What's in store @ The Nasheed Factor Finale

7 days ............. 1 Night ............. A Lifetime of remembrance .................

The Nasheed Factor Grand Finale is looming over the horizon, with marketing taking place all over Scotland and digitally, you beg the question, why come to the Nasheed Factor Finale?

The Grand Finale hosted at the Royal Concert Hall will serve to seat 500 excited public citizens of Scotland waiting in anticipation to hear the beautiful sounds of our special 12 finalists.



Rizzy M "I have never witnessed so much talent before in my life, we need to support these artists and harness this talent that they have"

Safdar (SPMA) "These finalists are the future of tomorrow if we dont support them now we will fail to uphold what humanity should believe in ... unity"

Habib Mailk "We are doing this because the poor dont have a voice, we are singing for them to represent their struggles"


So what will the Grand Finale have in store for you?

• Quran Recitation by Hafiz Kamal Uddin (International Nasheed Artist)
• Lighting effects and shows on stage.
• 6 Qiraat Vocalists spreading the message of God.
• The audience can vote for their favourite artists through texting.
• Singing for poor all artists on the night will be singing to raise funds for the One Safe Village appeal.
• Special judge performance from Labbayk.
• Lively and entertaining host.
• 12 Finalists Video Blogs playing before they perform to reveal why they want to win the Nasheed Factor Competition.
• Auctioning exclusive rare Nasheed items such as Maher Zain, Outlandish, Zain Bhikha and Junaid Jamshed signed CD Frames!
• Auctioning a weekend experience away with Kamal Uddin in a recording studio.
• On Stage fundraising for One Safe Village
• Special judge performance from Khaleel Muhammad.
• 6 Nasheed Vocalists spreading the beauty of humanity.
• Very special performance from our 6 nasheed finalists together on stage*
• Snacks, drinks will be served.
• Final sing off with everyone on stage, judges, finalists, volunteers singing for the one safe village.
• Finishing off with Kamal Uddin special performance.

All of this in one night ........ you will never have this chance again in Scotland ....... so much beauty, so much talent and so much excitement happening in the one night.

Buy your tickets from the Royal Concert Hall by ringing 0141 353 8000, or visit this link:
http://glasgowconcerthalls.com/whatson/event/127843-Nasheed-Factor-Grand-Final-2012-Concert

You can also purchase your tickets from AwazFm Studios in Pollokshields Glasgow :

Craig House
1st Floor
64 Darnley Street
Pollokshields
Glasgow
G41 2SE

Come to the Nasheed Factor Grand Finale. Enjoy the experience, support the cause and support the talent.

Your Voice ....... Their Struggle ........ Our Inspiration ...... For the One Safe Village.

A Star so Bright, it Could only be the Nasheed Factor Light- 12 Shining Stars have just been Born!!

Assalamo Alaykum,

Alhumdulillah!!! It is with great pleasure to announce that Nasheed Factor’s finalists have been chosen for this year’s Nasheed Factor competition

The night before the finalists were released, there was great excitement throughout Scotland with many people eager to know who got through. Facebook, Twitter and other social networking sites were jam-packed with messages and emails trying to find out who were the lucky ones!!!

It was truly great to see people keen to know, the Nasheed Factor facebook page was frequently visited by our fans!!

And finally with great anticipation, sleepless nights by the judges and anxiety expressed by the Scottish Muslim community, we give to you our Nasheed Factor stars!!! *****

The decision was not an easy one, Shahbaz Mirza- founder of the competition sat with the three judges- Javaid Ullah, Tahira Fatima and Shokat Aksi to decide who should be put through to the Grande Finale.

All of the performances were excellent however only a few lucky ones made it through!

Click on the contestants photo to view their semi final performance.

Youth Qiraat Finalists

Asad Bukhari

Uwais Ahmed

Mohammed Faizaan Ali Chaudhry

Adult Qiraat Finalists

Israr Ahmad

Abrar Ahmed

Saif Ali

Youth Nasheed Finalists

NU-GEN - Hafsah Bashir & Sana Bashir

Mohammad Milaad Ali Madni

Mustaqeem Sha Jihaan

Adult Nasheed Finalists

Kamran Younis

Kasim Arshad

Abbas Ul Haq

Our Nasheed Factor finalists have been informed and are ecstatic with the results! They are now preparing for the performance of their lives on Sat 20^th Oct at Glasgow Royal Concert Hall!

Come along and watch them sing their hearts out! 
Check out our [Facebook Event] for more details................

Edinburgh Semi-Final- An Abundance of Talent in the Heart of Scotland!!

