In terms of album sales & popularity, Atif beats Goher
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In terms of album sales & popularity, Atif beats Goher
"I believe music has great depth and by defining it we limit it only as far as our own imagination." – Atif Aslam
By Haseeb Ahmed and Savaiz Bokhari
Atif Aslam's debut album Jalpari has received tremendous popular
acclaim and has turned this twenty one year old into a force to reckon
with in the Pakistani pop industry. However, his biggest hit to date
has been 'Aadat' a song that made it big once it's video was aired.
Then came the Jal controversy that saw Atif and Gohar Mumtaz's band Jal
come out with the same album under different names. Much has been
written about Jal and not enough about Atif. Instep caught up with
pop's new wonder boy to find out where he comes from, where he is
headed and his take on Jal...
Instep: The response to your first album Jalpari has been overwhelming. How does that make you feel?
Atif Aslam: The response is really nice and I find it very encouraging.
Most shopkeepers were unable to match the supply with the demand.
People are congratulating me and sending me their best wishes. Most of
the reviews have been quite positive as well. Listeners have found my
album to be a mixture of lilting melodies and foot tapping numbers.
Instep: How did you become interested in music and singing?
AA: Interest in Music is some thing very natural, I mean it comes from
within you. However, interest in singing is some thing different. I can
still recall that my brothers had a collection of more than 8,000 songs
comprising of almost all the music genres, which we used to listen and
sing along as well. Then came the twist of fate when one day my friends
forced me to take part in the singing competition of media Club at my
College PICS. I sang 'Duur' by Strings and managed to win the
competition somehow. My first win encouraged me to participate in all
of such competitions and luckily I kept on winning the singing
competitions each semester. It was only because of the appreciation and
encouragement of my fellow students, that made me seriously think about
joining this line. Otherwise I had other plans for myself none of which
included singing and composing full time.
Instep: What about before college?
AA: Before college? No, not since childhood. We had Antakshari
competitions at home once in a while and that was it. No one ever told
me that I had an exceptional voice or that I should sing
professionally. In fact I am not a good singer. That's what I believe.
Instep: Hasn't it become a cliche that every singer says that he was
attracted towards music even as a child? What about the process of
self–discovery as an adult?
AA: Yes you are right but my case is different. My child hood passion
was cricket and not music. I always wanted to be a fast bowler and used
to play for hours without caring for the weather outside. I happened to
be the attack bowler of all the teams I played for. When I got a little
older my craze for cricket increased rather than subsiding. I was
highly determined to get into Pakistani Cricket Team until my studies
came in my way. My time was divided between cricket and studies and as
a result I was unable to concentrate on cricket as much as I wanted to.
While at college my friends forced me to take up singing it as I have
told you earlier. Thereon I started the journey towards self–discovery
as you have called it and now I really feel that music gives me the
feeling of blue. Whenever I am singing I feel like I am flying and it
takes me to new heights each time.
Instep: When did you realise that singing was your true calling?
AA: About the time that I joined PAF College Cantt. for my
Intermediate, one day I was singing a Kishore song and realized that it
actually sounded nice. After that the tune for the song that is 'Aadat'
formed in my mind. I even had some lyrics for it. When I sang this song
I realized that the experience takes me to another world altogether.
Afterwards I decided that to play my music I would hire musicians.
That's when I met Gohar at a party.
Instep: Weren't Goher and you in the same college?
AA: Yes, but we hadn't exactly met before. I used to play the guitar.
Actually I was playing music at the party where I met him. We decided
that we should team up and start a band. Next we decided to record
'Aadat' which was complete by that time.
Instep: You mentioned your moment of Zen when you realized singing is your cup of tea. What about your first live performance?
AA: Live performance... (chuckles). My first live performance was in the park outside McDonald's, way back in 1999.
Instep: Was it with your 'full band set-up' or was it just you?
AA: We were jamming and I suggested to Goher we should go out to play
somewhere. So we went along to the park outside McDonald's. Goher
started to play a cover of a Junoon song. At that time we used to play
Junoon covers mostly. I closed my eyes and started to sing. People
started gathering slowly and when I opened my eyes about fifteen people
were standing and applauding us. At that point the McDonald's manager
came over too and requested us to play inside as well.
Instep: How did Jal happen anyway?
AA: After winning numerous singing competitions in college I came
across a college fellow of mine, Goher who shared my passion for music.
After the initial interaction and knowing each other phase we decided
to join hands to perform in public together. We composed and recorded
'Aadat' and then to reach out to the masses we decided to form a band.
I suggested the name Jal which Goher liked as well.
The story behind the name Jal is that Jal means water, which is the
basic element of life and nature. The color of water is blue and when
light falls upon water it forms the rainbow. So you can say that blue
is the mother of all the colors and secondly the water makes way for
itself as it travels. Hence the name Jal.
Instep: Were the introspective lyrics of 'Aadat' a conscious effort or something that just happened?
AA: To be honest it was not a very conscious effort at all. It was a
reflection of our own selves and our feelings. It a generic song which
can be easily implemented on any one's life one–way or the other. The
lyrics are expressive as well as heartfelt that's why it appealed to a
large cross section of people.
