ABU DHABI: South Korean DJ and singer Peggy Gou is no stranger to the Middle East. She wowed fans this week at the Louvre Abu Dhabi in the UAE, performing in celebration of the newly opened exhibition “From Kalila wa Dimna to La Fontaine: Travelling through Fables,” and revealed that she would consider collaborating with Arab artists.

She told Arab News the morning after the event: “I woke up this morning and was thinking what happened last night. It is one of those events that is so meaningful. I’ve been to Abu Dhabi twice just to see the exhibitions. It’s more than a museum to me. It is a community, where people even go to hang out. That’s how beautiful that place is.”

Gou was among the first performers to take the stage at the Louvre Abu Dhabi in front of an audience, she said.

“I know David Guetta did it once before without an audience during COVID-19 … It was my first time playing in Abu Dhabi. It was insane. It was a very, very special night, and I want to do more,” she added. 

Gou incorporates Arab-inspired music into her performances, noting that “people just love it, and they love percussion.”

To the artist, music is like a feeling. “It is really hard to rationalize it,” she said. “When you love it, you just love it,” she added, expressing her admiration for Arab melodies.

“This is maybe the reason why people support my music, even though they don’t understand the language. Sometimes they just feel it, they just love it,” she explained. 

“I love our music, but at the same time, I’m considering collaborating with an Arab artist because there are a lot of talented Arab musicians here,” she said. “I have many friends here who recommended me some artists, and I want to check it out.

“I never say no. I love making music with different languages.” 

Gou has performed in Saudi Arabia multiple times.

“Every time I go there, it’s different. But what I can say is it’s always changing in a good way. In the very beginning, I felt like they weren’t going to understand my music,” she recalled.

But the DJ said that her last performance in AlUla was one of her favorites. “People were just shouting, screaming, and dancing as if there was no tomorrow,” she said.

DUBAI: American-Dutch-Palestinian model Bella Hadid has unveiled “skin perfumes,” the inaugural products of her new brand, Orebella.

The runway sensation turned to Instagram on Wednesday to showcase images of her fragrances, which are named “Salted Muse,” “Blooming Fire” and “Window2Soul.”

Crafted from glass and adorned with a gold cap, the bottles are offered in 10 ml, 50 ml and 100 ml.

Hadid in her caption described the fragrances as “hydrating, alcohol-free and enriched with essential oils.” She urged her followers to “shake to activate the transformative bi-phase formula.”

The “Salted Muse” perfume has “top notes” of sea salt, pink pepper and carbon dioxide extract, “heart notes” of olive tree accord, fig and lavender, and “base notes” of cedarwood, sandalwood and amber, according to reports.

The “Blooming Fire” fragrance has bergamot, cedarwood, clove leaf and cardamom, followed by Tahitian monoi and jasmine, and finishes with patchouli.

The “Window2Soul” scent has a blend of lemon, geranium and mint in its top notes, transitions to jasmine and damask rose, and concludes with a base of tonka bean.

The brand will launch on May 2.

Hadid wrote on her website: “For me, fragrance has always been at the center of my life — helping me feel in charge of who I am and my surroundings,” she said. “From my home to nostalgic memories, to my own energy and connection with others, scent has been an outlet for me. It made me feel safe in my own world.”

“Through my healing journey, I found that I was extremely sensitive to the alcohol in traditional perfumes — both physically and mentally — it became something that was more overwhelming than calming to me,” she added. “That is the main reason I wanted to find an alternative, so essential oils became an artistic and experimental process for me.”

She started growing lavender on her farm, walking through the garden every morning and learning about her family’s tradition of making homemade scents. “I realized I might have a calling in this. I found healing, joy, and love within nature’s scents,” she said.

“This is why I am so proud of Orebella. It was truly a dream and a passion, that through the universe and authentic dedication, was able to become this brand,” she wrote.