This is a beautiful Story Subhana Allah

French rapper stuns fans, makes first TV appearance wearing hijab

Amid a nationwide debate in France surrounding attitudes towards the Islamic veil, or hijab, a French rapper has surprised fans by announcing her conversion to Islam and choosing to wear a headscarf.

Mélanie Georgiades, known as Diam’s, has gone through what onlookers have described as a “complete transformation” from an image she had prior to 2009.

Since 2009, Diam’s had been unusually absent from the mainstream rap scene, prompting more than three years of controversy over her whereabouts, despite making the odd public appearance with her scarf.
But recently the French rapper made her first television appearance with her new image.

Diam’s appeared in an exclusive TV interview with French TV station TF1, to talk about a past experience with drugs, including hallucinating narcotics, and being in a mental asylum until she discovered the “serenity of Islam.” The rapper said the religion was introduced to her by coincidence, when she saw a Muslim friend praying.

Diam’s, said she has been married for over a year and is a now a new mother, moving far away from her drug-relate past.

In her TV interview she said her “conversion to Islam was the result of a personal conviction, after understanding the religion and reading the Holy Quran.”

When asked about wearing the hijab in France, a country which has banned the niqab, she said: “I believe that I live in a tolerant society, and I don’t feel hurt by criticism, but by insults and stereotyping and ready-made judgments.”

Asked by her host about why she is wearing a hijab while many Muslim women don’t wear it, and don’t find it to be a religious obligation, she answered: “I see it as a divine order or a divine advice, this brings joy to my heart and for me this is enough.”
Stardom?

Diam’s said that by converting to Islam she gained comfort, adding that stardom doesn’t fit in with her life anymore, adding “this has warmed my heart, as I know now the purpose of my existence, and why am I here on Earth.”

Diam’s criticized the media which photographed her coming out of one of the mosques in France, wearing her Hijab and looking at her mobile, preceded by a man in a training suit, which many believed to be her husband.

Discussing how her life was like before her conversion to Islam, Diam’s said: “I was very famous and I had what every famous person looks for, but I was always crying bitterly alone at home, and this is what none of my fans had felt.”

She added: “I was heavily addicted to drugs, including hallucinating narcotics and was admitted in mental asylum to recover, but this was in vain until I heard one of my Muslim friends saying ‘I am going to pray for a while and will come back,’ so I told her that I want to pray as well.”

Recalling that moment, Diam’s said: “it was the first time that I touched the floor with head, and I had a strong feeling that I have never experienced before, and I believe now that kneeling in prayer, shouldn’t be done to anyone but Allah.”
Islam, a religion of tolerance

Diam’s said that she moved to Mauritius to read the Quran, and have a better understanding of Islam, discovering during her retreat, the tolerance of Islam.

When asked by her host about her views on Islam, and those who commit all the murders and atrocities pretending to be doing it in the name of religion, she answered: “I think we should differentiate between the ignorant and the knowledgeable, and the ignorant should not speak about what he doesn’t know, Islam does not allow murdering innocent victims the way we see it nowadays.”

http://english.alarabiya.net/articles/2012/10/01/241253.html

Suhanalahi,whomeva Allah has guided,none can misguide him and whomeva Allah has misguided,none can guide him aright!

OP, you are not a good reporter. You have described a visual experience in your headline but haven't given us pictures. What kind of journalism is this?

Okay, I think this is a better story now.

They should keep talking bad of Islam, more and more people will hear about the religion of Allah.

They banned the hijab yet more western women become swept away by its simplicity, America is one country that has one of the highest number of women needing psychological assistance because the society is more interested in how they appear, what they wear etc. An interview I watched, the muslimah said she since she started wearing the hijab she felt freed from the oppression the society and its media allies imposed upon her.

Nice one thaba.

For those who can think, TRUTH IS CLEAR FROM FALSEHOOD. AND WHEN TRUTH APPEARS, FALSEHOOD DISAPEARS.

@tbaba, thanks for the info on what id call "free will and free choice".

mashaAllah. Am so happy for her

This is what I call SHOCKER!!!

"they intend to extinguish the light of Allah with their mouths.but Allah will make His light prevail even if the disbelievers detest it"

Please this should go to the front page.so the islamophobes and idle haters of Islam on nairaland will experience some pain and stormy nightmares.

By the way,she's really beautiful!

Subhanallah!!!

LagosShia: This is what I call SHOCKER!!!

"they intend to extinguish the light of Allah with their mouths.but Allah will make His light prevail even if the disbelievers detest it"

Please this should go to the front page.so the islamophobes and idle haters of Islam on nairaland will experience some pain and stormy nightmares.

By the way,she's really beautiful!