Instep: Did you expect 'Aadat' to be such a big hit? How was life before and after 'Aadat'?
AA: When we recorded 'Aadat', my family and friends told me that it is
very good song so much so that they did not even believe that I had
sung it. By the positive of response of those around me I was expecting
'Aadat' to click with the audiences but in no way was I expecting it to
be a mega super duper hit which it turned into later on.
Post–Aadat, the band received instant fame. Life become busy as a bee
and a lot of good things happened. Autographs, pictures, concerts,
interviews, fans all came together.
Instep: Were you responsible for the break up of Jal or was it the
other way round? Don't you think that two musicians having the same
songs can confuse audiences?
AA: This is a topic I m literally fed up of. So no comments! But I
would like to say that the case for the use of the name Jal is still
pending in the court and they cannot use it like they are doing right
now. I would emphasize that our ways are separate now. They are doing
their music and I am doing my own. Let the public be the best judge of
who's better and worth listening. My good wishes are with Goher and his
band.
Instep: Would you always play solo now or is joining another band not a ruled out option?
AA: Well you never know what will happen in future. One bad experience
does not mean closing all doors and limiting my options. One should
always be open minded in his approach for good things to come in his
way. For the time being, however, I am happy playing solo.
Instep: Do you think Jalpari (your debut album) does justice to your musical talent? Are you satisfied with your output?
A A: No, actually this was recorded in a very short span of time. Goher
and his band were proclaiming Jal to be theirs while we were lying low
to see what they do next. When they didn't come out with the album I
went ahead and recorded the entire album in 3–4 shifts. The vocals were
in fact recorded in a single shift. Therefore, this isn't exactly the
best that Atif is capable of. We can do a lot better and will do so
with our next album.
Instep: So, is the second album ready already? How soon is it expected to come out in the market?
AA: Well, there is a rule here in Pakistan that there must be a gap of
one year between two albums by any artist, so expect it sometime next
year.
Instep: Do you think the current status of local music scene is progressive?
AA: The music scene here is very lively and is progressing gradually.
It is showing good signs of development and has people representing all
genres and styles of music. We need to support all musicians especially
new entrants as they need our encouragement the most and possess the
ability to change the future of the music industry in Pakistan.
Instep: Nowadays music has become more of a viewing pleasure as opposed to a listening one. Care to comment on that
AA: You see this is a multi media age. You must have heard that a
picture is more descriptive than 50,000 words. Therefore a good song
must be accompanied by a visually appealing video in order to create
and enhance the impact of the artist in the minds of the viewers. It
goes without saying that a good song needs an equally good
presentation. Secondly it is common sense that there are more
televisions in the world than cassette players therefore visual medium
is more effective in order to reach out to a greater number of people.
Instep: How do you define your music since it is somewhere midway between rock and pop?
A A: My music has a fluid quality. I haven't defined it myself or made
any attempt at a definition. I want to perform music from several
genres. Just like in my debut album, in future I plan to do bhangra,
pop, rock, semi–classical and even experimental numbers. I believe
music has great depth and by defining it we limit it only as far as our
own imagination.
Instep: Are you still undecided as to which route to take as a musician?
A. I feel that I am too young to confine myself to a particular genre
of music and remain limited to that only. As a singer and musician I
would not like to define my type of music at this point in time. I want
to experiment and come up with something new and totally different each
time. Not only others I want to surprise myself as well. I believe I
have to create a lot of music to define my own genre and this will take
time.
Instep: Do you pen the lyrics of your songs also? If yes doesn't it mean trying to be jack–of–all–trades?
AA: Yes, I also write the lyrics of my songs but you cannot say that it
will make you a jack–of–all–trades. Actually writing and singing are
two forms of expressing yourself. I also consult a lot of people after
writing some thing in order to ensure that I have come up with a
quality song and not rubbish or nonsense.
Instep: How do you compare your fan following in your hometown Lahore with that in other cities?
A A: Fans are the same everywhere. One time in Karachi two young
children came over to my table at a restaurant and asked about
different songs of mine. This feeling of recognition is both inspiring
and inhibiting. When the 'Aadat' video hadn't been aired I could go
anywhere. Now it rarely happens that I'm not surrounded by fans when I
go out.
Instep: How do you handle the female attention that you must be getting?
AA: Some times it flatters me but the people around me (particularly my
family) always keep my feet firmly on ground and make me come back to
reality. With time I am learning the art of handling the immense female
attention I get at most times.
Instep: What are your musical influences? And who did you grow up listening to?
AA: I listen to all the music that is around me. I have heard a lot of
Kishore. I have a wide spectrum of listening spanning from Noor Jehan
to Pink Floyd and Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan to U2 and Eric Clapton.
Personally I prefer to listen to Nusrat's memorable qawwalis and do so
whenever I am alone. This is in turn what shapes me as a musician and
stimulates my creativity.
link : http://www.jang.com.pk/thenews/nov20...004/instep.htm |
| Category: Atif aslam news | Added by: Danoo (2010-04-20)
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| Views: 5146
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