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Renowned British singer and songwriter Sami Yusuf, who rose to fame with his 2003 release Al-Mu’allim, has collaborated with the queen of Sufi music Abida Parveen. Celebrating the genre of Qawwali, this is the first collaboration between the two artists.

Read: Abida Parveen breathes life into Ahat Si 

Titled Ya Hayyu Ya Qayyum,the qawwali is a mix of Arabic and Urdu. Sami has previously sung verses in Urdu for his famous kalaam Hasbi Rabbi for which he garnered global appreciation. In an Instagram post, the British singer revealed what makes this a unique recording. “It is a celebration of the beautiful art of Qawali. The recordings took place in Pakistan, India, Morocco, Turkey, UK and UAE making this — to my knowledge — the most multinational production for any traditional/world music genre piece. It was my honour to work with Abida Parveen whose voice can only be described as ‘otherworldly’. She is not only the pride of Pakistan (or lovers of Qawwali music) but a gift and blessing to the entire musical world,” Sami wrote.

 

https://www.instagram.com/p/BuLFQHilNpa/

 

Sami has also sung a solo version of this devotional track. Abida–  who is famous for inducing a trance on listeners with her soul-stirring vocals — has sung various devotional tracks in Urdu, Persian, Sindhi, Siraiki, Punjabi and won many accolades.