Subhanallah!!!

Stop whining about front page.

Weally? One of the weasons tbaba might not be eager to post pictures.

maclatunji:

Stop whining about front page.

Weally? One of the weasons tbaba might not be eager to post pictures.

Lol
Its very entertaining though to see the islamophobes in pain and venting frustration.this thread will turn out to be most entertaining once it catches their attention.

And where is "plappville" aka "paris_love" aka "saint paris",the islamophobic woman living in france?I guess she has to finally relocate!

maclatunji:

Stop whining about front page.

Weally? One of the weasons tbaba might not be eager to post pictures.

me thinks so too

Isnt she half turkish?

And if her close friends are algerian, indonesian, etc, then i doubt she was never a muslim.

^^^^^ahmmmmm. Your thoughts don't really count at this point. This is her choice, her story. You go right ahead and believe what you will. It's a free world, ain't it.

What are you feeling offended about?

I'm just saying she was most likely muslim before, or of muslim heritage, before going into the entertainment business.

Maybe you're confused because she cut her hair short?

tpia@:
Isnt she half turkish?

And if her close friends are algerian, indonesian, etc, then i doubt she was never a muslim.

Not turkish!

Her surname sounds Greek-Cypriot.the Greek-Cypriots are christians and most of them orthodox.she may be french born to parents who migrated from Cyprus.but again the former president of france,nicholas sarkozy is born to migrant parents from hungary.its all within the EU family.

biography from wikipedia:

Diam's (French pronunciation: [djams] ; born Mélanie Georgiades on July 30, 1980 in Nicosia, Cyprus) is a French-language rap artist of French and Greek Cypriot origin. Her family moved to Essonne in 1984. She reverted to Islam in late 2010 after studying and reading Islam.

When asked by her host about her views on Islam, and those who commit all the murders and atrocities pretending to be doing it in the name of religion, she answered: “I think we should differentiate between the ignorant and the knowledgeable, and the ignorant should not speak about what he doesn’t know, Islam does not allow murdering innocent victims the way we see it nowadays. We can't stereotype a whole religion because of actions of some induvidials.”

In 1998, when she was just 19, Diam's signed a development deal with BMG Music Publishing France. With the publisher's help, Diam's worked on her craft and signed with Universal Records in 1999. She appeared in a song on DJ Mehdi's 2002 album "(The Story Of) Espion".

2003's Brut de Femme was her breakthrough, reaching gold and spawning the top 10 single "DJ." In concert at the 2004 Dour Festival in Belgium, people threw objects at Diam's when she began singing. In 2005, she cemented her importance as a songwriter with "Ma Philosophie" -- a huge number one hit for Pop Idol star Amel Bent.

In 2005, she collaborated with Indonesian singer Anggun for her song "Juste Être Une Femme" (Just to be a Woman), which is featured on the French version of her current studio album Luminescence.

Dans Ma Bulle (Inside my Bubble) was released in February 2006, debuting at number one on the French album chart selling 50,000 copies in its first week. Diam's first single from Dans Ma Bulle, La Boulette (The slowpoke) gained immense popularity and airtime. It stayed at number one on the French music charts for 6 consecutive weeks. Her second single Jeune Demoiselle debuted at #4. Ma France à moi and Confessions nocturnes with Vitaa also proved to popular. Dans Ma Bulle went on to be the biggest-selling French album in France in 2006 and reached diamond status (1,000,000 copies sold). Diam's won the award for Best French Act at the 2006 MTV Europe Music Awards.

However, according to friends, Diam's could not handle the fame resulting from her latest album and checked into a hospital for depression. In October 2009, following her previous conversion to Islam in 2000, she adopted a black covering and hijab, explaining to the French Press, “Medicine was not able to heal my soul, so I turned toward religion.” When a photo of her coming out of a Mosque wearing a veil was taken and used for an article "France and her Muslims" and a fictional interview created from the lyrics of a song emerged in the media, she declined all interviews and stayed out of the public eye.

Diam's is known for her political activism in both her lyrics and her public persona; she is a fierce opponent not only of extreme-right politician Jean-Marie Le Pen and his daughter Marine Le Pen, but also of French President Nicolas Sarkozy. In this respect she has been compared to the French rapper Keny Arkana, an anti-globalisation activist.

She is also known for her close relationship to French rapper Sinik; they have referred to one another as "brother and sister" and have collaborated extensively. She also has collaborated and appeared with Admiral T, the reggae-dance hall singer.

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diam's

some greek cypriots are of turkish origin, and vice versa.

you can see her features in this 19th century painting of a greek muslim:



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greek_Muslims


ibrahim pasha, former ruler of egypt, was originally greek.

