Adil Omar
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Adil Omar (born 17 May 1991) is a recording artist, rapper, record producer, singer and songwriter from
Islamabad Islamabad (; ur, , ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's ninth-most populous city, with a population of over 1.2 million people, and is federally administered by the Pakistani government as part of the Islamabad Capital T ...
,
Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
. He released his debut album and film, '' Transcendence'', on 8 July 2018. In addition to being a solo artist, he is also involved in songwriting and production for other artists.


Biography and early life

Omar was born in London, England, but grew up in Islamabad. He lost his father at the age of 10 due to alcoholism and saved his mother's life at 11. In 1998, Omar's father was falsely imprisoned which was revealed in a series of prison letters posted to Omar's social media. He had a stutter which he learned to manage through rapping. He was in and out of multiple schools and eventually dropped out at 17 to pursue a career in music.


Music career


Career beginnings

Omar was raised on
Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philo ...
and other classic rock from birth and got introduced to hip-hop at age 5 with
Tupac Shakur Tupac Amaru Shakur ( ; born Lesane Parish Crooks, June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known as 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential rappers of all time. Shakur is among the Li ...
. He was then inspired by
Dr. Dre Andre Romelle Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper and record producer. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and previously co-founded, co-owned, and ...
to become a hip hop artist at the age of 8 after watching "
Keep Their Heads Ringin' "Keep Their Heads Ringin'" is a song by American rapper Dr. Dre featuring vocalist Nanci Fletcher. It was the only single released from the soundtrack of the 1995 movie ''Friday'', starring Ice Cube and Chris Tucker. Although the soundtrack was r ...
" then started writing lyrics and rapping at the age of 9 after listening to
Wu-Tang Clan Wu-Tang Clan is an American hip hop group formed in Staten Island, New York City, in 1992. Its original members include RZA, GZA, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, and Masta Killa. Close affili ...
's ''
The W ''The W'' is the third studio album by American hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan. It was released on November 21, 2000, by Loud Records. After their 1997 album '' Wu-Tang Forever'', several of the group's members released solo projects before ''The W' ...
'' album. He began recording and producing music by 13. In 2008, Omar caught the attention of B-Real of
Cypress Hill Cypress Hill is an American hip hop group from South Gate, California. They have sold over 20 million albums worldwide and have multi-platinum and platinum albums. They are considered to be among the main progenitors of West Coast and 1990 ...
who invited him to visit Los Angeles, helping launch his music career. Between 2010 and 2012, Omar put together '' The Mushroom Cloud Effect'', a
street album A mixtape (alternatively mix-tape, mix tape or mixed tape) is a compilation of music, typically from multiple sources, recorded onto a medium. With origins in the 1980s, the term normally describes a homemade compilation of music onto a cassette ...
consisting of compiled tracks and unheard demos of Omar's early rapping and non-production work with
Soul Assassins Soul Assassins is a hardcore hip hop project of Cypress Hill member and producer DJ Muggs. Each album features a plethora of guest rappers and is primarily produced by Muggs; the second and third studio albums see contributions from other produ ...
affiliated producers such as
Fredwreck Farid Karam Nassar (born June 23, 1972), better known by his stage name Fredwreck, is a Grammy Award-winning American hip hop recording artist, DJ and record producer. He got his big break when he became a producer for Dr. Dre's newly founded re ...
,
DJ Solo Dave Abrams, better known as DJ Solo (often stylized DJ SOLO), is an American DJ, producer, rapper and visual artist. He is a part of the Cypress Hill affiliated Soul Assassins collective. His production credits include La Coka Nostra, Everla ...
and
DJ Lethal Leor Dimant ( lv, Leors Dimants, russian: Леор Григорьевич Димант, ; born December 18, 1972), better known as DJ Lethal, is a Latvian-American turntablist and producer and is best known as a member of the groups House of Pai ...
handling the music. The most notable song was "Paki Rambo". This was during press coverage on
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
,
CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...
,
The Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...
and many other news outlets which brought Omar considerable attention. This was followed by a government-imposed YouTube ban which momentarily affected the distribution and exposure of not only Omar but all independent musicians in the country.


