{"id":864,"date":"2016-02-07T14:25:01","date_gmt":"2016-02-07T20:25:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/commonwordcommonlord\/?p=864"},"modified":"2016-02-07T14:26:37","modified_gmt":"2016-02-07T20:26:37","slug":"pillar-of-native-deen-goes-out-on-his-own","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/commonwordcommonlord\/pillar-of-native-deen-goes-out-on-his-own\/","title":{"rendered":"Pillar of “Native Deen” Goes Out On His Own"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the Name of God: The Everlastingly and Extremely Loving and Caring<\/em><\/p>\n

Native Deen<\/a> is one of the oldest and most popular American Muslim hip hop groups. It is my absolute favorite, and I have grown up listening to their songs. In fact, way back in the 1980s group member Joshua Salaam and I went to the same religious summer school, and I remember listening to him drop hip hop rhymes with effortless mastery way back then. Their songs are at once educational, inspirational, and consoling, all the while treating listeners with amazing hip hop beats and lyrics. If you haven’t heard of them, do yourself a favor and check them out<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Yet, it is natural to wonder: what are their musical talents individually? What would they do if they broke up? Thank God, they are not breaking up. But, each has embarked on his own solo project, and the first one to release an album was Naeem Muhammad: “I Love When You Use Your Words.”<\/a><\/p>\n

As soon I as I started listening to it, I got a glimpse into Naeem’s musical mind, and the word “jazz” kept coming up again and again. The album is very much jazz infused. Yet, he has many musical influences, as Naeem himself says:<\/p>\n

My mom\u2019s eclectic record collection and music taste of folk, jazz, soul, rock, and pop seemed to have forged my of own musical affinities. I can remember growing up with LPs of America, Cat Stevens, James Taylor, Neil Young, and many other folk luminaries. So for me, creating an album of inspired folk rock songs, was like coming home. <\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

And, staying true to the “Native Deen” style, each song has a particularly beautiful message. My absolute favorite song is “We Shall Overcome.” Not only does it have an uplifting message, that nothing is impossible without God, but it has a very awesome musical background. He even includes a freshly remade oldie, “Rain Song,” which tells the inspiring tale of the coming of rain after a prayer is made to God.<\/p>\n

I have met Naeem Muhammad, and he is one of the sweetest people you will ever meet. That sweetness is most definitely seen in his music, and “I Love When You Use Your Words” is a musical treat that should not be missed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In the Name of God: The Everlastingly and Extremely Loving and Caring Native Deen is one of the oldest and most popular American Muslim hip hop groups. It is my absolute favorite, and I have grown up listening to their songs. In fact, way back in the 1980s group member Joshua Salaam and I went…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":175,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[65,132],"tags":[133,705,704,135,707,706],"class_list":["post-864","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-american-islam","category-god-in-popular-culture","tag-album","tag-jazz","tag-naeem-muhammad","tag-native-deen","tag-project","tag-solo"],"yoast_head":"\nPillar of "Native Deen" Goes Out On His Own<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"No: Native Deen is not breaking up. 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Hassaballa","description":"Hesham A. Hassaballa is a Chicago doctor and writer. He has written extensively on a freelance basis, being published in newspapers across the country and around the world. He has been a Beliefnet columnist since 2001, and has written for the Religion News Service. He is also a columnist for Patheos. His articles have been distributed worldwide by Agence Global, and he was also a guest blogger for The Chicago Tribune and has blogged on ChicagoNow\" . In addition, Dr. Hassaballa has appeared as a guest on WTTW (Channel 11) in Chicago, CNN, Fox News, BBC, and National Public Radio. Dr. Hassaballa is co-author of The Beliefnet Guide to Islam (Doubleday), and his essay, \u201cWhy I Love the Ten Commandments,\u201d was published in the award-winning book Taking Back Islam (Rodale). His latest book, Noble Brother, is the story of the Prophet Muhammad told entirely in poetry, and it is now published in its second edition. In 2007, his blog \"God, Faith, and a Pen\" was nominated for a Brass Crescent Award for a blog that is \u201cthe most stimulating, insightful, and philosophical, providing the best rebuttals to extremist ideology and making an impact whenever they post.\u201d \"God, Faith, and a Pen\" has also received an award for being one of the \"Top Muslim Blogs for 2010\" by Awarding The Web. In addition to writing, Dr. Hassaballa helped found the Chicago Chapter of the Council on American Islamic Relations and currently serves on their board of directors. He also co-founded the Bayan H. 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