RESOURCE GUIDEBOOK FOR EDUCATORS
Entertainers
OBJECTIVE:
This section contains a contact list and short bios of local entertainers who are willing to come to schools and/or classrooms (in-person or virtually) to discuss a relevant topic or facilitate a workshop. The names are listed in alphabetical order by first name. Inviting guest speakers or performers is a powerful way for students and staff to engage in IHM. It provides students and staff an opportunity to ask questions and create a healthy dialogue in order to build bridges between communities. Other Muslim speakers, performers, and artists can be booked through: Book A Muslim (BAM) portal.
1. MR. ALI HASSAN
(Comedian) Bookings: Aaron Schubert aarom@paquinartistsagency.com
Ali Hassan is a stand-up comic, actor and chef who has performed on stages across Canada, in the US and twice in the Middle East, at the Amman StandUp Comedy Festival. In 2012, Ali was invited to perform at the Just for Laughs Festival in Montreal, and Toronto's JFL42. In 2014, Ali performed at the Winnipeg Comedy Festival that aired on CBC television. He had been nominated for a Canadian Comedy Award for ‘Best Breakout Artist,' and was awarded ‘Comedian of the Year' by Anokhi Media in 2015. In the summer of 2016, Ali took his new solo show ‘Muslim Interrupted' to Scotland, to perform at the world's largest comedy festival, the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Ali is the host of Laugh Out Loud on CBC Radio and SiriusXM, a show with a base of over one million listeners. He was also the lead comedy panelist on CBC television's George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight, recording over 160 episodes between 2012 and 2014.
Dawud Wharnsby Ali is a musician, songwriter and poet. His workshops are comprised of interactive dialogue, writing exercises, drumming and songs inspiring students to explore the world's natural rhythms, while also encouraging participants to reflect upon their own individuality and roles as ‘neighbours' in the global village. The major themes he is interested in include the celebration of one's uniqueness, tolerance and acceptance of differences, assessing inner strengths and weaknesses, social awareness, promotion of community activism, preservation of ecology and overcoming struggles. He also looks at music as a tool for social change, and the contributions to modern music by past Muslim civilizations. Please contact Dawud through his website listed above.
Irfan Makki is an international singer and nasheed writer. He has performed around the world, including Malaysia, South Africa, Trinidad, UK, USA and Indonesia for audiences as large as 70,000 people. His nasheeds have touched millions of people's hearts around the world. "I Believe" a nasheed written and composed by Irfan has surprised 17,000,000 views on YouTube. Recently, Irfan was collaborating with Canadian Muslim artists to produce a children's educational program. He is on Twitter: @IrfanMakki_awk
4. MR. MARK STRONG
(Host, G98.7 Radio & Toronto Raptors) @strizzy
One of the country's most in-demand voiceover talents, Mark Strong has been the live voice of The Juno Awards for the past 12 years, and Canada's Walk of Fame for 6 years. He was the permanent host of NBAXL on NBATV Canada and was an official Ambassador for the PanAm/ParaPanAm Games 2015 in Toronto. He can also be found at the Toronto Raptors home games as an in-stadium host and hype man. Mark has returned to morning radio on Toronto G98.7FM, an old school/new school home for soul, groove, hip hop, R&B, Soca and Reggae.
Mustaqeem is a contemporary acappella nasheed group comprised of two brothers. Brothers Jibreel and Bilal wrote and produced all their original songs. more info can be found on their Facebook page: https://goo.gl/6HFfqv
6. MR. NADER KHAN
(Musician) Contact: Vilayath Ali (vilayath@naderkhan.com) or Bano Murtuja (bano@naderkhan.com)
Nader Khan performs songs written and inspired by classical and contemporary teachers in the Islamic spiritual tradition and conveys them in multiple languages and musical styles that transcend genres.
As an arts educator, Nader teaches drumming techniques for hand drums from around the world. These workshops are designed for students of all ages, and are tailored to address issues that many of them face in a metropolitan region like the Greater Toronto Area – reconciling their hyphenated cultural identities, tackling bullying, and developing an appreciation of musical traditions from around the world.
On October 24, 2016, he was joined by Wexford Collegiate Institute students for a performance for the first Islamic Heritage Month celebration at the TDSB.
More information can be found on his website: naderkhan.com