Stunningly young looking guy with a nice appearance and also able to keep himself on stage. “Who are we talking about?”, You ask. This is said about Sami Yusuf, whose biography this article will be devoted to. This name sounds in almost all corners of Egypt and the countries of the Middle East.
Take a walk along the bustling streets of Cairo and you will certainly hear talk about Sami Yusuf's biography, his personal life and his work.
Huge popularity
In eastern countries, even unfamiliar, casual passersby talk about him with each other. A star smiles with posters and television screens. Employees of newspapers and magazines follow his every step and put their observations on the front pages of the issues. He is the advertising person for the Vodafone mobile phone company in Egypt.
Unlike many of his Western colleagues, Sami Yusuf does not like to spread about his personal life and biography.
Representative of Oriental Culture in Britain
Singer Sami Yusuf amazes lovers of oriental romance with the performance of Nashid (Muslim songs). He calls his compositions "A mixture of Western and Asian art." The hero of this article was born and raised in the UK. He graduated from the Royal Academy of Music.
A few years ago Sami made a tourist trip to Cairo in the company of childhood friends from London, who work in the Awakening Muslim information campaign and preach Islam through literature, music and other arts. This organization is also known for publishing religious songs.
"Our goal was to learn the Arabic language. Therefore, we chose Cairo. After all, this city is famous all over the world as a source of Islamic knowledge and a place where they are well taught. It is also the musical capital of the Arab world," says Sami Yusuf. Speaking there, he soon felt like a real oriental pop star.
Cairo is considered the birthplace of the best musicians and composers in the Muslim world, such as Umm Kulthum and Abdel Wahhab. "The rest of the Arab world takes an example from this city in the field of art. So I am proud that I have received recognition here," says the hero of this article. When the British Embassy in Cairo organized a festival of English Islamic art, its representatives turned to Yusuf with a request to become the main guest of the event.
The concept of the festival is expressed in the slogan "Art with a purpose." Sami Yusuf says: “We have a unique approach to organizing this event. We try to focus on non-political areas of life in order to overcome disunity everywhere we go.”
Everyone who has ever watched Sami Yusuf’s music videos remembered a young man with an oriental appearance in a classic costume who sings songs with religious content.
In one of the videos, he rides around London on the famous red double-decker bus. A true British, but with oriental roots! In the west, Sami Yusuf is called the greatest Islamic rock star. He was born in the capital of Iran, Tehran, into a family of Azerbaijani origin. The singer’s grandfather and grandmother left Baku after the Bolsheviks came there during the Civil War.
Acquaintance with music
From an early age, Sami Yusuf showed great interest in music. He was influenced by many genres. When he moved with his parents to West London, he most of all liked to listen to recordings of Western classical music and ethnic masterpieces of the Middle East.
He learned to play the piano and violin as well as he did on the national instruments of Oude, Setar and Tonbak.
When the young man graduated from school, he faced the question of choosing a future profession. Among other things, he considered the possibility of becoming a lawyer. In 2003, Sami Yusuf recorded his first album, the producer of which was the artist himself. This record has gained international success. This circumstance pushed the young singer to the decision to continue his professional musical career.
Albums
Spiritique (spiritual) - the hero of this article calls his own style.
His first album Al-mu'allim is English-language, but contains some fragments of Arabic verses. This record is very successful, especially in North Africa and the Middle East.
After 2 years, the second album was released. Each of these discs has sold over 10 million copies. All songs written, performed by Sami Yusuf. He is the producer of the disc. The last work of the second album was included in the soundtrack of the film "Running for the Wind", filmed by director Mark Forster in 2007.
This work of the artist is distinguished by the simultaneous use of eastern and western instruments. The album was enthusiastically received mainly by a young audience because of the predominance of verses close to this circle of listeners in verses.
Sami Yusuf's third disc was named by Rolling Stone, an American magazine, as "an excellently produced album." The hero of the article says that a new chapter in his work begins with him.
As already mentioned, the singer does not like to talk about personal life in an interview. Therefore, photos of Sami Yusuf’s wife are usually absent in biographies. Some sources indicate that the artist’s wife is Mariam, and they have been married for more than 10 years. It is known that, going on tour, the singer sometimes takes his wife with him. So, giving an interview to one of the sites after speaking in Kyrgyzstan, he admitted that he and his wife had long dreamed of visiting this country.
When talking about biography and personal life, Sami Yusuf never talks, but he recalls his childhood with pleasure.
Musical family
For several generations, the hero of this article has been exclusively engaged in music. The first teacher of playing the instruments for the boy was his own father. Answering questions about the biography, Sami Yusuf says that he is infinitely grateful to his parents for the long hours spent on his training and education.
The singer once said that he has two nephews and more than 60 brothers and sisters, each of whom is professionally engaged in music.
About the songs
Speaking about his creative biography, Sami Yusuf mentions which artists had the greatest influence on him. Usually he names Yusuf Islam (Kat Stevens) and Daoud Warnsby. And when the singer wants to cheer up and relax, he usually listens to Ahmad Bukhatir.
The hero of this article believes that the lyrics should not contain anything that is contrary to moral standards.
He says that if you properly treat the writing of music, it can become a real means of communication between people of different nationalities and cultures.
Conclusion
This article was dedicated to the biography of Sami Yusuf. The singer is very popular in Asia and Africa, as well as among Western lovers of oriental music. In this brief biography, photos of Sami Yusuf were also presented. Most of the chapters are devoted to the work of the musician. The singer, as befits a real artist, is more willing to talk about his albums.