2015–2017: ''Margalla King'' and SNKM

In early 2015, Omar and Pakistani electronic musician
Talal Qureshi Talal Qureshi is a Pakistani record producer, singer, songwriter, and DJ. Life and career Talal Qureshi was born on 2 April 1988 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Qureshi came across the video game MTV Music Generator on PlayStation which pushed him to ...
, formed the songwriting and production duo
SNKM SNKM (an abbreviation for Super Natural Kings & Masters, formerly Saturday Night Killing Machine and Sonic Nocturnal Kinetic Movement) is a duo of Pakistani musicians Adil Omar and Talal Qureshi, with both artists sharing production, songwriting a ...
which came out with Omar's directorial debut for "Nighat & Paras" and was followed by their first showcase at
SXSW South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Te ...
. In early 2016, SNKM collaborated and performed with
Diplo Thomas Wesley Pentz (born November 10, 1978), known professionally as Diplo, is an American DJ and music producer. He is the co-creator and lead member of the electronic dancehall music project Major Lazer, a member of the supergroup LSD with ...
and
Elliphant Ellinor Miranda Salome Olovsdotter (born 8 October 1985), known professionally as Elliphant, is a Swedish singer, rapper and songwriter. Her sound was initially created together with the Swedish production duo Jungle, which consists of Tim Den ...
for their first Pakistan show. This was followed by the duo's second appearance at SXSW and Omar's solo EP '' Margalla King''. The EP also featured a collaboration with
Bun B Bernard James Freeman (born March 19, 1973), known professionally as Bun B, is an American rapper. He is best known as one half of the southern rap duo UGK (UnderGround Kingz), a group he formed in 1987 alongside Pimp C. Aside from his work with ...
. Omar and SNKM joined the roster for multiple
Mad Decent Mad Decent is an American record label founded by Diplo. The label has helped introduce Brazilian baile funk and Angolan kuduro to clubs around the world. Recently, it has popularized moombahton, a genre of electronic dance music created by D ...
Block Party 2016 shows alongside
Diplo Thomas Wesley Pentz (born November 10, 1978), known professionally as Diplo, is an American DJ and music producer. He is the co-creator and lead member of the electronic dancehall music project Major Lazer, a member of the supergroup LSD with ...
,
Kesha Kesha Rose Sebert (; born March 1, 1987), formerly stylized as Ke$ha, is an American singer and songwriter. In 2005, at age 18, Kesha was signed to Kemosabe Records. Her first major success came in early 2009 after she was featured on America ...
,
Marshmello Christopher Comstock (born May 19, 1992), known professionally as Marshmello, is an American electronic music producer and DJ. His songs "Silence", "Wolves", "Friends", " Happier", and " Alone" have been certified multi-platinum in several ...
,
Rae Sremmurd Rae Sremmurd ( ; "Drummers Ear" spelled backwards) is an American hip hop duo originating from Tupelo, Mississippi, formed by two brothers, Slim Jxmmi and Swae Lee. In 2013, they signed a record deal with Mike Will Made It's EarDrummers imp ...
and others. The duo continued performing and touring with Diplo,
Major Lazer Major Lazer is an American electronic dance music DJ trio, which includes record producer Diplo, and DJs Walshy Fire and Ape Drums. It originates from Kingston, Jamaica, and was founded in 2008 by Diplo and Switch, with Switch leaving after ...
,
Skrillex Sonny John Moore (born January 15, 1988), known professionally as Skrillex, is an American DJ and music producer. Growing up in Northeast Los Angeles and Northern California, he joined the post-hardcore band From First to Last as the lead si ...
,
Valentino Khan Valentino Khan (born February 15, 1987) is an American DJ and producer born and raised in Los Angeles. He is best known for releasing material through Diplo, Skrillex and Steve Aoki. His singles "Deep Down Low" and "Make Some Noise" peaked at numb ...
and other artists throughout 2017 up until early 2018 when Omar and Qureshi returned to their solo efforts.


