Sounds Islamic? Muslim Music in Britain

Sounds Islamic? Muslim Music in Britain Carl Morris PhD Religious and Theological Studies Cardiff University 2013 For Rowan ‘May your heart always be joyful and may your song always be sung’ Bob Dylan – ‘Forever Young’ And to Lisa For sharing this journey, along with so many others Contents ________________________________________________________________________ Acknowledgements.....................................................................................................................iv List of Figures..............................................................................................................................vi List of Tables..............................................................................................................................viii Glossary.........................................................................................................................................ix Abstract..........................................................................................................................................x 1. Muslim Music in Britain: An Introduction.......................................................................1 • Contested Cultural Spaces: The Outline of a Research Agenda....................................................3 • Muslims and Musical Practice in Britain.......................................................................................9 • Traditions and Trajectories: An Examination of the Academic Literature..................................18 Section One: Mapping the Scene 2. Researching Muslim Musicians in Britain: Methodological Reflections..................32 • Preliminary Research Methodology.............................................................................................33 • Fieldwork Difficulties...................................................................................................................35 • Re-evaluating the Methodology...................................................................................................40 • Sampling.......................................................................................................................................41 • Interviewing..................................................................................................................................43 • Online Research Methodologies...................................................................................................46 • Reflexivity and Fieldwork……....................................................................................................48 • Coding and Analysis.....................................................................................................................50 3. The British Muslim Soundscape........................................................................................54 • Profiling British Muslim Musicians.............................................................................................54 • Listening to British Muslim Musicians........................................................................................57 • Profiling British Muslim Music Fans...........................................................................................71 • Making Space for Performance....................................................................................................75 i | Page Section Two: Religion, Knowledge and Spirituality 4. Religious Pedagogies: British Muslims, Islam and Music............................................86 • Islam and Music: A Contested Tradition......................................................................................87 • British Muslims and the Religious Permissibility of Music.........................................................89 • Religious Authority and Muslim Musicians.................................................................................98 5. Sectarianism and Spirituality: In Search of Religious Universalisms.....................109 • Healing the Rift: Muslim Sectarianism in Britain......................................................................109 • Spirituality and the ‘Subjective Turn’........................................................................................119 Section Three: Muslim Markets and Media 6. The Muslim Music Market: Culture and Consumerism............................................132 • Muslim Music: Defining a Genre...............................................................................................133 • Consumer Culture and Music.....................................................................................................141 • Production Frameworks and Distribution...................................................................................151 7. Muslim Musicians and the Media: Finding a Voice....................................................162 • The British Muslim Public Sphere.............................................................................................163 • Musicians and the Muslim Media..............................................................................................171 • The Internet.................................................................................................................................178 • Muslim Women and the Public Sphere......................................................................................183 Section Four: Identity, Community and Belonging 8. Ethnicity and Class: Locating ‘Muslimness’ Through Music...................................192 • Bourdieu and Bhabha: Rethinking Class and Ethnicity.............................................................193 • South Asian Cultural Diasporas: Resistance and Renewal........................................................199 • Sami Yusuf: The Authorised Image of Muslimness..................................................................206 • Black Muslim Musicians: Redefining Muslimness....................................................................209 9. The Politics of Belonging: Nationalism, Transnationalism and the Umma...........218 • The Umma: Theoretical Debates................................................................................................219 • Muslim Collectivity: Context and Contestation.........................................................................224 ii | Page • The Politics of International Responsibility...............................................................................233 10. Conclusion: Muslim Musicians and Cultural Change in Britain………………...242 Appendixes.................................................................................................................................248 • Appendix One: Authorisation Form and Information for Interviewees.....................................248 • Appendix Two: Complete Survey Results.................................................................................252 • Appendix Three: NVivo Coding Frame.....................................................................................267 Bibliography..............................................................................................................................271 Discography...............................................................................................................................287 iii | Page Acknowledgments ___________________________________________________________________________ This thesis was eventually completed with the assistance, encouragement and advice provided to me over the years by a number of people. My family have played a particularly important role and deserve a special mention – their love and support has always given me the self-confidence necessary to keep moving forward. I am also of course most indebted to my supervisors, Dr. Sophie Gilliat-Ray and Dr. John Morgan O’Connell. They have been a continual source of strength throughout the research, offering not just academic and professional expertise, but also friendship, kindness and patience. I would additionally like to thank the teaching and administrative staff at Cardiff University and the Centre for the Study of Islam in the UK. In particular, I am most grateful to Dr. Saira Malik and Dr. James Hegarty for their input along the way. The research was only possible because of the generous financial support offered by the Jameel Foundation. While the Jameel Foundation provided the necessary funding to actually conduct the research – an opportunity for which I will always be grateful – I am particularly thankful for the personal interest shown in my work by Mr Yusuf Jameel and Mr Christian Hoffmann. Their enthusiasm provided further impetus on my part to ensure the quality and relevance of this thesis. I would also like to extend my thanks to Sarah Price in Development & Alumni Relations at Cardiff University. Sarah went above and beyond her responsibilities in managing the Jameel Scholarship programme, offering everything from friendship and professional advice through to gardening tips. I am also thankful for the support, inspiration and intellectual engagement provided over the years by my various academic peers. This includes my immediate research circle at the Centre for the Study of Islam in the UK, most notably Roz Warden, Yusuf Adams, Mustafa Hameed and Mark Bryant. But I would also like to thank members of the Muslims in Britain Research Network (MBRN) and the BSA Sociology of Religion Study Group (Socrel). I

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