Former Afghanistan President's Son Fights War…With EDM

When most people think of Afghanistan, the first thing that comes to mind is war.

[A]fghanistan has been in a perpetual state of chaos since the 1970’s, when the former Soviet Union invaded the country. And, most of the news that comes out of Afghanistan is related to the war or terror, thanks to groups like The Taliban and Al Qaeda.
There is a new movement brewing in the country, and it has nothing to do with the battlefield or politics, and everything to do with music.
Shuja Rabbani, the war-torn country’s first EDM producer, is planning to release a new album next week.
Rabbani’s new album Alpha Male is dropping on the producer’s own Rabbani Records, which is also billed as the first official EDM label to tap talent from the country. The first single from Bonnie’s latest release is titled “Prisoner of My Dance Floor.”

It is more than just a pun.

Shuja Rabbani courtesy of Facebook

[S]ecular music was banned in the country when The Taliban came to power.
The organization also outlawed museums, burnt down libraries and forced the countries musicians to flee to neighboring countries. More recently, Afghanistan has been embroiled in war since the US-led bombing of the country in 2001 in search of Osama bin Laden, after the 9/11 terror attacks in the United States.
In fact, Shuja Rabbani’s father was the President of Afghanistan. He was assassinated in a targeted suicide bombing in 2009.
Now, the younger Rabbani has a large audience in Afghanistan and Dubai, where most of his business operations are located for obvious safety reasons.
“From an activist by nature to a university professor who stood against the Communist leadership in Afghanistan and later on to becoming one of the leading Afghan politicians of the 20th century, he was a force to be reckoned with,” Shuja Rabbani said of his father, Burhanuddin Rabbani.
“The fact that he stood out and stood firmly for the principles he fought for did not go well with world and regional powers that wanted Afghanistan to remain a subjugated nation through proxy authorities like the tyranny of the Taliban,” Rabbani said.
Shuja Rabbani is throwing caution to the wind with inspiration from his father, and taking advantage of technology to distribute Alpha Male via iTunes, Spotify, Beatport, Tidal and other streaming services.
Alpha Male is touted as the sequel to Rabbani’s first album Afghan Provocateur, and three more singles are being planned to support the new effort, which is due stores on January 16.
For more information visit the website http://www.shujarabbani.com.