Wassim “Sal” Slaiby is the manager of The Weeknd and the CEO of XO/Sal & Co. He recently joined the Maverick management team in 2016 and just made it on Billboard’s Power 100 list for 2017. He got the 52nd place.
Sal was born in Lebanon in 1980 and is a Lebanese-Canadian entrepreneur and music manager. He co-founded Canadian music production and label CP Records. He moved to Canada when he was 10 years old.
He first resided in Montreal then moved to Ottawa in his late teens – eventually making his way to Toronto. Sal also signed promising artists like Massari, who’s also Lebanese-Canadian.
Sal, who is also known as Tony Sal, piloted The Weeknd’s Starboy to a global success with over 926 million on-demand streams in the United States alone.
He added rapper French Montana to Maverick, alongside Belly, Ben Billions, DaHeala and Danny Boy Styles. Sal said:
“I’m family-oriented — I never thought I’d work with someone I didn’t spend Christmas with.”
Slaiby, a Maronite Christian, married Rima Fakih who won Miss USA 2010. Rima Fakih is the first Muslim and naturalized Miss USA ever. However, the Shia Muslim converted to Christianity 6 months before they announced their marriage.
They got married in the Maronite Patriarchal Church in Bkerke, Lebanon and it was presided by the Maronite Patriarch, Bechara Boutros al-Rahi. It was a high-profile wedding with many celebrities who flew to Lebanon to attend.
Among them were local celebrities like Wael Kfoury and Haifa Wehbe as well as international celebrities like French Montana, Waka Flocka, Massari and many more.
The Weeknd even performed at their wedding. Sal and Rima are now parents as they just welcomed their first child into the world a few weeks ago. They named their daughter after her mom, Rima.
Hamdilla I am blessed to call myself a mother now and so ready for no sleep ?
— Rima Fakih (@RimaFakih) 26 January 2017
Source: Billboard