[Imaan Faith]
“Being a rapper from Tehran presents an interesting mix of Middle Eastern, African and South Asian culture connections, but multi-talented Imaan Faith also brings an important message with his music.†-CKLN 88.1 FM, September 2005Â
It didn’t take long for Imaan Faith to become one of hip-hop’s most innovative personalities, bringing with him a story that sounds like a folktale from his Muslim heritage. Born and raised in politically-charged Iran, it was immigrating to New York in the early 1990’s that first brought rap culture to Imaan’s attention. Often donating food to youth centres across the city from his family’s new Tehran cookery, Imaan began seeing comparisons between the poverty of minorities in America and those in his former home of the Middle East. Upon hearing Imaan attempting to ‘freestyle’ political lyrics like Tupac Shakur with homeless youth at a Manhattan shelter one evening, Ali G. Shaker was so convinced of his brother’s talent that he sold his car the next morning to buy studio time for Imaan’s first demo tape called “I Got GUTS.â€
Fleeing to Canada in the late 1990’s to avoid anti-Muslim hate crimes that began spreading in New York, Imaan’s family was shocked to find similar anti-Muslim sentiments among students in some of the Toronto schools Imaan and Ali G. attended, which soon led to Imaan being placed in a detention facility for repeated fighting. Yet when a drug dealer appointed himself Imaan’s personal bodyguard after hearing him freestyle to fight off anti-Muslim inmates, Imaan began to see hip-hop as a true calling and spent the rest of his incarcerated months writing dozens of songs ranging from aids awareness (“You Got A Choiceâ€) to current events (“Letter For Tookieâ€).
Upon Imaan being freed Ali G. resorted to selling their family’s car, this time using the finances to launch G.U.T.S. (or ‘Growing Up Tehran Style’), the world’s first Iranian-owned rap record label which has since collaborated with the likes of rap legends Mopreme Shakur and Big Syke (Thug Life), Tupac producer Johnny ‘J’, reggae phenomenon Snow, renowned DJ Clinton Sparks, and Roc-A-Fella/G-Unit artist Freeway among many others. In addition to Imaan appearing on an official Tupac tribute compilation, with the help of hip-hop activist Deejay Ra the G.U.T.S. label has also sponsored charitable CD’s featuring guest appearances by Imaan to raise donations for organizations such as the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund among others. Imaan Faith’s story is already becoming legend, and it’s only just begun.
© G.U.T.S. Records / Lyrical Knockout Entertainment