2017–2019: ''Transcendence''

Omar announced in late 2017 that his self-produced debut studio album '' Transcendence'' will be released in 2018. ''Transcendence'' was released as a 10-song
visual album A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device ...
on 8 July 2018. The lead single was "We Need to Talk About Adil" and guests on the album included
Elliphant Ellinor Miranda Salome Olovsdotter (born 8 October 1985), known professionally as Elliphant, is a Swedish singer, rapper and songwriter. Her sound was initially created together with the Swedish production duo Jungle, which consists of Tim Den ...
,
Tim Armstrong Timothy Ross Armstrong (born November 25, 1965) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and producer. Known for his distinctive voice, he is the singer/guitarist for the punk rock band Rancid and hip hop/punk rock supergroup Transplants. ...
of Rancid, Shaman Durek,
Talal Qureshi Talal Qureshi is a Pakistani record producer, singer, songwriter, and DJ. Life and career Talal Qureshi was born on 2 April 1988 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Qureshi came across the video game MTV Music Generator on PlayStation which pushed him to ...
,
SNKM SNKM (an abbreviation for Super Natural Kings & Masters, formerly Saturday Night Killing Machine and Sonic Nocturnal Kinetic Movement) is a duo of Pakistani musicians Adil Omar and Talal Qureshi, with both artists sharing production, songwriting a ...
and others. The album also included recreations of 1970s and 1980s era
Lollywood Lollywood ( ur, , translit=lâli vuḍ) refers to Pakistan's film industry based in Lahore, previously the base for both Punjabi and Urdu language film production. Lahore has been the center of Pakistani cinema since the partition of ...
soundtracks, but rather than relying on sampling, Omar reached out to some of the original creators such as
Ustad Tafu Altaf Hussain Tafu Khan (born 1945), better known as Ustad Tafu or simply Tafoo, is a Pakistani musician from Lahore, Pakistan known as a 'master tabla player'. Ustad Tafu is especially adept at playing the musical instrument ''Tabla'' . Ust ...
and M. Arshad and hosted live sessions in his home studio in Bisonopolis, Islamabad. The instrumental version of the album was released on 8 October 2018.


2019–present: ''Mastery''

