Some context: Hafez al-Assad (Arabic: HfZ l'sd Hafiz al-'Asad, Levantine pronunciation: ['ha:fez? el'?asad]
After graduating from high school, Assad aspired to be a medical doctor, but his father could not pay for his study at the Jesuit University of St. Joseph in Beirut. Instead, in 1950 he decided to join the Syrian Armed Forces. Assad entered the military academy in Homs, which offered free food, lodging and a stipend. He wanted to fly, and entered the flying school in Aleppo in 1950. Assad graduated in 1955, after which he was commissioned a lieutenant in the Syrian Air Force. Upon graduation from flying school he won a best-aviator trophy, and shortly afterwards was assigned to the Mezze air base near Damascus. In his early 20s, he married Anisa Makhlouf in 1957, a distant relative of a powerful family. In 1954, the military split in a revolt against President Adib Shishakli. Hashim al-Atassi, head of the National Bloc and briefly president after Sami al-Hinnawi's coup, returned as president and Syria was again under civilian rule. After 1955, Atassi's hold on the country was increasingly shaky. As a result of the 1955 election Atassi was replaced by Shukri al-Quwatli, who was president before Syria's independence from France. The Ba'ath Party grew closer to the Communist Party not because of shared ideology, but a shared opposition to the West. At the academy Assad met Mustafa Tlass, his future minister of defense. In 1955, Assad was sent to Egypt for a further six months of training. When Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalised the Suez Canal in 1956, Syria feared retaliation from the United Kingdom, and Assad flew in an air-defense mission. He was among the Syrian pilots who flew to Cairo to show Syria's commitment to Egypt. After finishing a course in Egypt the following year, Assad returned to a small air base near Damascus. During the Suez Crisis, he also flew a reconnaissance mission over northern and eastern Syria. In 1957, as squadron commander, Assad was sent to the Soviet Union for training in flying MiG-17s. He spent ten months in the Soviet Union, during which he fathered a daughter (who died as an infant while he was abroad) with his wife. In 1958 Syria and Egypt formed the United Arab Republic (UAR), separating themselves from Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, and Turkey (who were aligned with the United Kingdom). This pact led to the rejection of Communist influence in favor of Egyptian control over Syria. All Syrian political parties (including the Ba'ath Party) were dissolved, and senior officers--especially those who supported the Communists--were dismissed from the Syrian armed forces. Assad, however, remained in the army and rose quickly through the ranks. After reaching the rank of captain he was transferred to Egypt, continuing his military education with future president of Egypt Hosni Mubarak.
What did he do in the airforce?
A: a lieutenant in the Syrian Air Force.
Some context: Tamia Marilyn Hill (nee Washington) was born and raised in Windsor, Ontario with her mother Barbara, and three younger brothers Tiras, Tajhee, and Trajan. Aside from the music she heard and sang at church, Tamia was exposed to diverse music from an early age by her mother. Singing was always her passion. As early as age six, she was on stage singing at the local church, and by age 12, had already been involved in several musicals which helped hone her musical skills.
In 2005, Tamia split from Elektra Records, and created her own record label, Plus One Music Group. The first record to be released on the company was her fourth studio album Between Friends. First released on South African independent label Gallo Records in May 2006, it was later distributed by Image Entertainment in the United States. Entirely produced by Shep Crawford, with additional production from Rodney Jerkins, it reached number nine on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. Its first two singles, "Can't Get Enough" and "Me", both reached the top 30 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. In November 2009, a great hits compilation was released in South Africa. The same year, Tamia announced that she was working with longtime contributor Shep Crawford to form a supergroup called TDK along with singers Kelly Price and Deborah Cox. Their joint album The Queen Project failed to materialize however due timing issues and label politics. In August 2012, Tamia's fifth studio Beautiful Surprise was released on Plus One Music and EMI. The singer worked with a vast of different producers on the album, including Chuck Harmony, The Runners, and Carvin & Ivan. Upon its released, it debuted 23 on the Billboard 200 and number six on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart with first week sales of 41,521 copies. Lead single "Beautiful Surprise", written by Claude Kelly, Salaam Remi and the herself peaked at number 24 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, and was later nominated for Best R&B Song at the 55th Annual Grammy Awards. In support of the album, Tamia went on tour with R. Kelly during his The Single Ladies tour from October until December 2012.
Did she collaborate with anyone on the album?
A:
The same year, Tamia announced that she was working with longtime contributor Shep Crawford to form a supergroup called TDK along with singers Kelly Price and Deborah Cox.