Sonic Ashtanga Lead Singer and Sufi Visionary Imran Raza Speaks Out Against Taliban Massacre of School Children
Malibu, CA (PRWEB) December 17, 2014 -- Artist, poet, singer and Sufi visionary Imran Raza, who’s song LIVE IN LIBERTY AND RISE !!! features as its first words Malala Yousafzai's own voice, condemned the Taliban attack on school children that killed more than 140 people.
Sirens of Dionysus Song “Rise !!!'s first words are Malala Yousafzai’s voice saying, “I am the same Malala. My ambitions are the same. My hopes are the same. My dreams are the same. My Soul is telling me, be peaceful and love one another.”
“Malala’s poise, class and courage are a direct contradiction to the base, classless cowardliness of these evil men,” said Raza.
“These terrorists are lost cowards who slaughter defenseless, unarmed children. Their actions are utterly despicable and evil -- deserving of Hell,” said Raza, a Sufi who is a direct descendent of the Prophet Mohammed.
“Malala, the recent Nobel Peace prize winner, in contrast, is a study in courage and perseverance, as opposed to the barbaric troll-like Taliban who perpetrated this atrocious outrage,” said Raza.
"It deeply saddens my heart that all these children have been deprived of their basic right to live out their lives and fulfill their dreams,' said Raza
This is not the first time Raza has condemned the Taliban. His song, Sonic Ashtanga’s “Hammarah Ghar” (Our Home) -- which was widely played on Pakistan’s music video channels, including hourly play on Pakistan MTV in the spring of 2011 – has the following lyrics:
Nikalo inn Badmasho Ko Hamarrai Ghar Say - Gotta Kick these Evildoers Out of Our Homes
Nikalo inn Shaytano Ko Hamarrai Ghar Say - Gotta Kick these Satan-Loving Wicked Devils Out of Our Homes
Nikalo inn Bombarro Ko Hamarrai Ghar Say – Gotta Kick these Suicide Bombers Out of Our Homes
Whether pushing boundaries in music or culture, Imran Raza is at the forefront of an exciting, new initiative to reacquaint the world with his home country through music. This filmmaker, writer, and front man of the Sufi-rock band Sonic Ashtanga is what could only be described as a rock Renaissance man. Sonic Ashtanga’s global hit, "Be Like the Onion," featuring three-time Grammy winner Anton Pukshansky, world-renowned drummer Glen Sobel and Sufi legends Mekaal Hasan, Ahsan Papu and Sanam Marvi won the prestigious Hollywood Music in Media award for best song in the World Music category. A documentary produced by the HMMA’s of Sonic Ashtanga’s victory and performance can be viewed here. His newly released EDM (Electronic Dance Music) project Sirens of Dionysus brings a fusion of Sufi elements and has won both the Dubstep and Environmental Recognition Awards from the HMMA’s.
Raza is best known for his rock-ragged voice that hearkens back to the illustrious days of rock and roll. However, at the core of his lyrics are the values of liberty, plurality, and human rights. The universal quality of these values anchors Raza's ideology: music translates across the human consciousness and penetrates in a way that is more fundamental than words alone.
Award-winning FILMLOOK MEDIA & POST, which is celebrating its 25th Anniversary this year, is collaborating with Bollywood’s iconic actor Gulshan Grover, Imran Raza and his Sufi music sister projects - Sonic Ashtanga and Sirens of Dionysus to co-produce a new music franchise library “Awakening of Dionysus,” a collection of music, music videos, docu-series.
“Awakening of Dionysus,” refers to the Greek Mythological God who harvests and liberates the Soul, and under this banner these creative works will explore the awakening of consciousness to a new generation and the ground swell of the humanitarian movement as it gains momentum.
The first project to be produced under “Awakening of Dionysus,” label is the short film- music video LIVE IN LIBERTY AND RISE !!!, the song featuring the message from Malala Yousafzai; which is produced by three-time Award-winning Grammy producer Anton Pukshansky (Santana’s “Supernatural”, Korn, Ozamatli’s “Street Signs”), who has worked with Imran Raza since 2007 and renown electronic music producer Gabor Varga (Depeche Mode, Deadmaus, Crazy Town). RISE !!! features Raza’s music project Sirens of Dionysus and is directed by World renowned upscale fashion photographer Ash Gupta, whose work regularly appears in Vogue, Vanity Fair, GQ and Elle and is making his directorial debut.
Currently a huge sensation in Asia - Sufi rock is a new genre in music emerging which combines the mystical eastern music with the western iconic rock sound with Imran Raza at the forefront. His popularity gained momentum and spread across the Asian continent when his singles "Fly with Us," "The Bombs of Dhamma," and most notably “Hammarah Ghar” (Our Home) played hourly on MTV Asia and on other music stations condemning the Taliban and gaining the support of the Pakistani government.
Raza’s projects won two Hollywood Music in Media Awards (HMMA) for the single “Be Like the Onion” in the World category with Sonic Ashtanga; and “Warm Soft Winter Moon” which won the Dub Step Award and Recognition in the Planet Environment Award with Sirens of Dionysus. Sirens of Dionysus, whose name personifies the image of “Smashing Ego into Ecstasy,” other single “Get in the Game” was nominated in the Alternative Rock category.
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Contact: Dan Perrin (202) 271-2959 or Mona Malik (714) 623-4909 to set up an interview with Raza.
Raza’s Short film – short film-music video for the song Live in Liberty and Rise !!! can be viewed on youtube here.
Daniel Perrin, Bridges of Harmony, http://sonicashtanga.com, +1 3109873872, [email protected]
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