At a time where the general public clamours for every little tidbit of information that they can get from their favourite pop stars, Lebanese-Canadian R&B star Massari took the road less travelled when it came to fame. At the height of his popularity, Massari disappeared from the public eye almost entirely, only to re-emerge years later to reclaim his pop crown.
Performing Saturday evening at the iRock Nightclub in Moncton, Massari tells The Times & Transcript that he willfully withdrew himself from the spotlight after the runaway success of his 2005 debut record.
“Getting out of the business for a period of time was the right decision to have made, especially after the success of my first album,” the singer says. “I was young and in a situation where the guys running my record label CP and I knew one another dating back to grade school. We were a bunch of friends that were ultimately able to create something bigger than ourselves and with that came a lot of new experiences. It took me quite some time to understand what was going on because there comes a lot of changes when fame and success come into a young man’s life. I needed to step back and figure things out.”
Massari says that the primary motivation for his self-imposed sabbatical was his desire to not be viewed as a one-hit or one-album wonder but instead to become a career artist.
“I needed to see what it was like to not be the centre of attention for a period of time because it is very unrealistic to believe that myself or any other musician will be on top forever. It can be hard for artists to grasp that concept.”
It would be 2009 before Massari would reappear before Canadian and international audiences. And while his sophomore record Forever Massari might not have made the exact same splash that his debut did here in Canada, the artist quietly set about building himself an international audience.
Fast forward to 2012. His single “Brand New Day” is a hit while his newest single “Shisha” looks to be following in its predecessor’s footsteps. While some might have cautioned Massari against disappearing from the spotlight, he acknowledges that his success is even sweeter the second time around. With more 2.5 million “likes” on his Facebook page and sold-out shows in Paris, Amsterdam and other European cities, it is tough to build much of an argument against his logic.
“These days, it is so easy to suddenly find yourself as last week’s news but my fans are a testament to the power of the people. To come back around and have success once again, I just can’t thank God enough for everything that I have,” he says.
Article published in the May 3, 2013 edition of The Times & Transcript
Sponsored post:
The awesome sound of the NCredible NTunes is available at WIRELESSWAVE stores across Canada. For a limited time, they’re FREE with the activation of select handsets on the Rogers network, so come on down and check them out!