Bollywood star prepares for Canada's opening ceremony with song of unity
Celebration, unity, representation – this is the message that singer and Bollywood star Nora Fatehi says she’s going to bring to Canada’s World Cup opening ceremony.
The Canadian-born artist of Moroccan descent will perform her official Fifa song, Siir Siir, when she takes to the stage in Toronto on Friday.
It was inspired by the popular Moroccan football chant, which means “go, go”, and she hopes it can become a global rallying call for all the teams in the tournament.
“This is the time where we see everyone from across the world, different countries that qualify, come and take centre stage,” Fatehi tells BBC Newsbeat.
“This is the time that we celebrate talent – and music and football really do come hand in hand.
“And I wanted to use this as an opportunity to represent, to create multiculturalism within art and also to tell my story.”
It won’t be her first time performing for a potential audience of millions – she did that at the Qatar World Cup closing ceremony in 2022 – but she says this time feels more special.
Fatehi left Toronto at age 22 to pursue a career in India, and has gone on to become a prominent face in Bollywood.
She says it is “surreal” to be returning to perform at such a massive event taking place on her home turf just over a decade later.
“It’s very inspirational. It’s a story of resilience,” she says.
“It’s a story of someone who dared to dream, and I want people to take this example and motivate themselves to be very ambitious and to go for whatever their heart desires.”
Ahead of the big moment, Fatehi says she has been consistently rehearsing and doing costume fittings as she wants the performance to be “energetic, impactful and dynamic”.
The lively track – created alongside Vegedream and Sanjoy – features a mix of Moroccan Darija, Arabic, French and English.
The video for Siir Siir is shot in the streets of Morocco, which Fatehi says reflects how football evolves from kids playing in their neighborhoods to taking centre stage at huge arenas around the world.
“So football in itself as a sport has a story,” Fatehi says.
“It has a journey just like me as an artist, just like the other artists who are part of this track.”
The inspiration for the track came while Fatehi was watching thousands chant “siir siir” during the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) earlier this year, which was hosted by Morocco.
She will be backing the country again during the World Cup as she says “not only are they an African team, but they are also a team that went through hell and back to be where they’re at right now”.
Fatehi’s not the only one bringing out new music for the World Cup – she’s been joined by a host of big names on the official Fifa soundtrack for this summer’s tournament.
Among the artists featured in the 18-song tracklist are Shakira and Burna Boy, who’ve collaborated on Dai Dai – an Italian phrase meaning “let’s go” – which they performed at the Mexican opening ceremony on Thursday.
Other names on the soundtrack – which is designed to span several genres – include Stormzy, The Rolling Stones and US rapper Future.
Newsbeat also caught up with DJ Ewan McVicar who has released his own Scottish World Cup-inspired anthem ready for their first appearance at the men’s tournament in 28 years.
The music producer met his nation’s footballing heroes at an impromptu set after they qualified in November.
McVicar says midfielder Billy Gilmour came over to him and asked, “when are we getting a tune?”, which led to him working on Keep It Tribal – a crossover between electronic music and traditional Scottish pipes.
“I wasn’t planning on making one, it’s very hard to do without being cheesy,” he says.
“It goes from patriotic to ‘let’s go mental’ – kind of like Scottish people.”
McVicar, who is currently in the middle of an Ibiza residency, says he’s “so proud” he got to “do anything for Scotland”.
But when the music stops, how will his side fare against Fatehi’s Morocco in Group C?
“I really feel like Haiti, Scotland, Brazil may slightly be intimidated by the Moroccan team,” she says.
“I have a feeling Morocco is going to do something great this World Cup.”
Listen to Newsbeat live at 12:45 and 17:45 weekdays – or listen back Bollywood star prepares for Canada's opening.
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