Loujain "LJ" Adada joined Netflix's Dubai Bling for Season 3, and fans have taken notice of the influencer.
The Dubai-set staple is just one of many reality hits on the streamer (including the newly debuted Selling the City). Season 3 continues to follow the exploits of several socialites living in the self-proclaimed "City of Gold" and their usually quite swanky lifestyles.
Since Season 1, one name fans have latched onto is Loujain "LJ" Adada, a Californian who made her way to the Middle East as a child.
Who Is LJ from Dubai Bling - Biography Details on Loujain Adada
LJ Worked as a Presenter and Model
Long before appearing as a regular on Netflix's desert-based reality hit, Loujain "LJ" Adada worked as a professional presenter and model.
The 35-year-old (born November 11, 1989) started modeling at the young age of 14, before also trying her hand at TV work, including presenting on networks like MTV Lebanon.
In a 2019 conversation with Ccercle, Adada described her humble beginnings, talking about her first shoot at 14 for what she called " a beauty ad whilst [she] was still in school:"
"At the age of 14 I did my first magazine advertisement shoot. It was a beauty ad whilst I was still in school. It was a big thing for me then and I could still remember how all my friends, classmates and family were talking about it and got their own copy. That made me so happy and it further grew my interest in photography."
"After graduation, I took a few courses in fashion design and that made me learn so much about the world of creating," the Netflix star continued, remarking that during this time she continued modeling mostly for advertisements.
She revealed, "At the age of 21 I got my first TV presenting offer to host a program about music on MTV Lebanon," working for several years as the host of a program known as Energy Spin Magazine:
"At the age of 21 I got my first TV presenting offer to host a program about music on MTV Lebanon. The name of the program was 'Energy Spin Magazine,' which talked about music. It was a turning point and the start of building my own career. I was then asked to host another TV reality program, which was live everyday with a group of other young presenters."
It was getting married that caused Adada to "shelve [her] career," but credits her time on TV for giving her "great exposure in the Middle East:"
"Of course I had to study it and learn the proper way of presenting and hosting behind the lens. However I couldn’t stay too long in both roles as then I got married and decided to shelve my career and build a family with my late husband. However that short period in television gave me great exposure in the Middle East and was a fantastic experience."
In the years since leaving her TV hosting duties, Adada has dusted off her microphone from time to time, notably appearing on MTV Lebanon yet again in 2021 for the network's #1 series (via Instagram).
She remains very used to cameras, appearing as a part of the Dubai Bling cast since Season 1.
LJ Doesn't Consider Herself an Influencer
Despite having over one million followers on Instagram, LJ from Dubai Bling does not consider herself to be an influencer.
"I never decided [to be a social media influencer]," Adada claims, telling fans "It just happened that my audience liked my content" (via L'Offieiel Arabia):
"I never decided, it just happened that my audience liked my content and waited for me to share more details about my lifestyle etc. At the beginning of social media, I was very private on my account, and I literally just had my account just for fun and posting pictures since I love photography and taking pictures."
She said that for a long time, her account was private, but, "When [she] made it public, [she] started gaining more followers and my page started engaging with my audiences:"
"When I made it public, I started gaining more followers and my page started engaging with my audiences. If it were not for my audience, I wouldn’t consider myself a social media influencer."
LJ's Husband Was Billionaire Walid Juffali
One of the things that brought Loujain "LJ" Adada to Dubai was getting married to billionaire Walid Juffali.
Juffali made his fortune as the chairman of the Saudi Arabian bank E. A. Juffali and Brothers and married Adada in 2014 (when the Dubai Bling personality was 25 years old). Juffali was 60 at the time of their nuptials, and LJ remained married to him until his death.
The former bank executive tragically died of colon cancer on July 20, 2016, being survived by Adada and their two daughters Lana and Talia.
Even years after Juffali's death, Adada continues to honor her late husband. In 2022, the model-turned-TV-star shared on social media a touching post, writing "There will be no love to anyone like the love I had for you."
LJ Is Now Engaged to Hasnain Lehri
In the years since the death of LJ's late husband, the Dubai Bling star has managed to find love once again.
Adada is now engaged to Bollywood star and Dubai Bling co-star Hasnain Lehri. Lehri proposed to Adada on the latest season of the hit Netflix series, getting down on one knee during the Season 3 finale.
Talking about his proposal, Lehri told Khaleej Times, "I saw Loujain looking gorgeous in the show" and "my Bollywood-loving side emerged," doing the proposal with a filmic flare usually reserved for the silver screen:
"When I saw Loujain looking gorgeous in the show, my Bollywood-loving side emerged. I had always wanted to propose to my lover in a Bollywood way, and I'm very proud of it. When my mother watched the show, she laughed and told me, 'You're too filmy,' and trust me, I am all that when I'm in love. Let's blame it on the plethora of Shah Rukh Khan's movies. I love him and he has defined romance to a whole generation of people across the world."
The pair have not disclosed when or where their wedding will happen.
How To Follow LJ on Social Media
Fans looking to keep up with LJ online can do so on Instagram (@loujainaj)
Dubai Bling Season 3 is now streaming on Netflix.
