Maher’s first musical inspiration came from his father, who was a singer himself, performing locally in the beautiful Mediterranean city of Tripoli – Lebanon. Fascinated by the music and instruments, Maher got his first keyboard when he was only ten and ever since music officially became part of Maher’s world.
The family moved to Sweden when Maher was only 8, where he continued his schooling, and later entered university and got a Bachelors degree in Aeronautical Engineering. With things changing around him, one thing remained the same – his strong passion for music. He would spend late nights at school with his friends where they would sing, rap, compose and experiment with music in every way. It didn’t take him long to realize that music became an integral part of who he is.
After being involved for a while in the music scene in Sweden as a music producer, Maher was introduced to RedOne, a gifted music producer who was fast rising in the music scene in Sweden. Maher started working with RedOne with Swedish artists, and later moved with him to New York. For a few years he was in the middle of the hot rush of the NY music industry, working with chart topping artists such as Kat Deluna on her debut album which included smash hits ‘Whine up’ and ‘Run the Show’.
Maher had what many would describe as a dream job for someone so young in such a glamorous business, but for Maher it felt like this was far from what he would call ‘the dream’, “I loved the music but I hated everything that surrounded it, it always felt like something wasn’t right”. RedOne was on the verge of breaking into the big time, going on to work with artists like Akon, Lady Gaga, Enrique Iglesias, Brandy, New Kids on the Block, and Michael Jackson to mention just a few, and becoming one of the most sought-after music producers in the world. Maher however was restless and eventually decided that the music industry and all that surrounded wasn’t the right place for him and he returned to Sweden. It wasn’t until he met a group of brothers who were active in the Islamic community in Stockholm and he started regularly attending his local mosque that he felt like he’d reached ‘home’.
Maher feels blessed to able to finally find the right way, and feels like it’s his turn now to help others through his music to do the same: “If I had one thing I’d like to tell people out there it would be that it’s so easy to see the right way if we just open our eyes and look properly; that’s what happened to me.”
(SOURCE
:http://maherzaintube.blogspot.com/2010/01/starttext-maher-zain-live-interview-at.html)
MAHER ZAIN DI MALAYSIA
Penyanyi dan komposer, Maher Zain merupakan bintang baru di arena muzik Islamik moden yang muncul dengan lagu-lagu yang penuh bermakna, bertujuan untuk memberi inspirasi sambil menghiburkan pendengar dengan mesej keamanan dan harapan terhadap dunia masa kini.
Beliau meninggalkan kerjaya mewahnya di dalam industri muzik arus perdana di New York. Beliau pernah bekerja dengan produser antarabangsa yang terkenal iaitu RedOne yang turut pernah terlibat dengan artis-artis popular seperti Akon, Lady Gaga, Enrique Iglesias, Michael Jackson serta ramai lagi. Maher Zain akhirnya telah memilih untuk menghasilkan karya muzik yang mencerminkan asal-usulnya sebagai seorang rakyat Eropah yang berketurunan Arab dan juga seorang Muslim.
Beliau telah bekerjasama dengan Awakening Records (yang pernah melancarkan kerjaya artis British, Sami Yusuf) bagi memberi sumber inspirasi untuk para remaja seluruh dunia. Pada awal Mac 2010, album debut Maher Zain berjudul “Thank You Allah” (diterbitkan oleh Awakening) telah berjaya mendapat kedudukan No. 1 dalam carta jualan album terlaris di Amazon.com (kategori muzik dunia). Maher telah pun menjayakan konsertnya di Sweden, Kanada, Australia, Amerika Syarikat, United Kingdom, Perancis, Mesir, Algeria, Bahrain dan banyak lagi. Dengan semangat dan minatnya, bakat yang luar biasa dan gaya yang unik, pencapaiannya pasti melonjak ke tahap yang paling tinggi.
Maher Zain mendapat inspirasi awal dalam bidang muzik melalui ayahnya sendiri yang juga merupakan seorang penyanyi yang sering mengadakan persembahan di sekitar bandar Mediterranean yang indah iaitu Tripoli, Lubnan. Kagum dengan muzik dan instrumennya, Maher Zain mendapat “keyboard” yang pertama seawal usianya 10 tahun dan sejak daripada itu secara rasminya muzik menjadi sebahagian daripada dunia Maher Zain.
Keluarganya telah berhijrah ke Sweden pada usianya 8 tahun di mana beliau menyambung pelajarannya sehingga berjaya ke menara gading dan beroleh Ijazah Sarjana Muda dalam bidang Kejuruteraan Aeronautik. Walaupun persekitarannya berubah dari hari ke hari, namun minat dan semangatnya dalam muzik terus membara.
Setelah terlibat dalam industri muzik buat seketika sebagai penerbit muzik, Maher Zain telah diperkenalkan dengan RedOne; seorang penerbit muzik yang berbakat besar yang meningkat popular di Sweden. Maher mula bekerjasama dengan RedOne dan kemudiannya berpindah ke New York. Untuk beberapa tahun beliau berada dalam kehangatan industri muzik di New York, beliau turut berkesempatan bekerja dengan artis-artis popular seperti Kat Deluna dalam penerbitan beberapa lagu hit artis tersebut seperti “Whine Up” dan “Run The Show”.
Maher Zain memiliki kerjaya yang boleh diibaratkan sebagai kerjaya impian bagi seorang yang masih muda dan terlibat dengan industri penuh glamor. Namun bagi Maher Zain, beliau merasakan kerjayanya ini jauh dari cita-cita dan impiannya yang sebenar. “Saya sukakan muzik, tetapi saya bencikan apa yang ada disekitarnya, terasa seperti ada sesuatu yang tidak kena”.
