Dawud Wharnsby facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Dawud Wharnsby
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| Birth name | David Howard Wharnsby |
| Also known as | Dawud Wharnsby-Ali Dawud Ali |
| Born | June 27, 1972 Kitchener, Ontario, Canada |
| Genres | Folk Nasheed Spoken Word Hamd World music |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter, producer, poet |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar, mandolin, banjo, bazouki, oud, bodhran, bongos, djembe, clarinet, tin whistle |
| Years active | 1991–present |
| Labels | Enter into Peace (1995–present), Sound Vision (1996–2003), Beloved Musika (2006–2009) |
| Associated acts | Idris Phillips, Zain Bhikha, Yusuf Islam, Sami Yusuf, Dale Marcell, Stephen Fearing, Danny Thompson, Irshad Khan |
Dawud Wharnsby (born David Howard Wharnsby on June 27, 1972) is a Canadian musician, poet, and educator. He is known for his unique blend of folk music and spiritual songs, often called nasheed, and for his spoken word performances. He plays many instruments and has also worked in television.
Contents
Early Life and Career
Dawud Wharnsby was born in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, in 1972. When he was a teenager, he started acting in plays. At 18, he performed on a big stage in "Jesus Christ Superstar". He also had roles in other plays like "You're A Good Man Charlie Brown".
When he was 19, Wharnsby began performing music by himself and with different bands. His first professional music job was playing folk music on street corners with a group called Crakenthorpe's Teapot. He traveled around Ontario, England, and Scotland, singing and sharing his music as a street performer.
In the early 1990s, Wharnsby also worked as an actor and puppeteer for educational theater groups. These groups visited schools and folk festivals across Ontario. At 20, he played the main role in a short educational film called "To Catch A Thief". This film was shown in schools across Canada to teach about preventing shoplifting.
Music Journey
In 1993, Dawud Wharnsby and Heather Chappell, another singer from Crakenthorpe's Teapot, started performing as a duo. They released an album called Off To Reap The Corn. This album featured traditional Canadian and Irish folk songs. It also included Wharnsby's funny version of the song "The Black Velvet Band".
Since 1995, Dawud has released many albums that are known around the world. These include Blue Walls and the Big Sky and Out Seeing The Fields. In the mid-1990s, he started creating English language nasheed. These are spiritual songs with a folk or world-beat style, inspired by Qur'anic traditions. He has released over 10 popular nasheed albums, such as A Whisper of Peace and Colours of Islam.
On September 3, 2007, Dawud released "Out Seeing the Fields". This album has 12 songs and was made with pianist Idris Phillips. One song, "Rachel," is a tribute to Rachel Corrie. She was a young woman who died while protesting the destruction of homes in the Gaza Strip.
Dawud has worked with many famous musicians during his career. These include Stephen Fearing, Yusuf Islam (also known as Cat Stevens), Zain Bhikha, and Hadiqa Kiani.
Television and Radio Work
Dawud Wharnsby has also been a television host. He has hosted shows for Canadian channels like Vision TV and for international channels like Al Huda TV and BBC Scotland. He has also worked with the National Film Board of Canada.
Educational Efforts
Dawud Wharnsby supports the Rod Serling Memorial Foundation. This foundation helps students with scholarships. He was inspired by the work of author and screenwriter Rod Serling when he was a child.
From 2010 to 2015, Dawud Wharnsby was an Ambassador for the UK Scout Association. This means he helped promote scouting in the United Kingdom.
Personal Life
In 1993, David Howard Wharnsby became a Muslim. He changed his first name to "Dawud," which is the Arabic form of "David." He also added "Ali" to his last name. He stopped using "Ali" professionally in 2003, but it is still part of his legal name. Dawud Wharnsby also follows the ideas of Unitarian Universalism, which is a faith that believes in personal spiritual growth and understanding.
Dawud Wharnsby got married in 2003. He, his wife, and their two children have lived in Colorado, USA, Abbottabad, Pakistan, and Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. Since July 2022, they have lived in Nashville, Tennessee.