A track called "Mastery" was released on 7 February 2019 in which Omar channels
Street Fighter , commonly abbreviated as ''SF'' or スト (''Suto''), is a Japanese media franchise centered on a series of fighting video and arcade games developed and published by Capcom. The first game in the series was released in 1987, followed by six ...
villain
M. Bison M. Bison, also known as the Dictator (for international tournaments), is a fictional character created by Capcom. First introduced in '' Street Fighter II: The World Warrior'', he is a recurring character in the ''Street Fighter'' series of figh ...
,
Macho Man Randy Savage Randall Mario Poffo (November 15, 1952 – May 20, 2011), better known by his ring name "Macho Man" Randy Savage, was an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler best known for his time in the WWE, World Wrestling Federation (WWF) ...
, and Jack Slater in ''
Last Action Hero ''Last Action Hero'' is a 1993 American fantasy action comedy film directed and produced by John McTiernan and co-written by Shane Black and David Arnott. It is a satire of the action genre and associated clichés, containing several parodies ...
'', among other archetypes. A second single titled "Mission" was released with a lyric video on 28 April 2019 with cover art paying homage to ''
Timecop ''Timecop'' is a 1994 American science fiction action film directed by Peter Hyams and co-written by Mike Richardson and Mark Verheiden. Richardson also served as executive producer. The film is based on '' Timecop'', a story created by Richar ...
'' and has been described as a "futuristic song that can’t be put in any one genre". On 30 November 2019, Omar headlined
Pepsi Pepsi is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by PepsiCo. Originally created and developed in 1893 by Caleb Bradham and introduced as Brad's Drink, it was renamed as Pepsi-Cola in 1898, and then shortened to Pepsi in 1961. History Pepsi was ...
's first-ever hip-hop show in Pakistan for Pepsi Black to positive reviews from attendees and reporters for a "surprising, unconventional, and animated" performance. On 12 January 2020, Omar released "The Great Unraveling" which featured
Dave Sitek David Andrew Sitek (born September 6, 1972) is an American musician and record producer, known for his work with his band TV on the Radio. He has also worked with bands such as Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Liars, Foals, Celebration, Little Dragon, Beady E ...
of
TV on the Radio TV on the Radio (TVOTR) is an American rock band from Brooklyn, New York, formed in 2001. The band consists of Tunde Adebimpe (vocals, loops), David Andrew Sitek (guitars, keyboards, loops), Kyp Malone (vocals, guitars, bass, loops), and ...
on guitars and a music video set in
Jungle World, Rawalpindi Jungle World (previously Jungle Kingdom) is an animal theme park and zoological garden located in Ayub National Park, Rawalpindi District, Pakistan. The visitor spot is spread over about . The Jungle World Theme Park consists of two interconnecte ...
to mostly positive reviews. Omar released "Alien" on 22 March 2020 which has been described as "(not hiding) from the inner rage that we all can experience from time to time; the alienation or standing at the precipice. Much more importantly, Adil Omar has started showcasing the man he has become and his progression as a singer-songwriter, rapper, lyricist and producer; it’s been a long journey from ‘Paki Rambo’. Adil is building his own narrative, which is not always about him but the world around him and his interpretation of it" while "the adventurous production is what takes the cake."


Musical style and influences

Omar has musical and stylistic influences stemming from a wide range of genres such as hip-hop, pop, psychedelic and industrial rock, as well as world music, electronica, dance and even classical. Differing from the shock value, braggadocio and politics of his earlier underground and teenage work, his lyrical themes and artistic evolution highlight autobiographical experiences and touch on spirituality, confidence, self awareness, empowerment, philosophy, human nature, absurdity, humor and a general stream of consciousness.


Personal life

Omar was born with multiple forms of
synesthesia Synesthesia (American English) or synaesthesia (British English) is a perceptual phenomenon in which stimulation of one sensory or cognitive pathway leads to involuntary experiences in a second sensory or cognitive pathway. People who re ...
, the most powerful being sound-color, a neurological condition in which the person affected sees colors when tones are sounded. In a 2018 interview, he is quoted to have said "Everything I make and produce is based on how it looks to me. I look at my songs as audio paintings. My production is as visual as it is sonic. I can't comprehend sound as a solely auditory experience. It's an alien concept to me. I guess it's cool seeing every sound I hear but it makes driving distracting. I know how to drive but I generally don't drive because of this." In 2012, Omar was nearly electrocuted to death in the shower, an incident he talks about on '' Transcendence''.


Discography


Albums

*2018: '' Transcendence''


Mixtapes/EPs

*2013: '' The Mushroom Cloud Effect'' *2015: '' Saturday Night Killing Machine'' (with
SNKM SNKM (an abbreviation for Super Natural Kings & Masters, formerly Saturday Night Killing Machine and Sonic Nocturnal Kinetic Movement) is a duo of Pakistani musicians Adil Omar and Talal Qureshi, with both artists sharing production, songwriting a ...
) *2016: '' Margalla King''


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Omar, Adil 1991 births Living people Musicians from Islamabad Pakistani record producers Pakistani rappers British hip hop singers English-language singers from Pakistan Alternative hip hop musicians Desi musicians English people of Pakistani descent Pakistani music video directors Hip hop record producers