Sami Yusuf is a British singer-songwriter, composer, producer and an accomplished musician. Endowed with a strong cultural affiliation to music; privileged with a musical background and having studied music with several renowned composers, including those from one of the world’s most prestigious music institutes – the Royal Academy of Music in London, music is his destiny was unsurprising a prediction acquaintances would so confidently make. Sami learned to play several musical instruments including the piano, violin, tar, tombak, santour, daf, tabla and oud, to count a few, at a very young age. He bore the passion to etch a mark in the field of music, which he so indelibly did with the release of his groundbreaking debut album, Al-Muallim – an album composed, produced and sung by him.
A young, British-Muslim instantly became the talk of the town in lands as far and diverse as Egypt and Turkey. The album not only sold well over 7 million copies but also earned him a massive following in the Middle East, North African nations and South-East Asia.
Charmed by his good looks and manners so heart warming, the young amongst his fans would emulate what they saw in Sami – a leader. His fans wouldn’t shy away from admitting Sami’s music had changed their lives – for the better. Unheard of before, such an artist-fan tandem flourished with subsequent release of My Ummah, Sami’s highly acclaimed second album selling well over 8 million copies.
Sami was soon headlining CNN, the BBC, ABC, Al Jazeerah, not to mention, every mainstream TV channel in the Middle East and Turkey. Hailed by Time magazine as Islam’s biggest Rock Star and The most famous British Muslim in the World by The Guardian, it was only a matter of time before sheer dynamism of what the media dubbed a popular act became the subject matter of think-tank studies. Transnational Broadcasting Studies, in two separate papers lauded Sami’s state-of-the-art music videos a beacon of positivity and substance; his music an alternative and competitor to the mainstream Western music. His success was soon acknowledged by the University of Roehampton in south-west London, as a result of which, Sami became the first and the youngest Muslim recipient of the honorary Doctor of Letters award in recognition of his extraordinary contribution to music. In attainment of this prestigious award, he not only stands alongside Mark Twain, J.K Rowling and Robert Frost but is also one of the only three musicians in the world to be ever honored thus.
His music not only filled the airwaves of London and LA but also penetrated effectively in the conservative Arabian Peninsula. A staggering 250,000 people packed Taksim Square in Istanbul, Turkey to see Sami perform. He’s one of us, the crowds would claim proudly and sing along with Sami in his near-perfect Turkish. Sami has played across four continents, packing prestigious venues such as Wembley Arena in London, Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles and The Velodrome in Cape Town, South Africa – this by all measures being a humble recollection. His shows are grand and highly personalized. His performances are trim and tightly focused, complete with singing in English, Arabic, Turkish, Persian, Urdu, Azeri and Malay and performance on a multitude of both classical and ethnic instruments. His penchant for multilingualism teamed with simplicity of conduct makes his style a statement, and his shows an experience of a lifetime.
Fame and glory however are illusionary for Sami. For him, his position as an artist is a sacred trust, a trust best honored in serving humanity. His genuine benevolence is reflected through his unwavering commitment as United Nations Celebrity Partner to reach out to those in need throughout the world. He has recently launched a campaign in partnership with United Nations World Food Programme to help end hunger in the Horn of Africa that has been hit by its worst drought in the last 60 years. He has been relentless in assuming his responsibilities as the first global ambassador of Silatech – a Qatar-based initiative promoting entrepreneurial skills and open access to capital and markets for large-scale job creation in the MENA region. His Live8 concert in Wembley Arena raised millions of pounds for the victims of the conflict-laden region of Darfur – an effort recognised and praised by the British government. Sami also took the initiative to work in close tandem with the UN sponsored charity, Save the Children, to help uplift morale of the victims of 2010 Pakistan floods by sending a message of hope and undying support through his charity single, Hear Your Call. The single became the mouthpiece of awareness campaigns led by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, BBC and the CNN.
Sami is one of the UK’s biggest exports in the last decade. In the course of 10 years, he has masterfully navigated through unchartered waters – he has won over the hearts and minds of millions from across the Middle East, Europe, North America and North Africa. His compass, in principle, has been his self-coined genre – Spiritique. Manifested both musically and philosophically in his third album, Wherever You Are selling well over 4 million copies, Spiritique is a product of Sami’s identity. Sami is a passionate advocate of unity and is boldly committed to cross-cultural appreciation through promotion of universal values and celebration of the human spirit. The aim is to bridge the gap between perceptions and sense of incompatibility, and to foster spiritual autonomy so we may usher into a new era of cooperation and coexistence. When different races stand side by side, when young and old, pious or agnostic, male or female sing in one voice; that’s when Spiritique shines. An ambitious undertaking it may be to some. To many, it has already begun.
Yusuf’s fourth and latest album was globally released in December 2012. The physical version was released on 22 December, while the digital version was released later, on 24 December. In June 2013 it was announced through the media that Sami Yusuf had signed an exclusive worldwide publishing deal with independent music publishers Fairwood Music (UK) Ltd. From Southeast-Asia to North-America, Salaam witnessed an astounding reception in Malaysia, Qatar, Turkey, Canada and London not to mention the successful shows and performances across the world. The fast-selling album achieved a worldwide success with Platinum sales in South East Asia; the album went Gold in less than 24 hours of its release.
