To Elyanna, the keffiyeh is everything. It channels a deep connection to her Arab roots, speaks to her Palestinian identity, and allows her to express solidarity with her people amid a devastating war. “The keffiyeh, of course, means a lot to me. It feels powerful to wear it, it represents the culture,” the Palestinian Chilean singer tells Teen Vogue. “I like to always make it a priority and always push it in my own way, in an artistic way.”
Over the years, Elyanna has transformed the traditional black-and-white checkered Palestinian scarf into an entire wardrobe of crop tops, skirts, pants, totes, bandanas, jackets, and hats. Just last month, she wore a lace-trimmed headpiece version of it over her flowing curls during her debut on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.
“You will always remember a keffiyeh,” the Nazareth-born artist says of the scarf, which has become an increasingly prominent emblem of resistance against Israeli occupation and solidarity with Palestinians throughout late history. “It's one of those pieces that feels super timeless.”
Record of the keffiyeh’s popular usage can be found in history as early as the Ottoman Empire, though its exact origins are hard to pinpoint. It’s an integral part of Bedouin culture, serving as a practical garment to protect against the harsh desert environment, and therefore a version of it spread throughout the Middle East and North Africa.
The headdress (also known as a shemagh) features a distinctive black-and-white or red-and-white pattern, usually with intricate geometric designs and fringed edges. These designs typically include fishnet-like patterns, which are believed to symbolize connections to the Mediterranean Sea, and bold lines representing historical trade routes through Palestine.
The keffiyeh has been a staple of Palestinian culture for years, but it has recently garnered more global attention following the October Hamas attacks on Israel, which killed 1,200 people, and Israel’s subsequent bombardment of Gaza, which has killed more than 35,000 people. Throughout the ongoing Israeli strikes in Gaza, student protesters and celebrities alike have been wearing the keffiyeh in solidarity with Palestinians. In November, three Palestinian college students, including Brown University's Hisham Awartani, were shot while visiting family in Vermont; at the time of the attack, two of them were wearing the keffiyeh.
For Elyanna, proudly celebrating her roots is not limited to style choices. Just as she pairs her keffiyehs with trendy stage outfits, she is known for blending traditional Arab sounds with rich, modern vocals. Early in her career, she gathered a loyal following on Instagram by sharing her vocals in candid videos that featured covers of songs by Rihanna and Amy Winehouse.
In 2018, she was discovered by the Canadian songwriter Nasri, who, like Elyanna, has roots in Nazareth. It was Elyanna who reached out to Nasri via a direct message on Instagram, and he found her talent undeniable. After meeting Elyanna (and her family) in person at a studio, Nasri connected her to the Lebanese Canadian studio executive Wassim “Sal” Slaiby, who had worked with the likes of The Weeknd. Slaiby was inspired by Elyanna's decision to sing in Arabic and subsequently signed her to Universal Arabic Music, a label he launched partly due to Elyanna's talent and vision.
Fast-forward to 2024: Elyanna, now a 22-year-old star, is completing milestone after milestone. She recently dropped her debut album, Woledto (which means “I am born” in Arabic). Now she’s embarking on a summer of festivals including Governor’s Ball in New York City, Lollapalooza in Chicago, and Outside Lands in San Francisco.
Ultimately, Elyanna views her platform as a space for cultural representation. “At the end of the day, it's who I am," she says, "and I never, ever want to hide it. No matter where I am — it could be the biggest stage ever, it could be the biggest platform ever — I'm always going to talk about Palestine."
She continues, “There are a lot of beautiful things that the world doesn't want to show about our culture. They just want to show one side, and it's time to show the other side. And the other side is the truth; the other side is the beauty.”
In addition to often wearing the keffiyeh, Elyanna adorns herself with henna, gold coins, the evil eye motif, and bold eyeliner — all widely recognized within Arab culture for their historical, aesthetic, and symbolic significance. Similarly, the singer draws inspiration from the music icons of the Arab world who preceded her, such as Lebanese legend Fairuz and Egyptian-born Dalida.
During Elyanna's historic appearance at Coachella last year she became the first singer at the festival to perform a full set in Arabic. The event featured Arab iconography, calligraphy, instrumentals, and even belly dancing. One of her 'fits — a distressed cutout crop top and metallic flares — was made by Egyptian designer Rafik Zaki.
After Elyanna performed, she waved the keffiyeh proudly in the air. “Everything about the performance was who I am, it was what I look up to…. things that I grew up around,” she recalls. “Every time I'm done with my stage performance, I always have a keffiyeh next to me. I'm always going to put it out there and show the world our roots and how beautiful the keffiyeh is.”
Elyanna also made sure to honor her Arab heritage at Paris Fashion Week last year. Styled in an oversized houndstooth blazer for Balenciaga, she wore her braided hair with delicately placed coins. Historically, in the Arab world, gold coins have served as a display of wealth, a form of protection, and a portable asset that can easily be carried and used in times of need.
Born Elian Marjieh, Elyanna grew up in Nazareth, where she explored her love for fashion along with her sister Tali, who is, incidentally, now her stylist. She and her siblings had photoshoots in their backyard. When she dressed up back then, Elyanna says, her style was more “boyish.” She would take a piece of fabric and create something out of it, just for fun; she’d draw dresses on models in magazines and ask her mom and sister what they thought; she’d collect headpiece after headpiece.
“It's really [about] taking something simple and expanding” possibilities, Elyanna explains. “I always say fashion is very similar to music to me because it's a place where you can explore and have fun and try different things and be risky.” As her style matured, she began increasingly incorporating Arab aesthetics into her looks. “All these little elements I just loved when I was a young girl,” she says. “Now… putting them on, I feel really powerful.”
