Elyanna does not like to be put in a box. It's something the Palestinian-Chilean singer has underlined repeatedly in interviews. Yet despite her dislike of labels, she's currently earning herself one: the young Arab music sensation bringing Arabic-language pop to the global mainstream while challenging perceptions.

Ironically, the 22-year-old never planned to sing in Arabic, her native language; she simply tried it out upon suggestion in a recording studio, as she told the Los Angeles Times in 2022. Her decision to embrace the language has paid off: Her first single, "Ana Lahale" ("I'm my own"), released in 2020, has more than 24 million listens on Spotify. And in 2021, she became one of the headlining artists of the newly founded Universal Arabic Music label, a branch of the Universal Music behemoth.

Recently, Elyanna's fame has taken on a new dimension. In 2023, she became the first Arab artist to sing a full set in Arabic at the Coachella festival in the US. Shortly after, Rolling Stone magazine named her one of its 25 artists to watch that year. So far, 2024 has brought a sold-out North American tour, followed by her highly-anticipated first full-length album, "Woledto" ("I am born"), released on April 12.

Like all her music, the album draws on her Palestinian-Chilean identity, mixing Arab and Latin musical influences. The single "Ganeni" ("Make me crazy"), for instance, combines a reggaeton beat and Latin-flavored trumpets with Middle Eastern drumming and a good dose of ululation.

Ramzi Salti, a professor at Stanford University and the host of "Arabology," a podcast on Arab culture and music, attributes Elyanna's broad global and generational appeal to her ability to seamlessly fuse influences.

"I know my mom, who is 85, will listen to Elyanna and enjoy her, and my nephew here in........

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