Hatem Al Iraqi

He was born in the city of Al-Thawra in the capital, Baghdad. His real name is Hatem Mashhout Abbas Al-Azzawi, to a family consisting of six boys and two girls. He is the eldest of his brothers, his brother, the artist Ali Hatem. His father worked as a driver and Hatem worked as an oil salesman. He started singing while he was in school, then he sang at weddings. His career began in the late 1990s. His first album, “Khaleh Al-Asmar,” and then “Think of You” in the same year, is the reason for his name. In Iraqi, it means that one of the presenters of a concert in which Hatem was going to sing had forgotten the artist’s family name, so his nickname was “Iraqi.” Hatem was influenced in his artistic beginning by the artist Qahtan Al-Attar and by Iraqi popular songs. He left Iraq in 2003 after the American invasion of Iraq, the dissolution of security, and his inability to continue his artistic career. He is married to his cousin, Azhar, and has four sons and a daughter named Nour, and four sons, Ahmed, Asaad, Uday, and Qusay, who became professional artists. He released a large group of albums, participated in many festivals in many Arab and foreign countries, and collaborated with many artists, including the artist Kazem Al-Saher, who sang the song “Hala Aini” from the bar, the artist Muhannad Mohsen, and the artist Walid Al-Shami. He also composed songs for many artists, including the artist Shatha Hassoun, the artist Saber Al-Rubai, the artist Fayez Al-Saeed, and the artist Rahma Riad.