              

Assalamo Alaykum,

*In short- Nasheed Factor Edinburgh Semi-final was BUZZING...SPIRITUALLY-FULFILLING... and a CHARITY-DRIVEN day!!! Alhumdulillah!!*

Our remaining 16 semi-finalists touched the hearts of the audience in the heart of Scotland- Edinburgh. A great turnout with people attending from all over Scotland from Glasgow, Aberdeen and Dundee! The audience were bedazzled by the performances, such great talent from bold Qur’an recitation to the more sweet and innocent youth performing Nasheeds.

Iqra Academy was truly left spellbound by the Nasheed Factor magic bestowed on our audience.

It was so lovely to see the place packed out with many people, the ambiance was great, kids running around from stall to stall, getting face paints, eating cupcakes...participants eagerly ready to perform, doing sound checks...team members welcoming guests and directing them to the event and looking after the judges.

There were stalls from 3pm with many wonderful and creative things to buy from and yummy cupcakes and food was also available. Guests were then ushered to the event, where our host Kamran Chaudry led the Adult and Youth Qiraats.

Rizwan Mohammad was also present speaking to our audience about the cause of Nasheed Factor.

A Maghrib break was then taken for our audience to read their salaah. After the Maghrib break, Shahbaz Mirza- Nasheed Factor founder then welcomed the remaining Adult and Youth Nasheeds/Naats semi-finalists who sang beautifully from the heart.




The semi-finalists voices echoed through Iqra Academy with passers-by getting to hear the spiritual sounds of Islam.

Very positive and uplifting comments were made by our judges- Shokat Aksi, Javaid Ullah and Tahira Fatima.

Our brothers and sisters who attended the semi-final were left with a deep and meaningful message about giving to charity and helping to fulfil our vision through Islamic Relief’s One Safe Village Appeal. Videos were played to show to our audience Our cause...Their struggle....and Semi finalists voice as a means to help ‘Rebuild People’s Lives’. Alhumdulillah after hearing about the cause, many donated generously!

A remarkable and breath-taking event with many praising the competition and eagerly asking about the Grande Finale!

                                                      The dedicated Nasheed Factor team

Click Here to view more pictures of the event.
Click Here to watch our 16 Semi Finalists from the Edinburgh heats 2 Semi Finals.

That’s right 20 DAYS ARE LEFT for the Grande Finale to take place at Glasgow Royal Concert Hall on Sat 20^th Oct. So don’t miss out, who will be crowned our Nasheed Factor winners for 2012? Who is going to be given the grande prize- Experience with Glasgow Recording Studios? Don’t miss out on the opportunity to see your favourite Celebrity judges- Khaleel Muhammad, Labbayk and Kamal Uddin perform live, whilst judging our finalists!!!

For more information on the Grand Finale join our [Facebook Event] so you could keep posted and invite your friends inshaAllah.

You can purchase your tickets for the Grand Finale online here or call the box office on: 0141 353 8000/07742059930 . Tickets cost only £10! Book Now! 

YOUR VOICE...THEIR STRUGGLE...OUR INSPIRATION FOR THE ONE SAFE VILLAGE

See you all at the Grande Finale, inshallah!!

Nasheed Factor Glasgow Semi-Finals Raised The Spirits of The Community!

* Pre volunteers meeting * Travelling to venue * In a rush * Setting up * Contestants arriving * Families flooding in * Artist Sound Checks * Staging complete * Arrival of judges * Final checks * Competition commences!

The Nasheed Factor Semi-Finals in Glasgow raised the spirits of our brothers and sisters that attended!

The venue was jam packed with the public hungry and eager to see some spiritual talent! The audience were electric, saying takbeer everytime someone performed fantastically, and booing the judges for their negative comments!

The atmosphere was surreal, the emotions were running high and we were in full swing of spiritual showbiz by the end of the night.

Youth qiraat and adult qiraat went first respectfully, making the audience emotionally feel what the true beauty of our life is, and that is the word of our creator.

Break arrived where everyone faithfully read their maghrib salah and started munching away on some excellent asian food and yummylicious cupcakes!

Then the heart of the night arrived ............. Our recognition that all of this of charity ......

Our brothers Rizwan Muhammed and Amjid Bashir from Radio Ramadhan took to the stage and stormed the audience and got them right into the spirit of donating money for charity!

Alhumdulillah a 4 figure sum was raised from just 150 people! The final total raised from the whole Nasheed Factor production will be revealed on the night of the finale!

Emotions ran high when video clips were being played of the appeal which is the One Safe Village, where hospitals, schools, houses and education is provided to families in Africa.

Shahbaz Mirza the founder of Nasheed Factor said "at that point of the whole night, tears rolled down my eyes because I realised and recognised why the team has spent the past 18 months of their lives on this production ..... It is for the sake of these people who dont have a voice and currently don't have a future."

Back to the competition, and the nasheed category lit the roof on fire!

Our host Akif from awazfm was quite the character when it came to contestants performances giving an amazing light entertainment aspect to the show.

