{"id":9165,"date":"2014-09-02T16:46:18","date_gmt":"2014-09-02T16:46:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tat.reddaisytrading.co.uk\/index.php\/2014\/09\/02\/ustad-rfak-on-international-music-and-his-journey-back-to-love\/"},"modified":"2014-09-02T16:46:18","modified_gmt":"2014-09-02T16:46:18","slug":"ustad-rfak-on-international-music-and-his-journey-back-to-love","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.theasiantoday.com\/index.php\/2014\/09\/02\/ustad-rfak-on-international-music-and-his-journey-back-to-love\/","title":{"rendered":"Ustad RFAK on international music and his journey back to love"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"content\">\n<h3>The Asian Today speaks to Ustad Rahat Fateh Ali Khan <\/h3>\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" border=\"1\" hspace=\"3\" alt=\"\" vspace=\"10\" align=\"middle\" src=\"http:\/\/www.theasiantoday.com\/Image\/ArticleImages\/rahatback2love-467x184.jpg\"\/>\u00a0<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div\/>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>Iconic qawwal and global superstar Ustad Rahat Fateh Ali Khan performed his Back 2 Love Tour in the UK in late August. The Asian Today caught up with him after his performance in Birmingham\u2019s LG Arena on Sunday 24<sup>th<\/sup> August.<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>\u00a0<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" border=\"1\" hspace=\"10\" alt=\"\" vspace=\"10\" align=\"left\" src=\"http:\/\/www.theasiantoday.com\/Image\/ArticleImages\/rahatback2love-200x250.jpg\"\/>The Pakistani national treasure singer, who returns to the scene after a seven-year album hiatus, released his latest album \u201cBack 2 Love\u201d on June 9<sup>th<\/sup> to rave reviews. The album, lauded by critics, combines modern love songs with a classic touch. Featuring 10 new songs, the incredible collection of love songs and collaborations is a fusion of techno, bass and traditional Asian themes which shows the singer at his best.<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>The lead track, \u201cZaroori Tha\u201d, saw the song and music video receive an incredible response, becoming globally popular upon its release; it gained over 13 million views on YouTube and Vevo. The song features lovebirds Gauhar Khan and Kushal Tandon from the Indian reality show Bigg Boss who reunite on screen for the music video of the romantic sufi song.<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div\/>&#13;<\/p>\n<div><iframe loading=\"lazy\" height=\"253\" src=\"\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/6-n_szx2XRE\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"450\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/><\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>\u00a0<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>The Bollywood hit-maker has collaborated with composer duo Salim-Sulaiman and singer Shreya Goshal in \u201cBack 2 Love\u201d. When asked about his experience in working with them, he said,<strong> \u201c<\/strong>Well, I\u2019ve performed numerous Bollywood songs with Shreya Goshal in the past. As for Salim-Sulaiman, I have worked with them on a few films previously. <\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>\u00a0<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<blockquote style=\"MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px\" dir=\"ltr\"><p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div><strong><font color=\"#ff6600\" size=\"4\">&#8220;This was the first time I worked on an album with them, and it was a very enjoyable experience.\u201d<\/font><\/strong><\/div>\n<p>&#13;\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>\u00a0<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" border=\"1\" hspace=\"10\" alt=\"\" vspace=\"10\" align=\"right\" src=\"http:\/\/www.theasiantoday.com\/Image\/ArticleImages\/rahatback2love-200x350.jpg\"\/>The Ustad, who is a part of a legacy of great music, has said that his family has \u2018600 years of music heritage\u2019. In an act which shows his promotion of music beyond his own personal work, he partnered with Nokia MixRadio for the launch of \u201cBack 2 Love\u201d.<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>Explaining the purpose of the music platform, the qawwal said, \u201cIt\u2019s a music streaming service that has a lot of global music and it features approximately 30 million music tracks from a variety of music genres. It\u2019s a music app where the listener can access the music through a number of different means.\u201d<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>\u00a0<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>The singer was advised in his youth by his uncle, the legendary qawwal Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, to \u201ckeep listening to all of the world\u2019s music, they will give you something\u201d.<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>\u00a0<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>Speaking about his own music taste, the Ustad said: \u201cWell, I enjoy listening to a lot of old qawwals and modern qawwals too. I listen to a lot of musicians from the Indian subcontinent. <\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>\u00a0<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<blockquote style=\"MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px\" dir=\"ltr\"><p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div><font color=\"#ff6600\" size=\"4\"><strong>\u201cAny international music I come across that I like, I tend to listen to that too.\u201d<\/strong><\/font><\/div>\n<p>&#13;\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>\u00a0<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>When asked if he listens to any English boy bands or singers, the modern music icon said, \u201cyes, I do listen to English music but what I do listen to is generally from older English bands.\u201d<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>\u00a0<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>Performing live was a basic skill the global singing sensation was taught from a very early age, under the tutelage of his uncle who had mentored him from the age of three. <\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>\u00a0<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" border=\"1\" hspace=\"10\" alt=\"\" vspace=\"10\" align=\"left\" src=\"http:\/\/www.theasiantoday.com\/Image\/ArticleImages\/rahatback2love-200x250-1.jpg\"\/>The qawwal has branched out from the genres which saw his greatest devotion in the past, that of sufi and qawwali, in which he saw great encouragement from Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. Outside of live performances, the film industries of Bollywood and Lollywood have played a significant part in increasing the Ustad\u2019s exposure to the masses outside of the Qawwali genre and the majority of the great qawwal\u2019s songs for Indian cinema have been instant hits. <\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>\u00a0<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>When asked about his extensive performances in India, the singer said, \u201cWhat I enjoy most about performing in India is related to singing. <\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>\u00a0<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<blockquote style=\"MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px\" dir=\"ltr\"><p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div align=\"left\"><font color=\"#ff6600\" size=\"4\"><strong>\u201cThe people in India understand a lot about music and singing, so whenever we go and perform there, we always really enjoy it.\u201d<\/strong><\/font><\/div>\n<p>&#13;\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>\u00a0<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>The singer has previously said that as music is one language, there is no boundary in understanding music and so music created by Pakistani artists crosses over well into India.<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div><iframe loading=\"lazy\" height=\"253\" src=\"\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/1qavsRW1uG4\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"450\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/><\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div\/>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>\u00a0<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>In reference to his plans for the future, the Ustad said,<strong> \u201c<\/strong>Well, we plan to do a lot of international collaborations in the coming weeks. We\u2019re looking forward to working with a number of different people.\u201d<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div>\u00a0<\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div><em>Ustad Rahat Fateh Ali Khan\u2019s album \u201cBack 2 Love\u201d is available\u00a0for download on iTunes.<\/em><\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div><em\/><\/div>\n<p>&#13;<\/p>\n<div><em>Photography by Adil Iqbal @sayarts<\/em><\/div>\n<p>&#13;\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Asian Today speaks to Ustad Rahat Fateh Ali Khan \u00a0 &#13; &#13; Iconic qawwal and global superstar Ustad Rahat Fateh Ali Khan performed his Back 2 Love Tour in the UK in late August. The Asian Today caught up with him after his performance in Birmingham\u2019s LG Arena on Sunday 24th August. &#13; \u00a0 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":11753,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9165","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorised"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theasiantoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9165","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theasiantoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theasiantoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theasiantoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theasiantoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9165"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.theasiantoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9165\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theasiantoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11753"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theasiantoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9165"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theasiantoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9165"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theasiantoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9165"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}