Light Upon Light (CD) - Dawud Wharnsby, Irfan Makki, et al.

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Talk to Dawud Wharnsby Ali

The light of hope from our Ummah is burning strong with this new compilation! An exciting new album introducing eight previously unreleased English Islamic songs written and sung by talented Muslim artists from across North America. Aimed at mature audiences, Light Upon Light features the Rhythm & Blues styles of Frederick Qasim Khan (Assistant Imam in Cleveland, Ohio http://www.mythreebirds.com), Irfan Makki(Toronto, Ontario), and Mehrajudeen Khan (Jacksonville, Florida) alongside touching poetry songs written by Jennifer Zaghloul & Asifa Sheikh (Toronto, Canada), Shireen Patel (Ajax, Canada) and Jawad Jafry of the Sound Vision team.

"The songs are up-beat, heavy in rhythm and hold a very strong `inner-city' feel." says Wharnsby Ali, the projects producer, "They might not appeal to everyone because they truly represent the North-American Muslim youth culture. For too long we have given our youth the impression that songs in Arabic and Urdu with heavy percussion and loud vocals are halal, but similar forms of expression in english are forbidden. This type of double standard is simply not founded in authentic traditions of the Holy Prophet or in Islamic history. These new artists have taken an uplifting and socially aware approach to their lyrics, mixing in elements of melodic urgency and seriousness. The material reflects the great concerns and confusion evident in the minds of our Muslim youth here in major cities like New York, Toronto, L.A. and Chicago. They want answers to questions like - `who am I REALLY?',`Where do I belong and fit in?', `What is MY culture?',`What is my faith?' and `Will God forgive me for being confused about my faith?". These spiritual songs address those sorts of valuable questions."

Wharnsby-Ali, who began scouting North America for new and raw talent over three years ago, goes on to say, "So many brothers and sisters have been sending their material into Sound Vision for so long. It is amazing to see so much creative passion and wisdom within our youth which is virtually untapped. We just knew we had to gather some of that energy and funnel it back to the kids and youth who are really in need of some inspiration and hope. We have produced this recording with great attention towards the traditional approach to music, utilizing only vocals and percussion. Granted the recording does not have a traditional `Arabic' or `Asian' feel, but after all, Islam is not a religion for a certain culture - it is a way of life for ALL cultures. We are nations and tribes - let's get to know one another as Allah intended us to do!"

Wharnsby Ali sings two songs on the recording and provides some backing vocals to certain selections.

Songs included on this production include "Realize", "Freedom In The World Today", "Umatti Answer Me" and "Out of Sight, Out of Mind". This is a great gift for any teenager and adult who enjoys fine tunes with an Islamic twist.

Size, Format: Audio CD