The youth and adult nasheed category stirred controversy over the judges comments with some booing from the audience and shouts from the audience supporting the artists!! What a night that was!

The Nasheed Factor Glasgow Semi-Finals was a major success alhumdulillah.

NOW ITS TIME FOR EDINBURGH!

Click Here to watch our 16 Semi Finalists from the Glasgow heats 1 Semi Finals.
Click Here to view the photo gallery of the event.

For more information on the edinburgh semifinals just find us on facebook [Facebook Event] and contact us!
Phone to reserve your seat at Iqra Academy Edinburgh on Saturday 29th September.
Stalls & Food 3-6pm
Show 6-9pm
Phone to reserve your place FREE ENTRY 07549080931

See you there! Inshallah.

Nasheed Factor Semi-Finals: Preparation for your Ultimate Performance! :)

 Assalamo Alaykum, 

So you have reached the semi-finals and you are wondering now what do I do next? How do I prepare for the semi-finals? What is it going to be like? Will I be nervous? What do I sing?

Shahbaz Mirza, one of the judges during the first round auditions who attended the auditions in each city Scotland wide, has written up performance tips for all the semi-finalists to ensure that they have a smooth, enjoyable and heartfelt Nasheed Factor experience.

Shahbaz Mirza’s Blog:

“After witnessing the talent across Scotland at the first round auditions, I was amazed at the raw talent that was discovered. When I endeavoured to create and produce Nasheed Factor last year many people commented that you won’t find any talent in Scotland, there is no demand for something like this, people in Scotland are not into this type of thing and the list is endless .....

Well we proved them wrong .....

The general public are nothing but amazed at the diversity, vocal ability and raw talent of the contestants who entered the competition. The quality of the competition has been set to a high standard, only because of you. The competition is fierce, intense and heating up, no doubt people will have picked their favourite to win already, some people are undecided, but the most important thing, is that people are excited to discover who you are. How will the semi-finalists perform?

Post judging at the auditions across Scotland I noted down key areas which contestants had to improve on if they were to progress to the semi-finals, so that they can improve their performance, presence and overall vocal talent. Below are a number of key performance indicators which all semi-finalists should exceed expectations in, to be in good stead for the final.

1)       Look up: Not many people realise this but during your performance make sure your posture is good, your head is up, you’re standing correctly, as if you are ready to present yourself in front of the audience and our creator, showing the community, the world that you are representing the struggles of the poor and voicing the beauty of Islam.

2)      Be confident: During your semi-finals performance, confidence is key. Confidence does not mean the person who moves around the most, jumping up and down and having an over confident attitude. Confidence means that people get the impression that when you go on stage, people know you are ready to perform.

3)      Be Likeable: In order for the judges and the audience to be impressed by you, they need to like you, be who you are, and let your personality come through when you’re on stage and off the stage. Don’t be arrogant but don’t be too shy either that people don’t get the opportunity to know who you are.

4)      Make your presence felt: Whilst performing on stage or in general being off the stage, make sure your presence is felt, people should know you are there, ready to give an immense performance.

5)      Be Vocal: The last thing which you want happening is your voice to come across as being too low, the audience and the judges need to know what your vocal ability is, can you go high can you go low? Can you change key? Can you sing in the right pitch? When you are reciting Quran can you make people feel emotional? Can you get the message of our creator across to the audience in a humble and emotional way? Ensure that in your time allocated for your performance, around 3 minutes for Nasheeds/Naats/Hamds & Islamic Poetry and 5 minutes for Quran

6)      Do Dua: Do not forget to make dua that your performance goes well, and that regardless of whatever happens in the competition, your dua should include that no matter how far you go, as long as you have reached out and touched one person, that is enough.

You should be proud that you are taking part in a charitable competition, where you’re singing in order to represent the struggles of the poor. Remember this is your opportunity to shine, so embrace this moment with confidence and love for your creator, and Allah swt will help you, inshallah.

Jazakallah Khair and Good Luck! :) 

Nasheed Factor’s Stars for Semi-Finals Have Been Selected!!

Assalamo Alaykum Readers,

Alhumdulilah the Nasheed Factor semi finalists have been selected and will perform at the semi finals which will take place very soon in the two major cities of Scotland. That’s right! Just fewer than 100 contestants turned up at the auditions around Scotland, which made the competition even more serious and exciting. The judges were faced with a dilemma having to pick and choose which one of the contestants would secure a place for the next part of the competition.

The judges were left stunned with the vast amount of talent from contestants of all ages. Evidently, we have now seen that Scotland really does have great talent and can become the drive for new Islamic Sounds.

