Sami Yusuf

Biography

Sami Yusuf (born 21 July 1980) is a British composer, multi-instrumentalist and vocalist. He gained international attention with the release of his debut album, Al-Muʽallim, in 2003. As of 2026, he has released eight studio albums, five live albums and one compilation album. His studio albums were mostly released by Andante Records. He has sold over 34 million albums as of 2016.
Besides English, Yusuf has performed in Arabic, Kurdish, Azerbaijani, Persian, Turkish, Punjabi, and Urdu, sometimes in the same work, as was the case with his hit Hasbi Rabbi. His work is marked by blending different musical styles and genres, including elements from Sufi, folk, and Rock music. He used his multilingual and multi-instrumentalist style to address social, spiritual, and humanitarian issues. In recognition of his philanthropy, in 2014, Yusuf was appointed United Nations Global Ambassador for the World Food Programme.

Early life

Sami Yusuf was born on 21 July 1980 in Tehran to Azerbaijani parents. His grandparents are from Baku, Azerbaijan, from which they left for Iran when it was captured by the Bolsheviks following World War I. Yusuf and his parents arrived in Ealing, West London, in the early 1980s. From an early age, Yusuf showed great interest in music. He was influenced by the wide range of musical genres available to him in London, especially Western classical music and Middle Eastern music. He learned the piano and violin as well as traditional instruments including the oud, tar, and tonbak. At the age of 16, Yusuf experienced a spiritual revival that made him become a "more committed Muslim". In 2003, although considering pursuing a career in law, he produced and released his first album. It quickly became an international success and launched Yusuf's professional music career. Yusuf studied music as a composition student at the prestigious Royal Academy, as well as at Salford University in north-west England.

2003–2009

In 2003, Yusuf released his debut album, Al-Muʽallim, an album that he produced, wrote, and performed. Its feature song, Al-Mu'allim, became a hit in the Middle East, North Africa, and South-East Asia, topping the charts in Egypt and Turkey for twelve consecutive weeks, selling millions of copies worldwide and reaching a diverse audience. The last track of the album, Supplication, was used in the Golden-Globe award-nominated film, The Kite Runner.
Yusuf garnered increased worldwide recognition following the release of his second album, My Ummah×My Ummah2005 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 13 tracks1My Ummah Intro1:032My Ummah3:463Hasbi Rabbi4:184Ya Rasulallah4:435Try Not to Cry4:536Muhammad6:177Make a Prayer3:488Eid Song4:509Free5:0910Dua4:3811Mother4:3812Muhammad, Part 23:1313We Will Never Submit2:25, in 2005. The album, using both Eastern and Western sounds, utilised wide-ranging musical instrumentation. Considered a breakthrough album, it sold over four million copies globally and was well received, particularly by young people, who identified closely with the themes of Yusuf's lyrics.
Yusuf left Awakening Records following a controversy over Without You, an album that was released without his knowledge or consent.

2010–2016

Wherever You Are, Yusuf's third official album, was released in March 2010. Rolling Stone called the album "beautifully produced". With its release, Yusuf welcomed what he termed a "new chapter" in his professional career and music.
Yusuf's fourth album, Salaam×Salaam2012 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 15 tracks1Happiness3:202Salaam4:423Smile3:574The Source3:475Dryer Land4:296It's a Game3:377To Guide You Home3:418Forgotten Promises4:159Ala Bi Dhikrika3:2710I'm Your Hope2:4511All I Need3:3812Hear Your Call4:2913Wherever You Are (acoustic)3:5414Without You (acoustic)4:5115To Guide You Home (instrumental)2:34, was released in December 2012. Within four months of its launch it achieved platinum status in Southeast Asia and was the best-selling album in the Middle East and North Africa. The album includes the song "Hear Your Call," composed by Yusuf to call attention to the situation of people who are affected by natural disasters.
The Centre was released in 2014 and is a collection of 13 songs in which Yusuf hopes his listeners will find inspiration to seek their individual spiritual centres. It is a new sound that has multicultural influences, employing traditional as well as contemporary Middle Eastern, North African, and European poetry, instrumentation, and melodies.
Yusuf's sixth album, Songs of the Way, was released in January 2015. All lyrics are by the noted philosopher Seyyed Hossein Nasr and are from his books of poetry, Poems of the Way and The Pilgrimage of Life. Except for two tracks in Persian and Arabic, the songs are in English.
Barakah, Yusuf's seventh album, was released in February 2016 by Andante Records. It is the result of extensive research into the traditional music and poetry contained in the album. Yusuf said it is his musical response to the increasing chaos and noise of today's world, and his wish is that these music and lyrics offer a window onto an inner oasis of peace and harmony. The song "Mast Qalandar×Mast Qalandar1 March 2026 · Single · LiveSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Mast Qalandar5:17" from Barakah reached #1 on World Music charts on iTunes and BBC Music.
According to Yusuf, the new album aims "to respond to the growing extremism in our world with a call for a return to harmony and balance."
Following its release, Yusuf performed in the Dubai Opera in 2016 and released it as a live album.

