Hamed Sinno

Sinno was born to a Lebanese father who had lived in the United States and a Jordanian mother who had lived between Morocco and Rome.[3] He has American citizenship.[4]

Growing up, Sinno's household was Anglophone. He attended an American school and graduated "not knowing how to properly speak Arabic", mostly learning Arabic as he wrote songs.[5] While Sinno did not have formal musical training or learn to read music, he sang in the school choir.[6]

At university, Sinno came out. There he also began to experiment with subversive graffiti as a form of self-expression before getting involved with Mashrou' Leila.[7]

Sinno co-founded Mashrou' Leila in 2008 while studying graphic design at the American University of Beirut, when responding to an open jam session call put out by Andre Chedid, Omaya Malaeb, and Haig Papazian.[8]

According to Sinno, his parents initially disapproved of his career in music, fearing for his financial prospects and physical safety due to the band's controversial reputation.[9]

Sinno is gay and advocates for LGBT rights in the Middle East and around the world.[14][15]