Nasheed Factor Semi-finalists auditions can be watched online at www.nasheedfactor.co.uk or click on their names in the table to watch each performance. Semi finalists will be split into two sets with one performing at the Glasgow Semi final at Victoria Function Hall and the other performing at Edinburgh in Iqra Academy. The event is FREE and you are all welcome to come along and support the Nasheed Factor cause- ‘Rebuilding People’s Lives’

Having suffered sleepless nights and endless discussions on who should be put through, the Nasheed Factor Team and judges would like to present to you.................................

 Our 32 Semi-Finalists Of Nasheed Factor 2012

Nasheed Factor 2012 Semi Finalists

Glasgow Semi finalists who will perform at Victoria Function Hall on Sunday the 23rd Sept at 6pm

Nasheed/Naat/Hamd Category
Youth	Adult
Hiba Rahman	Mohammed Khan
Beauty of Islam -Rafi Sisters	Fayyaz Ur Rahman
Hafsah & Sanah Bashir	Kamran Younis
Iqra Girls- Sanaa, Aleena,Sara	Viqar Mahmood

Qiraat Category
Youth	Adult
Hassan Ahmed	Numman Ali
Faizaan Ali Chaudhry	Junaid Ur Rahman
Asad Ahmed	Mohammed Saad Mukhtar
Aisha Saleem	Zain Ul Abedin Amir

Edinburgh Semi finalists who will perform at Iqra Academy on Saturday the 29th Sept at 6pm

Nasheed/Naat/Hamd Category
Youth	Adult
Mustaqeem Sha Jihan	Kasim Arshad
Mohammed Milaad Ali Madni	Sajid Sabri
Amina Shahid	Abbas Ul Haq
Zahra Hassam	Aasim Azam

Qiraat Category
Youth	Adult
Uwais Ahmed	Israr Ahmad
Salman Rafiq	Mufti Nabiil Atchia
Asad Bukhari	Abrar Ahmed
Ismail Alshaikh Soleiman	Saif Ali

Nasheed Factor Semi Finals

Glasgow Semi Finals: We are sorry all spaces are now fully booked.

Edinburgh Semi Finals: We will be holding stalls where a variety of items and food could be purchased before the event starts. Contact 07549080931 to reserve your place and your name to our guestbook now! **FREE ENTRY**

Inshallah see you all there at the Nasheed Factor Semi Finals, 

Jazakallah

-NF Team-

Tips For Your Audition & Audition Dates/Times/Venues

Excited? Nervous? Intimidated? Raring to go?

We inshallah are waiting in anticipation to witness your talent!

Before you come along to the auditions we would like to provide you with some tips, so that when you come, you are prepared, at ease and confident inshallah.

1) Rehearse Rehearse Rehearse. Practice your audition in front of your friends, family, islamic teacher or anyone that is close to you. Through practising in front of others you will gain confidence and learn how to improve your performance inshallah.

2) Drink plenty of water, don't eat any junk/greasy/spicy food the night before or on the morning of your audition, make sure you eat healthy foods to ensure your throat/voice does not become 'gunky'. Drinking plenty of water helps keep your voice clear. In addition wrapping a warm towel around your neck also helps.

3) Warm your vocal chords up. The reason why you may see on the tv, people doing scales with their voices like ah ah ah ah ah, is because it helps warm up the voice so you don't hurt it. It is important to take care of your voice and to prevent it from becoming damaged. Warm your voice up regularly before you practice.

4) Drink warm water to help keep the throat at ease and massaged. You can even massage your throat to ensure it is relaxed and ready to be used. If you find your voice is particularly dry then gargle warm water with salt inside it to get rid of the dryness in your threat.

5) Do not practice too many hard hitting high notes or big notes when you are rehersing otherwise you will rip your voice and cause damage to your throat.

6) Chew on malatti, malatti is a soft sweet wooden stick which is available from asian grocers. Malatti helps soften the throat and keeps your mouth feeling good and your voice is kept very fresh.

7) Try not to copy an islamic vocalist that is already out there. Don't be second best to someone who is already established. Be yourself and be original in the way you perform

8) Come with a selection of audition pieces that you are able to perform, so that we can see the diversity in your talent and your voice.

9) If you are a Quran reciter entrant, polish up on the pronounciation of your letters, this will keep you in good stead for the semi-finals and finale. The first round auditions will be more relaxed in terms of judging tajweed and pronounciation as we realise people will be nervous and some people don't have the resources or live nearby an islamic centre to learn tajweed. However we do passionately advice people to practice their correct recitation of the quran.

10) We are not looking for people to be perfect as soon as they walk through the door. If you are then great, but if your not a perfect vocalist then don't be put off as through the competition you can develop your voice and your singing/recitation and improve on what you already have. We want to see our contestants grow and improve inshallah.

11) If you are relatively young, and you are entering the competition, don't worry and don't be intimidated, we are just looking for your enthusiasm and for you to be yourself.

 

We hope these tips are of use to you and we will inshallah see you at the auditions.