The Swedish singer Salem Al Fakir is the voice on Avicii’s hits ‘Silhouettes’ and ‘You Make Me.’ He also sang on ‘Hey Brother’ on a Avicii by Avicii remix and is one of the masterminds behind the Swedish DJ’s latest hit ‘Waiting for Love.’ The latter song is co-written by Salem Al Fakir, Vincent Pontare, Martin Garrix and Simon Aldred. Aldred also sings on the track and is the lead singer of the group Cherry Ghost.
An established artist in Sweden, Salem Al Fakir released his debut in 2006 with the album This Is Who I Am. His breakthrough came in 2010 when ‘Keep On Walking’ became a No.3 hit, finishing as a runner-up on the Swedish leg of the Eurovision Song Contest.
Salem Al Fakir – Keep On Walking (Melodifestivalen 2010)
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With 183 points in the Melodifestivalen final, he was beaten by Anna Bergendahl’s 214 points for ‘This Is My Life.’ Anna Bergendahl, a top five Idol finalist, is the only artist ever to not qualify for the Eurovision Song Contest final. The singer-songwriter did not benefit from Idol fame and did not go well with the international audience in the Oslo semi-final.
Anna Bergendahl – This Is My Life (Melodifestivalen Winner 2010)
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In addition to Avicii’s collaboration, Salem Al Fakir is working closely with Axwell and Ingrosso. Al Fakir has co-written ‘Something New’ as well ‘Sun Is Shining.’ He also provided vocals on ‘Sun Is Shining,’ which was featured in a recent H&M TV ad. As the music blog Planet Salem points out, the track has been around online for quite a while and hopefully it will break internationally this summer.
H&M Summer 2015: Summer Starts Now! (Axwell and Ingrosso feat. Salem Al Fakir & Vincent Pontare – Sun Is Shining)
According to the news daily Expressen, Salem Al Fakir and Vincent Pontare claims that the Axwell and Ingrosso tracks ‘Sun Is Shining’ and ‘On My Way’ are inspired by Simon and Garfunkel.
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