Kareem Salama is an American musician of North African descent. He is a singer/songwriter and penned by some in the media as the first American Muslim

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

singer. His music is a hybrid of

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while ...

, pop and

rock music Rock music is a broad genre of popular music that originated as " rock and roll" in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of different styles in the mid-1960s and later, particularly in the United States an ...

. He has released 3 albums ''Generous Peace'' (2006) ''This Life of Mine'' (2007) and a third ''City of Lights'' (2011), the latter after signing for LightRain Records.

Background and education

Salama was born in

Ponca City Ponca City ( iow, Chína Uhánⁿdhe) is a city in Kay County in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The city was named after the Ponca tribe. Ponca City had a population of 25,387 at the time of the 2010 census- and a population of 24,424 in the 2020 ...

, Oklahoma, United States. His parents immigrated to the United States in the late 1960s to attend graduate school. He studied at

University of Oklahoma , mottoeng = "For the benefit of the Citizen and the State" , type = Public research university , established = , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.7billion (2021) , pr ...

, where he majored in chemical engineering. Then he entered law school at the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized into 12 col ...

in Iowa City graduating with a degree in Law.''New York Times'': “Muslim singer with a country twang” by Neil McFarquhar (November 13, 2007)
/ref>

Career

With his parents' encouragement and financial assistance, Salama began recording his first album ''Generous Peace'' while in law school with Greek-American producer, Aristotle Mihalopoulos. Salama also released the title track "Generous Peace" as his debut single accompanied by a music video. After another self-released album titled ''This Life of Mine'', Salama was signed in 2011 to LightRain Records that released his third album to which he is signed. Salama has performed in front of audiences as far as Rome and London. He also took part in a State Department European concert tour, performing in Paris. He has been featured in major media outlets like the

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

Christian Science Monitor Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρισ ...

Reader's Digest ''Reader's Digest'' is an American general-interest family magazine, published ten times a year. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, it is now headquartered in midtown Manhattan. The magazine was founded in 1922 by DeWitt Wallace and his wif ...

Fox News The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is owne ...

, Sky News and

France 24 France 24 ( in French) is a French state-owned international news television network based in Paris. Its channels broadcast in French, English, Arabic, and Spanish and are aimed at the overseas market. Based in the Paris suburb of Issy-les-Mo ...

.. Salama also embarked on a Middle East and North Africa tour in summer 2010. visiting

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria t ...

, Syria,

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

Kuwait Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...

and

Bahrain Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...

Influences

While in school, Salama made time to work on his music with a friend and producer Aristotle Mihalopoulos. Salama says that his music is inspired by a variety of things including his own experiences, experiences of friends and family, and things that he reads. As a result of growing in Oklahoma Salama was around country music from the time he was very young and is attracted to the stories and the reverent nature of country music. Salama highlights universal themes about love, home and family values. His songs are spiritual, without being overtly religious. One inspired by the writings of an 8th-century Islamic scholar, Imam Muhammed Al-Shafi'ee, endorses the idea of tolerance and avoiding violence in his debut single "Generous Peace": "Gentleman, I'm like incense, the more you burn me, the more I'm fragrant."

''The WitWits''

''The WitWits'' is a television youth project and is a LightRain Records presentation in association with Zenfilm. It is co-written by Kareem and Omar Salama, directed by W. Ross Wells and produced by Meridith Melville and Brittany Holland. ''The WitWits'' is about four kids, Kelly Ann (Alicia Lore), Super K (Caleb Duncan), Spencer (Austin Karkowsky), and Dougie (Grant Goodman) and their adventures in the 1980s, particularly in facing their nemesis, Rodney (Connor Jones). The project includes various television episodes, theatrical music videos as well as musical releases including promotional materials, singles with their debut "Radio Countdown" and a prospective album.

Discography

Albums

Salama has released three albums thus far:

EPs

Singles

Videography

* "Generous Peace

(music video directed by Lena Khan) ** "Generous Peace" (Arabic

* "Makes Me Crazy

* "Be Free Now" (feat. Kelley Peters

* "1980 Something" (feat. The WitWits

* "Just Wanna Come Home

Kareem Salama in popular culture

*On May 9, 2007, Kareem Salama was interviewed on

about various Muslim American issues. *A reportage and brief interview about him was broadcast on

. *In March 2008, he was interviewed on

Arab Radio and Television Network Arab Radio and Television Network (acronym: ART) is an Arabic-language television network characterized by its multitude of channels. It is based in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. History and profile ART was founded in October 15, 1993 by Saleh Abdullah ...

(ART) program "From America" by Jihan Mansour. He also performed live renditions of some of his songs with Aristotle Mihalopoulos *On 13 July 2008, he was interviewed on Sky News by Adam Boulton.''Sky News'' interviews Kareem Salama
/ref>

Notes

References

External links

*
MySpace
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Salama, Kareem 1978 births Living people American Muslims American people of Egyptian descent Performers of Islamic music American country singer-songwriters American male singer-songwriters People from Ponca City, Oklahoma University of Iowa College of Law alumni Singer-songwriters from Oklahoma 21st-century American singers Country musicians from Oklahoma 21st-century American male singers