Sami Yusuf is a British singer, songwriter, and musician. He is known for blending mystical traditions such as Sufi music, Mugham, and Qawwali with Western classical music.
Early Life and Education
Born on 21 July 1980 in Tehran, Iran to Azerbaijani parents, Sami Yusuf was raised in the UK. Iranian Azerbaijanis are basically Shiites, but Sami Yusuf hails from a Sunni minority among Iranian Azerbaijanis.
From an early age, Yusuf showed great potential and interest in music. He learned to play not only the piano and violin, but also traditional instruments like the oud, setar, and tonbak.
In 2003, Yusuf considered pursuing a career in law, but instead went ahead and produced and released his first album. It was a huge international success thus launching his professional music career. Yusuf studied music as a composition student at the prestigious Royal Academy as well as at Salford University in northwest England.
Career
Sami Yusuf is an incredibly talented instrumentalist, composer, arranger, and producer. Yusuf released his debut album Al-Muʽallim in 2003. It featured the song, Al-Mu’allim, which was a huge success.
‘Supplication’ a song from this album was used for the Golden-Globe award-nominated film ‘The Kite Runner.’
Yusuf released his second album, My Ummah in 2005. It was a breakthrough album selling over four million copies globally. It particularly struck a chord with the youth. Hasbi Rabbi from this album is a crown favourite.
‘Wherever You Are’ is Yusuf’s third official album released in March 2010. His fourth album, Salaam, was released in December 2012. It achieved platinum status in Southeast Asia within four months. The album includes the song ‘Hear Your Call,’ composed by Yusuf, especially for people affected by natural calamities.
‘The Centre’ was released in 2014 and is a collection of 13 songs. Yusuf’s sixth album, ‘Songs of the Way’ was released in January 2015 with lyrics from the noted philosopher Seyyed Hossein Nasr.
Andante Records released ‘Barakah,’ Yusuf’s seventh album in February 2016. The song ‘Mast Qalandar’ from Barakah remained #1 on World Music charts on iTunes and BBC Music.
Personal Life
Sami Yusuf’s spouse is Mariam Yusuf.
Achievements
- Youngest recipient of the Honorary Doctor of Letters Award for “invaluable contribution to the field of music”.
- 34 million albums sold to date – eight studio albums released.
- One of Britain’s biggest exports of the past decade.
- Performs to sold-out venues throughout Europe, the Middle East, North America, and North Africa. In Istanbul, over 250,000 people attended Sami Yusuf’s concert in Taksim Square—making it one of the largest live concert gatherings ever.
- Composed and arranged music for the Film ‘1001 Inventions and the World of Ibn Al-Haytham’ with Omar Sharif.
- Composed and performed ‘The Gift of Love’ (the first global interfaith anthem for the UN World Interfaith Harmony Week).
- Founder of the Spiritique genre and Spiritique Foundation.
- Sami Yusuf was dubbed ‘Islam’s biggest rock star’ by Time Magazine.
- The Guardian named him the biggest British star in the Middle East.
Humanitarian Work
Sami Yusuf’s accomplishment as an influential humanitarian is unprecedented.
- UN Global Ambassador for the World Food Program.
- UN Elite Ambassador for the World Interfaith Harmony Week
- Awarded the ‘Muhammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum World Peace Award’
- Concert for Peace in Aid of Darfur (Wembley Arena, London-UK)
- ‘Hear your call’, a charity single in aid of Save The Children’s Pakistan flood relief efforts
- ‘In Every Tear’, to help those afflicted by the Haiti Earthquake
- ‘Forgotten Promises’, to bring aid to those afflicted by the drought-stricken Horn of Africa
- ‘Silent Words’, to bring aid to those afflicted by the war in Syria
- ‘Hope Survives‘, a charity single in aid of WFP’s flood relief efforts in the Philippines following typhoon Haiyan.
Sami Yusuf On Social Media
Related