The highly anticipated album, Salaam, was among the best-selling albums in the Middle East and North Africa. The album is enjoying an ongoing worldwide success.
On his brand new album, ‘The Centre’, Sami presents a deeply touching, devotional music, which impressively combines Arabic influences with state-of-the-art ‘Western’ production values. Composed, arranged, produced and almost entirely self-performed by Sami, his new songs are rousing, the melodies catchy and deeply moving and all captivate with the inherent power of spirituality.
Tied together by a journey of spiritual discovery, they are rich in multicultural influences, having drawn from traditional as well as contemporary Middle Eastern, North African, and European poetry, instrumentation, and melodies. Despite the newness in sound, the message of the album is perennial. Perhaps the first of its kind, ‘The Centre‘ is bound to capture the hearts of those seeking the timeless truths and values of unity, compassion and faithfulness in a more beautiful language.
- See more at: http://www.samiyusufofficial.com/main/sami-yusuf#sthash.245zsb64.dpuf
FROM WIKIPEDIA
Sami Yusuf (Persian: ﺳﺎﻣﯽ ﯾﻮﺳﻒ, Azerbaijani: Sami Yusif; born 29 July 1980) is a British singer-songwriter, composer, producer and multi-instrumentalist musician of Azerbaijani descent.[1][2][3]
In 2003 Yusuf released his first album "Al-Mu`allim" at the age of 23.[4] He released his second album "My Ummah" in 2005.[5]In October 2010, Yusuf’s third official album "Wherever You Are" was launched. Sami calls his genre of music "Spiritique"."Salaam" is his fourth album, that was released in 22 December 2012. In 12 September 2014, Yusuf's fifth official album "The Center" was released. In January 2015, Sami Yusuf's sixth official album "Songs of the Way" is slated to be released.
An ethnic Azerbaijani[1][2] born in Tehran, Iran, Yusuf was raised in London from the age of three.[7] In one of his interviews Sami Yusuf said: Azerbaijan – my historical Motherland. My parents are Azerbaijanis, and grandparents were originally fromBaku.[8] His[9][10] father loaned him a book on the basics of the Tombak [Persian instrument] which Yusuf studied.[11] As a teenager he was a devotee of classical music and classical icons like Chopin and Mozart, admitting that he listened to Classic FM radio station for hours in a day.[12] He went on training professionally in several other instruments including the santoor, piano, violin, oud, setar, tar, and daf under the guidance of traditional teachers, as well as professional musicians.[citation needed] While producing and demo-recording for another singer, he became aware of his own singing abilities which were further developed by the encouragement of his family. Divided between pursuing a musical career or studying law at King's College London, Yusuf opted for music while committed to "doing something dignified and respectable".[12]Though he claimed to having been always spiritual, he reconnected with his Islamic faith through a "religious awakening"[13] at the age of sixteen. Yusuf self-produced and released his debut album "Al-mu’allim" at the age of 23.
Professional career
(2003–2004) – Al-Mu'allim
Shortly before traveling to Egypt to study Arabic, Sami Yusuf released his debut album Al-Mu`allim in July 2003 and 2004, a primarily percussive album comprising eight tracks.[15] The radiant cube and purple background of the album cover symbolized "the light of the Prophetic message illuminating the darkness of the night".[15] Its feature song, "Al-Mu’allim", became an instant hit in the Middle East, North Africa, and South-East Asia topping the charts in Egypt and Turkey for twelve consecutive weeks, selling over seven million copies worldwide.[4] Believing that music can be a "powerful medium to promote ideas and establish dialogue within society",[16] he coalesced Eastern percussive instrumentation and Western melodies in "Al-Mu’allim" with a focus on the English and Arabic languages. The last track, "Supplication", was used in the Golden-Globe award-nominated film, "The Kite Runner".[17] Though the album was described as a "project to define British Shia Muslim identity"[18] in a post 9-11 period — with explicitly religious themes praising the Prophet Mohammad and Allah in songs like "The Creator" and "Ya Mustafa" — it reached the ears of unexpectedly diverse range of listeners, constituting of various nationalities, ages, and races.[15] Redirecting the current of shia Muslim music through his songs and professionally produced music videos ("Al-Mu’allim" and "Supplication"), Yusuf had "unintentionally" cultivated grounds for a fresh genre of music coined "Islamic Pop"[14] by setting a new benchmark in the religious music industry. The journal Transnational Broadcasting Studies analyzed the main causes of his success by attributing it to Yusuf’s ability to blend "a religious worldview with a mainstream form of entertainment, and in doing so, [communicating] a personable, accessible expression of the Islamic faith that is in harmony with the modern world and incorporated into the mundane activities of daily life. When asked if he was Sunni or Shia, Yusuf replied "I'm Muslim" but sami yusuf is shia. ".