A Soul Diary : Interview with Rajae.

Photo by Mous Lamrabat

Rajae El Mouhandiz is a young, prolific singer and musician based in Amsterdam, combining contemporary soul and traditional Moroccan sufi influences in her music that sounds both universal and intimately Middle Eastern. Her new album, “Hand of Fatima” is out now, featuring a collaboration with Malcolm Lateef Shabazz . The album is available for online purchase at her official site.

Salam Aleikum, Rajae! Tell us a little about the decision behind your career, – how did you choose music?
Salaam Heeba magazine! I started with classical ballet when I was four. I fell completely in love with music and especially with classical music. At the age of eight I started playing the french horn (yes, funny choice :) ), at 16 I was the first N-African to enter a Dutch conservatory. While studying classical music I discovered jazz music, soul music, conscious lyrical music and my own voice! I left the conservatory after 4 years and started traveling the world and writing songs. I worked really hard to pay for my recordings. in 2006 I released my first album Incarnation independently and last December my new album Hand of Fatima.

We’re excited about your new album release, – tell us, what was the inspiration behind it?
I was born in Morocco, my mother is Algerian and I grew up in Amsterdam. I am a product of all these cultures. From an artistic and lyrical point of view I made this album because I am a Muslim and there is hardly any english contemporary music made by young Muslims, while they actually are a huge part of the mainstream audience who buy entertainment products. Their stories have not been illustrated yet in pop culture, while there is a need for this new genre that helps them channel their emotions. It also gives them a nice and dynamic platform to be young and to explore their identity.

60% of the World’s Muslim population is younger than 23. They go through life without Muslim Hollywood heroes, because they are not seen as the mainstream and because Hollywood does not seem to like happy and fashionable Muslims. I could have recorded love songs, or exotic songs with modern oriental beats, but instead I decided to take a leap of faith and create songs that represent the emotions and experiences that the current Muslim youth silently go through.

Then about the sound: Western people expect me to make world music, which is super cool, but I was raised in the west and I believe that native Arab singers can do a better job than me in this genre. Muslims expect me to sing Nasheed, which is beautiful…on Jumaa ;-), but very safe and not mainstream enough for me. It does not break barriers and it’s a small niche market, while I like big stages ;-)

I eventually chose to work with Erik Rico and Tyson Leeper, two heavy industry producers in Hollywood because they believed in my vision and because they could help me make this album sound ‘Big’, while keeping the arrangements authentic and with the mix of acoustic instruments and electronic elements. See, I listen to music all day and I listen to everything that touches my heart. What I came to understand is that in the last decades jazz, hip hop, pop and soul music have caused a beautiful revolution that can be felt and seen everywhere in the world and in every part of society.

With this album I wanted to take it to the next level and create timeless songs that can easily be remixed into any pop culture genre while promoting a peaceful message. This album is like a diary. It reflects on life and it portraits moments, struggles and the issues we are dealing with in modern life. The struggles of the kids of Maghreb immigrants in Europe, who face racism, loss of identity, who deal with power struggles in broken families and the cry for inclusive societies and leadership that promotes equality and peace. I also try to simplify Islamic phrases to universal phrases, to make them more understandable for non muslims who appreciate my music from a universal point of view. Most people who listen to this album, say that it eases their soul.

Tell us about your latest collaboration with Malcolm Lateef Shabazz.
Brother Malcolm and I made one another’s acquaintance in Qatar (in the Middle East) during the Muslim Leaders of Tomorrow Conference and became friends. We spoke until dawn about life and we listened to music. He left to the inauguration of President Obama and I wrote him a song. As soon as he heard the song, Malcolm spontaneously offered to collaborate in making a video clip to accompany it. Two versions were made, one for the regular music channels and another including interview bites in which Malcolm responds to her lyrics. He had never previously given a video interview. It was a pleasure to work with him and my goal was to make something that he would be proud of and that would make people smile from the inside. I believe we have succeeded to do so and hope that it will show that his grandfather’s legacy is still very much alive.

Who inspires you outside of the music scene?
My mother and my little nieces and nephews + all other mothers and all good fathers. Nurses, teachers, doctors, community leaders, the people who make the world go ’round.
I meet many amazing and courageous people every day and to be honest I hardly hang out with people in the music industry. No particular reason why ;-)

I live a very private offline ;-) life. My personal circle is very small. I just do my thing, rock the stage or the mic @ studio’s and go home to study (at the moment guitar) or write songs and scribbles or to cook healthy meals and chill.

What are your favorite instruments?
Many! I just picked up a new one, guitar, because on my next album I want to play it and I miss an instrument on stage! I love every instrument that is played with soul. It can be vocals or percussion, or piano, or a synth or electric bass or strings. I listen to vocal and instrumental music. It’s not the instrument that makes is sound beautiful, but the musician who plays it!

