Haroon

Meri Aawaz Suno
Many singers from UK are realising that the Indian music market is a big one and it matters if you make it here. So you have Haroon, the London-based singer, trying out the Indian market with his new album Haroon Ki Awaaz, released by Milestone...

A magazine in UK gave him the title ‘Prince of Asian Pop’ but we in India hadn’t really heard of this singing ‘Prince’ Haroon Rashid, and his songs. That is till we chanced upon Haroon’s recently released album Haroon Ki Aawaz, and after listening to it, felt that the title was more or less justified. Music company Milestone surely did well in taking the initiative to present the artist in India. His well-honed voice and musical talent needs a wider exposure, and Haroon is a welcome addition to the burgeoning tribe of pop singers.

When we met the UK-based singer, who was in India to promote the album, he was quite modest about the title bestowed on him. "Oh, it was given to me by a UK publication Eastern Eye since they felt I had a lot of potential," he says, "Actually I am quite embarrassed by it because I feel I have a long way to go."
Haroon, in his accented English, tells us that he has been on the UK music scene since 1994, cutting singles and albums there, and performing with his band Aawaaz, now defunct. "My first album Shola was released in 1996 by Pan Music in UK," says Haroon, "It had the song Mr. Fraudier inspired by the word fraud. That was a tongue-in-cheek song, poking fun at corruption. And it was in Hinglish, that’s half-Hindi and half-English. The video of the song was widely played on MTV. Did you see it by any chance? "

No we didn’t, but according to Haroon Shola sold really well in UK. "I can tell you the sales figure. It sold 650,000 copies," he claims proudly, "That album gave me a major mileage and on that album alone I did many shows in Europe and UK with my band. I was the lead singer of my band."

Sadly for Haroon, the band couldn’t survive for long. "We broke up because the other members weren’t being professional enough," he informs. But it proved to be a blessing in disguise because it gave Haroon the opportunity to concentrate on his solo career, and enough time to build his recording studio. "That’s a dream-come-true. It’s in a prime area of London and is called Aaron’s," he beams while talking about it, "It’s turbo-charged and quite funky to suit the present trend. My friend helps me out and we have recorded some famous garage tracks there. It’s also my creative den, and I write my lyrics and compose my songs there."

Why hasn’t he named the studio after himself, we query. "Hey, Aaron’s also my name," he points out, "My name is Aaron Haroon Rashid. My mom’s a New Zealander and she calls me Aaron, while my dad calls me Haroon."

The singer-composer has named his album Haroon Ki Aawaz, which kind of sounds self-laudatory. But Haroon disagrees, "It’s named so because through this album I am not just presenting my voice, I am presenting my music. I am expressing myself. Also the albums’s a one-man show. I have done everything - right from composing to singing to producing to playing the guitar.

Describing it as a "hi-energy album," Haroon says rhythm is the dominating factor. "The sound here is an eclectic mix of rock, dance, Indian folk and bhangra,” he says, “It’s also melodic music like the Beatles. I just went by the flow when producing it. It’s very funky."

Music runs in Haroon’s blood since his mom is an opera singer. "I have inherited the talent from her," he says with pride, "While she was studying music in New Zealand, her school saw her as a promising singer and send her to the renowned London Opera Company for honing her singing skill further. There she was taught by Kiri Fewana, the world renowned opera singer. She was in his troupe and worked with him for sometime. But after marriage she gave up her career, or else I am sure she would have scaled great heights."

Even though his mother gave up professional singing, she continued her singing sessions at home, and it was while she would sing at home, playing the piano, that Haroon picked up his first lessons. "Presently, she’s a professor of music in New Zealand," he says. His two brothers have also inherited musical genes, though they haven’t taken it up as a career. "One of my brothers is an IT guy, but he sings amazingly well," he says.

Haroon got into music quite early in his life. "When I was 14, I would compose my own songs on the guitar, and play them at school shows. And everyone liked them," he says proudly. He then progressed to doing concerts with other artists. "I have done a lot of shows with Taz of Stereo Nation. I was a regular performer at the BBC mega-mela in Birmingham," he says.

The singer has lavished a lot of attention on the making of his video of the song Yaara bada pyasa hoon main from the album. Telecast on music channels, it stands out for its high production values. "I wanted the video to be like a film," says Haroon, "I was very impressed with the Hollywood blockbuster Robinhood Prince Of Thieves and the video is inspired by it. I feature in it as Robinhood, who has to save his girl from the clutches of the villain. The video has a medieval English look and it takes you into a fantasy world."

Surprisingly, inspite of speaking English with an accent, Haroon’s diction of Urdu and Hindi is flawless. "Well, I made it a point to learn the right diction by keeping tutors," he says, "As a child I have grown up listening to Hindi films songs. I am a Hindi movie buff and a great fan of Amitabh Bachchan. Indian music has played an important part in my life, especially Hindi film music which I have soaked up like a sponge."

A fan of the Beatles, Queen, Nusrat Fateh Ali Kahn, Daler Mehndi and Euphoria, Haroon listens to anything that is melodious. But if there’s one music personality he’d love to meet it’s Shania Twain. "She’s fantastic. So gorgeous. I hope I meet her someday," he says with a smile. Another music personality he admires is Madonna. "I used to hate her once upon a time for all the gimmicks she resorted to for sensationalism. But by and by, I have realised that her singing power is incredible. Which is why has lasted this long."

About his future plans, Haroon says he’d like to get into production of albums and composing in a big way. "But singing will be my first love. I see myself going on and on as a singer for a long time. If I am good I will definitely last," he concludes with a smile.

Salma Khatib>>>
salmakhatib@hotmail.com

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