Music

Kurdish pop star NOURI opens show for New Zealand’s largest band

Kurdish pop star NOURI was the opening act for one of New Zealand’s biggest bands on Saturday during a concert that drew a crowd of 22,000 people.

Karzan Sulaivany 2021/01/24 02:01

Kurdish singer and songwriter NOURI performs in front of a crowd of 22,000 in Hastings, New Zealand, Jan. 23, 2021. (Photo: NOURI)

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ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Kurdish pop star NOURI was the opening act for one of New Zealand’s biggest bands on Saturday during a concert that drew a crowd of 22,000 people amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

New Zealand has set the bar for the rest of the world in terms of its handling of COVID-19. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has navigated the country around the global pandemic while governments around the world, meanwhile, continue to grapple with lockdowns and different restrictions.

That success is why New Zealand’s largest band “SIX60” was able to perform in front of hundreds of people in Hastings, New Zealand—the largest concert of 2021 so far.

Nour23232 — The stage is prepared for Kurdish artist NOURI before her performance at a concert in Hastings New Zealand, Jan. 23, 2021.

Six — New Zealand's largest band "SIX60" perform during a concert in Hastings, New Zealand, Jan. 23, 2021.

After performing on Saturday, NOURI says she is now focusing on completing her first EP, which she plans to release later this year.

“Hopefully once it’s out I can tour because I love performing and meeting my fans,” she told Kurdistan 24 on Sunday.

Since making her introduction in November 2018, NOURI has quickly become a rising star, receiving plaudits for her work from many Middle East as well as Western media.

Like many people affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, NOURI has been forced to work from home. She previously relayed to Kurdistan 24 the challenging transition the global event caused, which affected her creative process.

“Everything changed so fast, and you couldn’t really prepare for it,” she said in May 2020. “I’m so used to being in the same room as artists, producers, and writers where you feed off the energy in the room.”

Although studio sessions have been adapted to FaceTime or Zoom calls, and face-to-face collaboration is limited, NOURI still managed to release her latest song “yalla yalla” in December 2020.