Your music is consciously Muslim in its themes, do you find that creativity and spirituality are interconnected, and if so, how do they impact one another in your life and work?
They do. When I started doing music, I wanted to become a good player. Then I grew older and wanted to become a musician. When I became a professional musician I wanted to have a peaceful and positive message. Then I discovered my legacy, my roots and it all came together. Then music evolved to become energy. I did not have to look far : )

Sometimes I work with people that I hardly know and who have never really spoken to, all we do is exchange music and chords and once we play music, we fully understand each other and good energy fills the room. People in the audience leave with peace in their hearts and with a big smile. Once you choose this road you can only become more poetic. I hope to do an album one day filled with happy love songs. I have a lifetime of recordings ahead of me ;-) Music has a healing power. I believe so!

Your listed musical inspirations ( Coltrane, Khaled, A Tribe Called Qwest ) are quite diverse stylistically, yet carry an unmistakably positive energy in their message. Do you feel that artists can influence audiences beyond the immediate sensory experience of music and impact the world in a social sense as well?
Yes, absolutely! The list was much longer btw. I believe that artists influence us all the time all day. In positive and in negative ways, depending on which culture or lifestyle they represent. Artists dare to say and do things that most people are scared to do or say. There is this ‘other space’ that they’re in, where they seem to get away with saying and doing almost anything. Some artists help shape society (Bono, Lennon, Joni Mitchell, Jill Scot Heron, Bob Marley, Curtis Mayfield, Nina Simone, J Dilla, Tupac etc…) Others help us celebrate life or help us overcome pain (Michael Jackson, Donny Hathaway, Quincy Jones, Stevie Wonder, Ella Fitzgerald, Billy Holiday, Chaka Khan, etc..). Some are there because they want to push boundaries, the so called enfants terrible who showcase hedonism and reach out to an audience who need to feel liberated by them (Jay-Z, Kanye, Madonna, Lady Gaga, Beyonce, Rihanna and all the other diva’s and players).

Icons like Fairuz Um Kalthum are the voices of the Middle East. In the Muslim contemporary scene we have a few cool cats as well, Tribe Call Quest, K’Naan, Meshell N’Degeochello, Mos Def, Kumasi, Tyson, Amir Sulaiman, Suheir Hammad, Sofia Servando Baig, The Narcicist, Yuna, Shadia Mansour, Lupe Fiasco, Khalil Ismail, One Be Lo. This group is growing rapidly and each of them has a unique message. Can you imagine life and the world without music and poetry?

North Africa’s history is marked by a diverse cultural fusion of African and Arab worlds, do you feel growing up with this heritage of openness and multiculturalism helps your music reach a more universal audience?
Ab-So-Lu-Te-Ly! Lawd have mercy on me hehehe! I am half Moroccan, Half Algerian. Half Arab and half Berber. That means I love beats and melodies haha! And to make it even more plural….I grew up in Amsterdam. Yes, of all places in the world…Amsterdam. Need I say more? ;-)

The Islamic world has an incredibly rich artistic heritage in both art, poetry & literature that has seen a revival in recent years. As a Muslim and a poet ( among other things ), do you feel your work continues that tradition?
I hope so. At least it is recognized to do so. I’m the only female singer on the Muslim 500 list and I am an active member of MLT and WISE. 3 years ago I performed and spoke for the US-Islamic World Forum in Qatar for Muslim and Western Leaders about the potential of contemporary Muslim music, which was warmly embraced by both groups. I also regularly seek advice from my peers to make sure that I am on point. It is important to engage in dialogue and to know what Islam is from a Global perspective as well as from a scholarly, a holistic and an artistic perspective. You can cause harm, by not studying the basic principles first. If you send out the wrong message you are not only hurting the person whom you have affected, but also the Ummah. And Because I am half of everything, I feel a deep need to bring worlds together… Life has put me in a position where I do that in the public sphere, in the mainstream. It took me many years to get over my stage fright and I while I have become a person who loves the studio and the stage, I remain a shy person. Not because I am afraid of anything, but it’s because the music industry is a man’s world and I want to do big things, I want to make an impact. I’ve struggled to become an artist, I can relate to the pain of many, but how do you brand yourself and remain authentic?

I wasn’t ready to do a video until now. Why?  because I didn’t feel strong enough. In a time when Islam is being attacked in ways that are scary sometimes, what we Muslims do is suffer in silence, we think about it and pray for better days. We say, Insha’Allah Gheyr. We leave it to the politicians and the scholars.

I believe that in 2010, a time when media, pr and branding dominate the worldview of the mainstream, that Muslim art can absolutely have a function and a role in the struggles we face today. Art can support the important work that our community leaders and media people are doing, because the youth relate to cool stuff and everyone is looking for inspiration after a long day of hard work. It does not have to be propaganda, it can simply be culture. It can be a beautiful artistic experience. 2010 every phone is a multi media player. Apps are becoming the newest music carriers. Fill those players with inspiration. With comfort and wisdom. Our prophet pbuh, was ahead of his time, he was a revolutionary. We must continue to stay ahead of time.

Thank you for your time, Rajae!

Date: March 31, 2010