Sherine Abdel Wahab faces sharp criticism after Mawazine Festival performance in Morocco

Despite her absence from the Moroccan music scene for over nine years, Egyptian star Sherine Abdel Wahab returned to the stage in a grand concert that concluded the Mawazine Festival in Morocco on Saturday evening, amidst a massive audience estimated at around 200,000 people, according to the festival organizers and Moroccan media.

However, the highly anticipated concert turned into a wide controversy on social media after Sherine started her singing performance with the use of playback technology, which angered some attendees and led some to withdraw from the concert.

Soon, the audience's voices rose demanding Sherine to sing live, prompting her to quickly respond and return to live performance, presenting a bouquet of her famous songs such as "Ah Ya Leil", "Ana Mesh Beta'at El Kalam Da", and "Ala Bali", amidst a great audience interaction that revitalized the concert.

Despite rectifying the situation, comments flooded social media criticizing her initial use of playback, questioning: "Where is the real voice?", especially after a long wait for her stage appearance.

Some also pointed out that her voice seemed strained even during live singing.

On the other hand, Sherine received wide support from several celebrities including Tamer Hosny, Ghada Abdel Razek, and Shaimaa Seif, who defended her performance and praised her popularity. Additionally, her fans launched a wide support campaign, affirming that she still leads the Arab music scene despite everything.

The criticisms did not stop at Sherine's performance alone, but also extended to the organization of the concert, as a Moroccan media figure mentioned organizational chaos and insufficient spaces for attendees, causing dissatisfaction among the audience and leading some to leave.

It is worth noting that Sherine had been absent from public concerts for a long time due to personal conflicts and repeated family crises, especially with her ex-husband, the artist Hossam Habib, which increased the anticipation of her fans for this artistic appearance.