Famous Lebanese superstar, Myriam Fares, made an offensive comment in a press conference during Morocco’s Mawazeen Music Festival that infuriated Egyptians. When she was asked why she doesn’t hold concerts in Egypt anymore, she said that her pay was too high for Egyptians, they won’t be able to afford her. A video documenting her comment went viral on social media and outraged fans.

Celebrities were furious as well. Egyptian singer Mahmoud El Esseily took to Twitter saying that she has "coarse" curly hair (which is considered a racist offense in Egypt).

However, Fares apologised yesterday in an official statement. She said that she didn’t mean to offend Egyptians at all, and that her Lebanese accent didn’t help her clarify what she meant. “I meant that my agents couldn’t afford me anymore, which is why I only hold two or three concerts a year in Egypt, like all my fellow colleagues in the business. It’s the sensible thing to do,” Myriam said.

“I never intended to insult my colleagues in the music field. So, no one should try to twist my words into things I would never say,” she added.  “I do come from Lebanon, but my fame skyrocketed in Egypt,” Myriam said at the end of her statement, finishing it as she said, “Tahya Masr”.

In a phone call to the Masa2 DMC show, Hany Shaker, Chief of the Musicians’ Syndicate in Egypt, said that the situation doesn’t warrant all the fuss. “She called me almost having a breakdown because people misunderstood her, saying that she never meant to offend Egyptians like that,” Shaker said. He also added that she promised to make a video and apologise for what happened, and she did.

Myriam apologised in a video before starting her concert in Morocco, where she thanked Hany Shaker for defending her and not misunderstanding her.

_______________________

By Yara Tarek