“In a time of danger and promise, a man, a family, and a generation come of age” - New Muslim Cool
Puerto Rican Muslim convert and rapper Hamza Perez is on a mission to spark some fresh debate with audiences across the United States and beyond. Laced with beats and hip-hop rhymes, his fresh documentary New Muslim Cool tells the story of Hamza’s spiritual journey and personal struggles that have ultimately lead him to community work for greater cross-cultural understanding and civic engagement amonst Muslim and non-Muslim communities.
The documentary is also a gritty portrayal of conditions of minorities and the disadvantaged, and touches upon Hamza’s run-ins with the law as an up-and-coming public Muslim figure in a dangerous and unpredictable post 9-11 America.
A reformed drug dealer, Hamza knows the streets. From a young age, his recurring nightly dreams of prison-time and an early death reflected his daytime struggles to find a way forward in his life. Instead, Hamza turned to Islam, abandoned drugs, and now uses his energies to bring the message of hope to others. Hamza raps, speaks out, and brings community outreach to prisons where he uses his street background and Muslim faith to inspire his listeners.
Fitna-Free Rhymes
As part of their efforts to reconcile their hip-hop heritage with their new-found faith, Hamza and his brother, Suliman, formed rap group M-Team. The M-Team puts Islam’s religious teachings into a familiar context by using the knowledge the Puerto Rican pair have gained in the streets.
Whilst using tough lyrics to drive home their message, the M-Team also (hilariously) describe their content “fitna free”. Fitna, for those who don’t know is an Arabic word with a wide range of meaning but that could in this content perhaps be translated as “harm” or “something bad”. Although I haven’t heard enough of M-Team to make up my own mind about whether that’s true, it’s definitely family-friendlier than the likes of 50 Cent.
Even Tough Guys Find Love on the Web
A once-single-dad, Hamza also found love on a Muslim networking site and is now supported by his wife Rafiah, in addition to his surprised but accepting Puerto Rican family.
Hamza’s website also mentions other (interesting/amusing – you decide) characters and concepts, such as Imam Talib, the hip-hop imam, who describes Hamza as America’s worst nightmare given his Puerto-Rican-American-Muslim-Rapper background, and “Arab Spanglish”, of which I’m yet to find examples of.
For more info on Hamza, M-Team and New Muslim Cool, check out their website and YouTube Channel.
And btw, if you happen know any Arab Spanglish, we’d love to hear what’s it like. Leave us a comment below.
