LOS ANGELES: Iraqi singer Rahma Riad recently released a new single as part of the lead-up to the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, the first World Cup to be hosted in the Arab world. The performer was approached about the anthem, “Light the Sky,” during the 2021 FIFA Arab Cup.

“I got very excited being an Iraqi artist participating in the World Cup and being an Arab who is present in the World Cup is also important. It’s a big responsibility and, of course, I thank FIFA for putting its trust in us as young artists and we were up to the responsibility and we did a good job,” Riad told Arab News.

The single, which features a shout out to the female referees officiating the tournament, was performed by Riad and fellow Arab singers Balqees, Nora Fatehi and Manal; and is produced by Grammy-winning RedOne, a Dubai-based, Moroccan Swedish producer. 

The majority of the song is not in Arabic, however, a choice which Riad says was intentional.

“It’s an international song. It’s a song about the World Cup and is not specific to Arabs only. There are foreign countries participating in the World Cup, so we wanted to represent the world from the Arab world,” said Riad.

Two other World Cup anthems were also released ahead of the November mega-event. Qatari singer Aisha teamed up with Nigerian Afro-pop star Davido and US singer Trinidad Cardona on the very first World Cup track “Hayya Hayya,” released in April this year.

In August, the World Cup crew released “Arhbo,” featuring Puerto Rican reggaeton star Ozuna and French hip-hop artist Gims.

As she prepares to cheer along with her fellow fans for the upcoming games, Riad is also in talks to perform at the upcoming Riyadh Season 2022 and hopes that schedules permit her to perform in Saudi Arabia.

“Saudi Arabia is surely in a big and important development right now and we thank them as they are always doing a lot of cultural exchange through art, so we hope to be able to continue our successful concerts in Saudi,” she said.