Elyanna and her sister also continue to lather their faces in olive oil and olive oil soap, after growing up watching their mother and grandmother do the same. Elyanna insists it gives her skin that glowy, dewy look and says it’s one of her top beauty secrets. “It's like going to the roots of where you come from and using it on your face. It feels authentic," she says. "It’s so Palestinian.” Olive trees hold a special place in Palestinian society; they also appear as a motif on the keffiyeh, by way of a series of interlocking branches and leaves.
After moving to the United States when she was 15, Elyanna felt compelled to bring Middle Eastern style to California. “We wanted to bring the spice of the Middle East, the spice of an Arab girl’s style, and the spice of our culture” to the US, she says. “We're taking the roots of the culture and just bringing them out.”
While Elyanna shares Arab fashion on Western shores, she’s also heartened by the idea that young Arab girls in the diaspora and beyond appreciate her look, and even find pride in emulating it. “I'm happy that we’re able to influence a young Arab girl in any way,” she says.
Elyanna's Chilean heritage also plays a role in crafting her style. “We traveled to Viña del Mar all the time," she recalls, "so Chile was definitely a big inspiration for me growing up.” On days off she dresses down, sometimes in a “beachy style” that is partly inspired by the Chilean side of her identity. “They're very laid back when it comes to fashion, which I like,” she notes. Both sides of Elyanna's heritage come together seamlessly to represent the singer's unique presence.
Tali plays a key role in her sister's creative process, pushing the boundaries of what fashion means to her — or, as Elyanna says, she taps into her “baddie” side. They may occasionally disagree on looks, she says, but having her help is “like when someone knows you better than you know yourself when it comes to fashion.”
Together, the sisters keep adding to their mood board, constantly adapting Elyanna’s style for bigger stages and broader audiences. The sisters often thrift, reimagining secondhand clothing by introducing Arabesque bits and bobs to it, such as a coin here, some lace there. These are “things that we've been doing since we were 10 and 11, but now it's just on a bigger scale,” says Elyanna. “Now it's just, like, we're elevating.”
Elyanna and Tali's collaborative efforts also extend beyond simple alterations of thrifted items — they create original designs from scratch, ensuring each piece resonates with their vision. On the Late Show, Elyanna matched her keffiyeh headpiece with a high-necked, long-sleeved, ivory-lace dress that hugged her figure as she sang “Mama Eh” (which translates to “mama what” in English).
Deeply affected by the ongoing war, Elyanna felt compelled to do something. As she processed the magnitude of the events, she postponed her US tour shortly after the war broke out. Earlier this year she collaborated with Paliroots, a lifestyle brand that focuses on celebrating and raising awareness about Palestinian culture and heritage. “Being far away, I need to help my people as much as I can,” she says.
In partnership with her brother, Elyanna co-designed merch including necklaces, sweatpants, hoodies, and bandanas with the words “albi falasteeni” (meaning “My heart is Palestinian”) emblazoned on them, beside an image of a heart wrapped in a keffiyeh. The collection sold out in less than 24 hours; its proceeds went to “the children of Gaza” via the Middle East Children’s Alliance. That she was making a difference in her own way, Elyanna says, brought her joy.
More recently, Elyanna performed for students at Brown University as part of its Spring Weekend 2024. The performance came at a particularly sensitive time for universities across the country, with students setting up encampments and protests in solidarity with Palestinians while facing suspension by administrators and arrest by police. Students at Brown had by then joined the protests, later setting up their own encampment, which was cleared when they reached an agreement with the university’s administration.
Says Elyanna, she wanted to be there for the students, “especially with what's happening now… It made me so emotional, seeing how proud they were to have a Palestinian artist at their university and being able to bring their non-Arab friends.” She adds, “Seeing how much they appreciate our culture and our art was very powerful,” as was “seeing how many people that are non-Arabs but still came wearing their keffiyeh.”
For a performance at The Wiltern in Los Angeles, Elyanna also offered select tickets to “all students in Cali” with the code Student4Pali.
“I said something in the [Brown] show, and I want everyone to hear it: ‘Our generation is so powerful,’” she reflects. “The way they say what they want and the way they are not afraid to speak their mind is so, so powerful. It inspires me in every way. We're pushing the culture, and every step I'm gonna take, I'm always gonna push the culture. We gotta show them what we got, because we got a lot.”
At the end of the show, Elyanna was, of course, holding her keffiyeh.
Photographer Sophie Chan Andreassend
Photo Assistant Alex Justice
Lighting Tech Carly Hildenbrandt
Digitech Willie Kessel
Retoucher Alberto Maro
Stylist Niki Ravari
Prop Stylist Isabelle Lenton
Hair Stylist Elsa Canedo at OPUS Beauty
Makeup Artist Natalie Ventola at OPUS Beauty
Manicurist Sreynin Peng at OPUS Beauty using Chanel Le Vernis
Producer Anesia Potter at HSTL Productions
Production Assistant Jake Beal
Design Director Emily Zirimis
Designer Liz Coulbourn
Associate Visuals Editor Bea Oyster
Associate Fashion Editor Kat Thomas
Assistant Fashion Editor Tascha Berkowitz
Editor-in-Chief Versha Sharma
Executive Editor Danielle Kwateng
Associate Fashion and Beauty Editor Donya Momenian
Contributing Editor Alyssa Hardy
Contributing Editor Sara Delgado
Senior Copy Manager Dawn Rebecky
Research Editor Cristina Sada
Writer Zahra Hankir