What are you (tpia) insinuating if you have any prove to show that she was a Muslim before 2010 let us see it or forget it.

^

Abi oh

siddiq202: What are you (tpia) insinuating if you have any prove to show that she was a Muslim before 2010 let us see it or forget it.

I'm insinuating the greco-roman influence never really left egypt.

And as per muslim influences in her background- if she releases information about her greco-turkish side, people can look that up.

What we already know is she has close friends of muslim ancestry.

Its like people assuming shakira has no Islamic exposure.

^ France has the highest population of muslims in europe so it is hardly surprising that she had a muslim friend... There is no indication of an islamic heritage. You are clutching at straws...

She found Islam and became Muslim.. End of story... No need for your speculation

^Let her speculate.

tpia@ take a look. how did she look?

i'm not concerned with how she looks or chooses to look.

my point here is she most likely has muslim heritage, nothing for you to get upset about.

tony blair's sister converted to Islam, did she not?

did the world end because of it.

so, just pull yourself together and use your God-given sense for a moment.

here's more info:

Diam's (real name Mélanie Georgiades) was born on July 25, 1980 in Nicosia, Cyprus. At 4, she moved to France, in Paris suburbs. Fan of MC Hammer & Public Enemy, she started singing when a friend brought back Dr. Dre's first album from Los Angeles. As a poetry-writer, she decided to realise a dream : become a rapper.
Diam's joined the band Mafia Trece.

http://artists.letssingit.com/diams-1w3pr/biography




Nicosia:

Nicosia (/ˌnɪkəˈsiːə/ nik-ə-see-ə), known locally as Lefkosia (Greek: Λευκωσία, Turkish: Lefkoşa), is the capital and largest city in Cyprus, as well as its main business center.[3] After the collapse of the Berlin Wall, Nicosia remained the only divided capital in the world,[4] with the southern and the northern portions divided by a Green Line.[5] It is located near the center of the island, on the banks of the Pedieos River.
Nicosia is the capital and seat of government of the Republic of Cyprus. The northern part of the city functions as the capital of the self-proclaimed Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, a disputed breakaway region whose independence is recognized only by Turkey, and which the rest of the international community considers as occupied territory of the Republic of Cyprus since the Turkish invasion in 1974.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicosia

^LOL.

really, do you need convincing before you agree turkey and cyprus are close together?

or that there are muslims of Turkish descent?


abegi, am out.


and agreed, maybe the fact that caucasoid women of muslim descent do not typically cut their hair can make one assume somebody who does such, is 100% western.

tpia@:
i'm not concerned with how she looks or chooses to look.
my point here is she most like has muslim heritage, nothing for you to get upset about.

do you have prove now who is upset here? definitely not me!

tpia@:
so, just pull yourself together and use your God-given sense for a moment.

you don vex?

i posted some info about her hometown.

the northern part is turkish and muslim.

do you still need me to hang around here and go back and forth with you?

dont think i'm going to do that.




tupac was of tuareg descent.

do you not believe that as well?

tpia@:
i posted some info about her hometown.

the northern part is turkish and muslim.

do you still need me to hang around here and go back and forth with you?

dont think i'm going to do that.




tupac was of tuareg descent.

do you not believe that as well?

Tpia,there is no reason for all this plenty talk.

The lady is said to be of french and greek-cypriot origin.there is no where turkish come in there.

You should also stop talking to us as if we don't know how to use the internet or we are illitrates.

The turkish northern republic of cyprus was invaded by turkey in the 70s.cyprus is made up of 19% inhabitants who are muslims of turkish origin who live in the northern portion of the island of cyprus presently under the control of turkey.cyprus is divided due to turkey's military invasion.only turkey recognizes the northern republic of cyprus as an independent state.the rest of cyprus over 70% is inhabited by cypriots of greek origin and they are mostly orthodox christians as greece itself.tension over cyprus have almost led to war between greece and turkey,both of whom are NATO members.

It is funny how someone born in nicosia with mixed french and cypriot-greek origin and with christian and greek names suddenly has "turkish heritage".besides,we are talking about who she is and what she is recognized as today.nobody cares if one of her grandmothers 800 years ago was turkish.no man is an island and intermarriage or friendship with muslims is irrelevant.afterall the point is she was christian and french and she has embraced Islam.

You mentioned also Shakira.Shakira has christian arab parent from lebanon.yet still if she become muslim,I don't see any reason to claim that because of having a parent that originated from a country where muslims and christians co-exist,shakira has "muslim heritage".that is ridiculous.I really don't know what is your point.don't try to discredit this news with baseless claims.it will only show you as bitter.please don't be bitter.take heart!