Thank God for Maher Zain

HIS message of peace, love and God has somewhat taken Malaysia by storm.

Many though are skeptical as to why Malaysians have fallen head over heels with this Lebanese born singer, Maher Zain.

Could it be his voice, his message-filled songs or is it merely his clean good looks?
Whatever it is, it has garnered him attention from all walks of life and brought him super stardom here in Malaysia.

The "Maher Zain" fever can be seen throughout Malaysia as numerous shops are playing his tunes repeatedly.

With so much attention paid to this new edge nasyeed singer/producer, it is no wonder that the "Maher Zain - Save the Soul" charity showcase presented by the Raudhatus Sakinah (Home for Female Adolescents), to be held on Oct 14 and 15, has long been sold out.

The two-day showcase, which is merely a sneak preview of the big concert planned for February next year, will only feature five songs from Maher's first solo album, Thank You Allah. Organisers have also said that due to the large response and support from Malaysian fans, Maher's second album will be released first in Malaysia before anywhere else next year.

At the brief Press interview recently, Maher confessed how his journey to rediscover Islam happened only three and a half years ago when he took a visit home to Sweden. During that time, he was busy producing for artistes such as Kat De Luna in New York with his good friend, RedOne.

"I was very far from Islam at that point in my life, I even forgot how to read the Al-Fatihah. But during my brief visit home to Sweden, I went to the mosque and attended some Islamic talks with friends. It was here that I heard some people singing nasyeed. This was the turning point in which I recognised that the emptiness I had been feeling over the years was due to my lack of religion," confessed Maher. '

Being an experienced music producer, Maher admits that he never dreamt of being a singer but upon submitting a demo of Thank You Allah which he sang to his friend RedOne, he was encouraged to record the song professionally. Thus, the beginning of his career as a singer, which is now paving a new wave and trend of international nasyeed songs in the music industry since Sami Yusuf and Yusuf Islam.

"To be honest, I am more of a producer. Many have mistaken that I compose and write the lyrics all on my own. Truth is, I come up with a song idea and present it to my team of arrangers and lyricists. Then, we sit together and work on the songs as a team."

Married for a year now, Maher had always planned a visit to Malaysia. He shared with the Press that he and his wife had planned a trip to Malaysia for their honeymoon but as his career was just on the rise, they could not make the trip.

"I am so thankful to God for all the support Malaysian fans have given me. Although, I did not get to visit Malaysia during my honeymoon, I am now here and I am speechless with the amount of support I have received," said Maher humbly upon receiving a platinum award for the large album sales of his album since its release here in Malaysia last May.

The highly popular album, Thank You Allah features 14 songs mainly presented in English except for a couple of tracks that feature duets in Urdu and Arabic. Two main tracks which have stolen the hearts of many listeners would have to be InsyaAllah and Baraka Allahu Lakuma.

When asked what other messages he would like to present in his next album, Maher admits that he has already written a song titled, Dear Allah which will be the continuation of the song, Thank You Allah.

"With the song, Dear Allah which I wrote all by myself, I wrote it as a continuation to the song, Thank You Allah because in, Thank You Allah, the message was of gratitude towards God who brought me back to the righteous path. But for Dear Allah, it is my doa (prayer) to ask God to guide and keep me on the right path."

He adds, "Basically what I am trying to convey is that I realise how God has the ability to easily take away all that He has given me, therefore it is a song which will remind me not take anything for granted."

the source
http://web.archive.org/web/20120910030702/http://stage2.mmail.com.my/node/51854

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