2017–present

In 2017, Yusuf performed in New Delhi, India. 4 songs from the performance were released in 2019.
In 2018, Yusuf released his new EP, SAMi, as a side project that grew out of his desire to explore his British musical roots. The song collection, with its accessible sounds and direct lyricism, finds Yusuf's exploring the western sounds emanating from his childhood growing up in London.
SAMi has sold well and topped a number of iTunes charts since its release, and Yusuf says he is grateful and somewhat surprised that he wasn't criticised for the commercial nature of the project.
Yusuf performed in Baku, Azerbaijan, in 2019 (A Timeless Presence) with nine new songs exploring Azerbaijani culture and all instruments except for the piano being Azerbaijani.
In November 2020, Yusuf gave an online concert from his studio at home. He performed his singles "Al Faqir" and "The 99 Names", released in May 2018 and May 2020 respectively.
In late 2021, Yusuf performed at Expo 2020.
Yusuf has said that he plans to release a new album by the name of Ecstasy×Ecstasy26 March 2027 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 9 tracks1Voices of the Earth1:282Between Sea and Sky2:403Ecstasy11:114Lifting the Veil6:455Eterna7:506The Cup of Love7:467In That Ocean9:058Being4:439Amada9:16. While originally planned for 2019, the project was delayed to 2022.

Notable tours and concert performances

Playing in Farum Arena, Denmark, Grugahalle in Germany, and De Doelen in the Netherlands, Yusuf introduced his forthcoming album, Wherever You Are×Wherever You Are20 November 2010 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 15 tracks1Wherever You Are3:562Salaam4:073Without You3:294You Came to Me (English)4:065Give the Young a Chance4:376Trials of Life3:387Worry Ends3:438Fragile World5:169In Every Tear, He Is There4:5310Make Me Strong4:3811No Word Is Worthy6:1012Healing4:1513You Came to Me (Arabic Version)4:0614You Came to Me (Turkish Version)4:0615You Came to Me (Farsi Version)4:06. He performed in Azerbaijan for the first time in 2006, for the second time in 2015 (14–15 March), and 22 March 2017 in Heydar Aliyev Palace in Baku, 250,000 people attended his performance in Taksim Square in Istanbul to see Yusuf perform in 2013. Yusuf has played across four continents, packing venues such as Wembley Arena in London, Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles ,The Velodrome in Cape Town, South Africa and the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam (with the Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra). He sings in English, Arabic, Turkish, Persian, Azerbaijani, Malay and Urdu and is backed by a range of both classical and ethnic instruments. Yusuf also performed in Washington, D.C.
Yusuf performed in Dubai for the first time in December 2016. He premiered the song "Glorification", inspired by the poetry of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

Humanitarian work

Since early in his professional career, Yusuf has participated in humanitarian initiatives by performing benefit concerts, releasing charity singles, and acting on behalf of organisations to relieve suffering and poverty. In response to the 2010 Pakistan floods that wreaked havoc in the country and affected 20 million lives in the summer of 2010, he promptly released a charity single entitled "Hear Your Call", performed in English and Urdu, to raise funds for the displaced Pakistanis in a joint-effort with the UN-sponsored charity organisation Save the Children.
In 2014, he was appointed "UN Global Ambassador" for the World Food Programme.
In 2020, Yusuf tweeted his support for Azerbaijan in the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War.

Personal life

Sami spoke of his background as "diverse" and cited this as evidence for his "tendency to bring people together". He is a Sunni Muslim.
Sami Yusuf married in c. 2005. His wife is of German origin and had converted to Islam before she met Yusuf.

Honors and awards

In 2009, Yusuf was awarded an honorary Doctor of Letters in recognition of his "extraordinary contributions to the field of music" by Roehampton University, London. Silatech appointed him as their first Global Ambassador in the same year, later joining Ahmad Al Shugairi in the same position.
Widely regarded as the highest profile Muslim musician in the UK, Yusuf has appeared each year since 2010 on the list of the "World's 500 Most Influential Muslims".
In 2014, the United Nations appointed him Global Ambassador Against Hunger, and in 2015 the UN appointed him as an "Elite Ambassador" for the UN World Interfaith Harmony Week.
In 2016, Yusuf received a Recognition Award for his contributions to promoting the message of peace and tolerance as part of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum World Peace Initiative.
In 2019, Yusuf received an honorary diploma from the First Vice-President of Azerbaijan for his contributions to promote Azerbaijani music and culture.

In the media

"Islam's Biggest Rock Star" – Time magazine (2006)
"Biggest Star in the Middle East" – The Guardian (2006)
"King of Islamic Pop" – Al Jazeera (2007)
IOL Star of 2009 (2009)
BBC's 30 More Famous Britons (2009)