Pada Januari 2009, Maher Zain telah mengambil keputusan untuk menghasilkan sebuah album yang mencerminkan identitinya yang sebenar – Arab, Barat dan Muslim – dan telah menandatangani kontrak dengan Awakening Records. Album pertama Maher Zain berjudul “Thank You Allah” telah menduduki tempat pertama dalam carta Amazon World Music dan kedudukan kesembilan dalam carta R&B.
Pada Januari 2010, lagu Maher Zain berjudul “Ya Nabi Salam Alayka” telah berjaya meraih gelaran sebagai Lagu Terbaik 2009 di dalam sebuah pertandingan muzik anjuran Nujoom FM (stesen radio muzik terbesar di Mesir). Antara yang tercalon ke peringkat akhir adalah nama-nama besar seperti Hussein Aljismi, Mohammed Mounir and Sami Yusuf.
Maher Zain juga telah mengadakan persembahan di konsert-konsert besar yang mendapat sambutan hangat seperti di Algeria, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Mesir, England, Perancis, Belanda, Sweden, Amerika Syarikat dan banyak lagi serta mendapat jolokan “bintang handalan baru dalam industri muzik Islamik”.
Album Maher Zain menggabungkan muzik R&B dan irama kerohanian tradisional, soul dan muzik pop kontemporari, bukan sekadar memperbaharui muzik kerohanian dan nasyid bahkan dengan beraninya menyegarkan muziknya dengan gaya kontemporari. Album pertama Maher Zain “Thank You Allah” adalah album yang penuh bertenaga, malar segar dan penuh dengan unsur kerohanian.
Maher Zain mula dikenali sebagai seorang pemuzik dan penyanyi Islamik moden selepas “single” pertamanya yang ditampilkan dalam video muzik animasi berjudul “Palestine Will Be Free” mendapat perhatian umum. Video muziknya berjudul “Insha Allah” pula telah dirakamkan di sekitar London dan diarahkan oleh pengarah British yang terkenal Mike Harris yang pernah bekerja dengan Coldplay, Madonna dan ramai lagi.
Video muziknya yang terbaru “The Chosen One” menceritakan tentang kehidupan dan ajaran Nabi Muhammad yang berteraskan keamanan, telah dirakamkan di Los Angeles. Ini jelas menunjukkan Maher Zain kini memartabatkan muzik Islamik ke satu peringkat baru yang lebih tinggi.
Sebagai artis dan penerbit yang berbakat luar biasa, Maher telah berjaya membawa muziknya kepada pendengar yang lebih luas dan ramai tanpa mengurangkan mesejnya, bahkan dihasilkan dengan lagu-lagu yang cukup bertenaga, meyakinkan dan sangat indah dengan adunan unsur-unsur R&B, irama kerohanian tradisional, pop, muzik Arab dan Turki dalam sebuah susunan muzik yang berani.
Fakta Ringkas:
Nama: Maher Zain
Umur: 28 tahun
Warganegara: Sweden (Keturunan Lubnan)
Pendidikan: Ijazah Sarjana Muda Kejuruteraan Aeronautik
Pekerjaan yang lalu: Penerbit Muzik
Pengalaman bekerja: RedOne: Akon, Lady Gaga, dan lain-lain.
Tajuk Album: Thank You Allah
Jumlah lagu: 13
Tarikh diterbitkan: 1 November 2009
Syarikat Rakaman: Awakening Records
MAHER ZAIN FIRST CONCERT
Sumber :
http://fenomenasyid.blogspot.com/2010/10/fenomena-maher-zain-di-malaysia.html
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http://www.inteam.com.my/
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http://www.firdausmahadi.com/
Fascinated by the music and instruments, Maher got his first keyboard when he was only ten and ever since music officially became part of Maher’s world.
The family moved to Sweden when Maher was only 8, where he continued his schooling, and later entered university and got a Bachelors degree in Aeronautical Engineering. With things changing around him, one thing remained the same – his strong passion for music. He would spend late nights at school with his friends where they would sing, rap, compose and experiment with music in every way. It didn’t take him long to realize that music became an integral part of who he is.
After being involved for a while in the music scene as a music producer, Maher was introduced to RedOne, a gifted music producer who was fast rising in the music scene in Sweden. Maher started working with RedOne and later moved to New York. For a few years he was in the middle of the hot rush of the NY music industry, working with chart topping artists such as Kat Deluna on her debut album including smash hits ‘Whine up’ and ‘Run the Show’. Maher had what many would describe as a dream job for someone so young in such a glamorous business, but for Maher it felt like this was far from what he would call ‘the dream’, “I loved the music but I hated everything that surrounded it, it always felt like something wasn’t right”.
In January 2009, Maher Zain decided to work on an album that reflects his identity – Arab, Western and Muslim – and signed with Awakening Records. Maher’s debut album Thank Youa Allah reached the number 1 spot on Amazon’s World Music charts and number 9 on the R&B charts.
In January 2010, in a music competition organized by Nujoom FM (Egypt’s biggest music radion station) Maher’s track ‘Ya Nabi Salam Alayka’ was voted as the best song for 2009. Runners up included big names like Hussein Aljismi, Mohammed Mounir and Sami Yusuf. Maher has already performed at sold out concerts in Algeria, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Egypt, England, France, Holland, Sweden, and the US amongst others and is fast becoming the ‘next superstar of Islamic music’.
