Lebanese superstar Elissa announces exit from 'mafia' music industry

Lebanese singer Elissa has surprised fans by announcing that she will be retiring from making music after her next album is released, in a statement on Twitter which blasted the record industry.

"I am preparing this new album with a lot of love and passion. The reason is that it will be the last one in my career," the 46-year-old wrote on Twitter.

"I am announcing this with a heavy heart but with a lot of conviction because I can't work in a field that is similar to mafias. I can't be productive anymore."

	— Elissa (@elissakh) August 19, 2019 " style="color:#fff;" class="twitter-post-link" target="_blank">Twitter Post — Elissa (@elissakh) August 19, 2019

The songstress didn't elaborate on why she had likened the music industry to a criminal organisation, but it isn't the first time she has hit out at the music business.

Late last year Elissa hit out at her record label, Rotana, saying the company had "blocked" her content from Lebanon-based music streaming service Anghami after her label had made a deal with music streaming service Deezer.

Elissa's music career has spanned nearly three decades, starting off after she won a silver medal on Lebanese talent show Studio El Fan in 1992.

Last year the star revealed to fans that she had been battling with breast cancer, urging others to get screened for the illness.

"I only revealed my condition after I became healthy again. I wouldn’t have done it while I was going through it," Elissa told The National in June. "I did it at the end to encourage people to know about this condition".