöf. The song was produced by Alex Papaconstantinou and mastered at Cutting Room in Stockholm.
The song was from the debut album of Cameron Cartio entitled Borderless
Borderless (album)
Borderless is the debut album of Cameron Cartio, a Swedish pop singer of Iranian origin. It was released in 2006. - Track listing :# Ni Na Nay - 3:04# Henna - 3:13# Sandy - 3:49# Leyli - 3:01# Roma - 3:03# Ironiam - 3:36...
. The Khaled involvement came after Cameron had brocken up with his girlfriend who was a huge Khaled fan. So Cartio, then an aspiring and relatively unknown artist wrote the lyrics in his own conlang and sent them to Khaled, who agreed to add his own part as a tribute to Cartio's ex-girlfriend.
The song was released on Sony/BMG and Universal
Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group is an American music group, the largest of the "big four" record companies by its commanding market share and its multitude of global operations...
and for the Arab World on EMI Arabia. In addition to popularity in Sweden and throughout the Iranian diaspora, the song became hugely popular the Arab World
Arab world
The Arab world refers to Arabic-speaking states, territories and populations in North Africa, Western Asia and elsewhere.The standard definition of the Arab world comprises the 22 states and territories of the Arab League stretching from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Arabian Sea in the...
basically because of the involvement of Khaled and in the Arab diaspora
Arab diaspora
Arab diaspora refers to Arab immigrants, and their descendants who, voluntarily or as refugees, emigrated from their native lands and now reside in non-Arab countries, primarily in Latin America, and Europe, as well as North America and South Asia, parts of Southeast Asia, the Caribbean, and West...
.
Tracklist
Original 2005 release in Sweden- Henna (3:12)
- Henna (Extended Version) (3:51)
2006 release in Sweden
- Henna (Spanish Version) featuring Khaled (3:12)
- Henna (Original Version) featuring Khaled (3:12)
Khaled appeared with courtesy of Universal where he was signed
Spanish version
As had happened with his earlier 2005 hit "RomaRoma (song)
"Roma" is a 2005 song by Swedish pop singer of Iranian origin Cameron Cartio. It is sung in a conlang, a special language created by Cameron Cartio himself...
", Cameron Cartio released a Spanish language
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
version of "Henna" featuring Khaled in Spain with the Cartio conlang being replaced by Spanish, although the Khaled verses in Arabic were kept the same.
A music video with the Spanish lyrics was released by Cameron's brother Alec Cartio
Alec Cartio
Alec Cartio, full name Alexander Cartio, is an Iranian-Swedish-American music video director. He is also a professional film director and a producer and director of many commercials. He is the brother of Iranian-Swedish performer Cameron Cartio...
. In addition to the new Spanish version, the 4-track maxi CD included separately the original conlang version and also two remixes by Ferrero.
Tracklist of the Spain release
- Henna (Extended Spanish Version) featuring Khaled (3:51)
- Henna (Ferrero Single Remix) featuring Khaled (3:43)
- Henna (Original Version) featuring Khaled (3:13)
- Henna (Ferrero Extended Remix) featuring Khaled (4:10)
In popular culture
Cartio and Khaled were invited to perform the song at the 2006 European Athletics Championships held in August 2006 in GothenburgGothenburg
Gothenburg is the second-largest city in Sweden and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated on the west coast of Sweden, the city proper has a population of 519,399, with 549,839 in the urban area and total of 937,015 inhabitants in the metropolitan area...
, Sweden. They performed the song live in the opening ceremonies to the games on 7 August 2006, also broadcast live internationally via the Swedish television station SVT.