Hope you guys are doing well. Lots of folks are asking how the album is coming along. Well we have good news and bad news. Good news is that the album is sounding really good mashaAllah. We have some really good songs and we are involving many more musicians on the album. Last time we had several featured artists, this time we will probably have a good amount of producers, percussionists, etc to help make it sound really nice. So alhamdulillah its going well.

However, the bad news is that the way things are going, we may not have it out for the beginning of Ramadan like we hoped. We had a couple tours break up our momentum for a bit, and some personal stuff came up. But more significant than that, we want to get it right. We don’t want to rush it just to meet a deadline. Many times, I have to leave the tracks alone for a while just so I can hear what sticks out like a sore thumb next time I hear it. When you hear the song over and over and over, your ear becomes used to things it shouldn’t get used to. So you can’t rush it.

But we will try to have something for you for Ramadan, maybe a single or something. We’ll see. Don’t want to make promises, but inshaAllah we will work hard to help our supporters and fans happy inshaAllah. Please make dua for us that we can finish!

Ok we are working hard on the album. This album we are doing it really meticulously and involving several producers. Yes we are still trying to have it to you by Ramadan, but we don’t want to cut any corners as they say. For this album we are really trying to feel the pulse of the youth in America and other Western countries and talk about some of the issues affecting them. All three members are involved in youth and Islamic work on a regular basis, Joshua being a youth director at one of the most respected Muslim community center in America. Naeem working in the relief area and getting to talk to youth from around the globe and seeing what is effecting them. Myself, I deal with alot of youth because I teach Pencak Silat. I think where our group Al-hamdulillah stands apart from others Nasheed artists is that we are just talking about the same things – we want to talk about things that really effect you. And so talk to us, we are listening to you. And of course Allah (SWA) is always listening to you also, and if we are inspired something, maybe it because of something you asked God for or needed advice on.

1. Tell your friends to sign up on Native Deen’s facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/nativedeen) – this way we can easily spread the word much easier

2. Talk to at least two of your friends and family members to let them know about the upcoming album

3. If you know someone who can donate to the cause, please let us know – in these difficult times we are all struggling so please let us know by emailing press@nativedeen.com

5. Always keep us in your dua!

Thanks again and we hope to bring a fresh new album that you would like in the next coming months, inshallah!

http://www.nativedeen.com/survey

So we had a show in Phily a couple of days ago. It was a nice show. Its been a while since we performed together since we are working on the album. So we did a nice little show with like 4-5 songs. But now its time to get back to working on the album. We are trying to get the album out by Ramadan 2010. That gives us maybe 3 months. We need your dua! Please make dua that we can continue to push despite all the other commitments we have. But we don’t want to let down our fans. We want to give you a great album, but we also don’t want you to wait forever for it. Its already been like 2 years since the last one. So inshallah things will move forward.

How is everybody? Inshallah all you guys are doing well. Its been a bit since our last blog. Inshallah we will try to get more regular. The main thing on our heads now is the new album. We started working on it, and its going ok, I think we are off to a good start – Inshallah once we really start refining the material, its going to be amazing inshallah. This album we plan on really getting a good amount of input from professionals in their particular field. For example, for drums we are getting one of the best drummers around – Tariq Snare. He has been with Native Deen since our inception and he is an invaluable resource when it comes to rhythmic and percussive elements. I’d love to tell you more about some of the topics we are planning on discussing, but that would ruin a great surprise, right?

It seems many are anxious for our new album and we plan on making sure the wait is worth while. I am interested for your feedback however while we work on it. Tell us what made the last album so special and what songs really hit you and why. We love to hear your feedback.

So in order to make up for absence of a blog for several months, I and the other members of Native Deen will try to post a blog every week on the status of the new album. That way you can see how we are doing and push us to work harder on it. We need your duas!

Also I read about some high-profile religious personalities that were embolden to try to explain why God would do something like this. See, religious leaders feel the pressure when something like this happens – how to explain to their peeps why our Creator would do something like this. If God is good, why does he allow earthquakes, tornados, hurricanes, tsunamis, typhoons, cyclones, mudslides, and other natural disasters? It is very interesting that natural disasters are often termed “acts of God” while no mention is given to God for years, decades, or even centuries of great weather.

Its true most faiths including Islam believe that God used natural disasters to punish people. But when He did that, He usually wiped out everyone, right? He didn’t leave a child without a mother, or a wife without a husband, at least to my understanding. Not the case with most of these recent disasters.

Some time ago my daughter had a major fever. The pain was intense and of course as a young parent, we got worried we weren’t sure what to do. We took her to the hospital and the doctor said it could be many reasons. Gave us some medicine and told her to keep a watchful eye on her. So we all kept our focus on her which brought us closer together as a family as she slowly got better.

Pain is always looked on as a negative thing. However even in our own bodies pain is used to alert ourselves of some harm and for the body to heal and purify itself from infections and harm. As a Muslim, I believe Allah (SWA) uses pain sometimes to make us better and to bring focus to an location or area that normally is ignored. If it wasn’t for my daughters fever symptoms, we would have not given her the attention she needed to heal. Pain is not about suffering, its about healing and rebuilding.

If one believes that there is another eternal life after death, the pain in this life is a means to purify yourself for the next life. God is just, and if I suffer pain in this world, the more I ready myself for high marks in the next life. Mostly likely someone in Haiti with pure belief in one God who is suffering loss is at a higher place with God than me who is sitting comfortable behind my computer drinking herbal tea.

“We will surely test you through some fear, hunger, and loss of money, lives, and crops. Give good news to the steadfast. When an affliction befalls them, they say, ‘We belong to God, and to Him we are returning.’ These have deserved blessings from their Lord and mercy. These are the guided ones.” Quran 2:155-157

So if God is trying to get our attention to the condition of the people in Haiti, let us respond. Let us donate generously and pray for the people that God ease their suffering.  Amen.

After the show, the brothers and sisters in Oklahoma invited us out to a nice dinner at IHOP. One brother owns it, so if you are ever in Oklahoma, check out the Muslim owned IHOP. I have to say though I was tired – Naeem and Josh seemed alert but I was trying HARD to stay awake. But what woke me up a bit was during the dinner Naeem read a tweet that we were one of the top Hip Hop albums on CD Baby, which is largest online distributor of independent music. That was pretty cool. We are currently #2. Please check it out and order from them or directly from our site – we are hoping to get to #1 so they can feature us. More dawah because all kinds of people visit that site. You can check it out here:

http://www.cdbaby.com/Top/hiphop

Support us and buy the album – If you have already, buy another one and send it as a gift to someone. Help us spread this message inshaAllah!