Dearborn Mayor Jack O’Reilly giving El Helani the key to the city at his office at city hall.

DEARBORN — Lebanese superstar singer and philanthropist Assi El El helani continued his tour of southeast Michigan on Monday, November 8 with a visit to Dearborn City Hall.

The 39-year-old native of Baalbeck, Lebanon, whose son Walid was born in Dearborn, received a key to the city in a private gathering with Dearborn Mayor Jack O’Reilly and Arab American leaders as well as a special edition city seal for his son. O’Reilly invited him to perform at the Ford Community and Performing Arts Center in Dearborn in future concerts.

Earlier in the day, El helani visited Lowrey Middle School in Dearborn to meet with students and to encouraged them to stay in school and concentrate on their studies, respect their parents, open their hearts and minds to others and be respectful of other cultures while preserving their proud Arabic heritage and culture. El helani reminded the students that Arabs contributed a lot to Western civilizations and urged them to be proud of who they are.

El helani has been active in numerous causes as he is an ambassador for the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) and he has also performed at numerous charity concerts in the Middle East for a variety of causes including the Women’s Development Association Hayati.

El Helani (far right) receives the King-Chavez-Parks Visiting Professorship award from Kenneth Fischer (L) and others at the University of Michigan’s Hill Auditorium. TAAN Publisher Osama Siblani (C) and Acting Lebanese Consul General in Detroit Bachir Tawk (in red tie) are also present.

El helani was welcomed by more than 250 students at the school auditorium where he spoke and  answered their questions. The students, mostly Arab American, celebrated his upcoming Nov. 28 birthday with a cake and gave him presents in the form of mini-statues of his favorite animal, horses.

El helani also performed at the Hill Audtorium at The University of Michigan-Ann Arbor on November 6 in front of a sold out crowd with opening acts Doris Farhat and Leilena. El helani was invited by the prestigious University Musical Society(UMS) an affiliate of UM Ann Arbor. El helani was awarded the King-Chavez-Parks Visiting Professorship by the university, presented to him at his concert.

Next up is a stop at Atlantic City in New Jersey at The Resort Casino on Nov. 13 and then a stop in Cleveland at the Cleveland Conventional Center on Nov. 19. El helani will finish up the Michigan portion of his tour on Saturday, November 20 with Lebanese vocalist Walid Tawfik at 8:30 p.m. at the Detroit Renaissance Marriot Hotel’s Renaissance Ballroom, which is an event presented by Luxury Live Entertainment. For more info, visit www.luxuryliveproduction.com.

Arab American News Publisher Osama Siblani presents the book American Islam as a gift to El Helani at TAAN office.Photos courtesy of Abbas Ramadan/iStudio