It's important not to confuse Dawud Wharnsby with film editor David Wharnsby. They are not the same person, even though they both come from the Kitchener-Waterloo area.
In the Media
In 2008, a newspaper article suggested that Dawud Wharnsby influenced pop star Michael Jackson to become a Muslim. The article claimed that Wharnsby and musician Idris Phillips were friends with Michael Jackson. It said they talked to him about their beliefs. This story was then shared by news outlets around the world.
After Michael Jackson passed away in 2009, the article reappeared. This made the rumors about Jackson's faith even stronger. However, Dawud Wharnsby made a public statement on June 26, 2009. He said:
"For the record: Though our professional circles did cross-over slightly... I never had the honour or pleasure of meeting Michael Jackson personally, nor did we ever correspond on matters of our professions, personal lives or faiths."
Wharnsby also explained his views on faith:
"My approach to faith does not include concepts of "conversion/reversion" or "propagation", so the very idea that I would have even tried to "convert" Mr. Jackson (or anyone else for that matter) to my spiritual perspective, is silly."
In November 2009, Dawud Wharnsby was named one of the 500 Most Influential Muslims in the "Entertainment and The Arts" category. This list is put together by The Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre in Jordan. He has been on this list every year since then.
Discography
Solo work
| Year | Album |
|---|---|
| 1995 | Blue Walls and the Big Sky |
| 1996 | A Whisper of Peace |
| 1997 | Colours of Islam |
| 1998 | Road to Madinah |
| 2002 | Sunshine, Dust and The Messenger |
| 2003 | The Prophet's Hands |
| 2005 | Vacuous Waxing |
| 2006 | The Poets and The Prophet |
| 2007 | Out Seeing The Fields |
| 2011 | A Picnic of Poems |
| 2014 | Acoustic Simplicitea |
| 2017 | A Whisper of Peace/Colours of Islam Anniversary Remaster |
CD singles and EP releases
| Year | Album |
|---|---|
| 1999 | The Letter – Songs of Struggle and Hope |
| 2004 | Love Strong |
| 2010 | Shady Grove |
| 2010 | Twinkle, Twinkle |
| 2010 | Welcome to The I.C.E. (Percussion only version) |
Selected collaborations
| Year | Album |
|---|---|
| 1993 | Off to Reap the Corn (with Heather Chappell) |
| 1994 | Fine Flowers in The Valley (with Heather Chappell) |
| 2001 | Light Upon Light (Various Artists) |
| 2001 | Faith (with Zain Bhikha) |
| 2001 | Bismillah (with Yusuf Islam and Friends) |
| 2002 | In Praise of The Last Prophet (with Yusuf Islam and Friends) |
| 2003 | Salaam (with Irfan Makki) |
| 2004 | Days of Eid (Various Artists) |
| 2005 | Expressions of Faith (Various Artists) |
| 2005 | Celebrate! Holidays of The Global Village (with Chris McKhool) |
| 2005 | I Look I See (with Yusuf Islam) |
| 2006 | Allah Knows (with Zain Bhikha) |
| 2007 | Man Ana? (with Khalid Belrhouzi) |
| 2008 | Aled Jones Presents: Good Morning Sunday (Various Artists) |
| 2010 | Pages of Hope (with Lines of Faith) |
| 2011 | Hope (with Zain Bhikha) |
| 2011 | Kalima (with Hadiqa Kiyani) |
| 2014 | Songs of A Soul (with Zain Bhikha) |
| 2014 | Longing (with Kailashi) |
| 2014 | Allah Is on My Side (with Malik Naim) |
| 2015 | The Passing Traveller (with Zain Bhikha) |
| 2018 | Abraham Jam - Live (with Abraham Jam) |
| 2018 | Prophetic Praise (Various Artists) |
| 2019 | All About Me (with Raef (singer)) |
| 2019 | White Moon (with Abraham Jam) |
Narrative work
| Year | Album |
|---|---|
| 2000 | Gifts of Muhammad (introduced by Dawud Wharnsby) |
| 2000 | 40 Hadith (introduced by Dawud Wharnsby) |
| 2001 | Timeless Wisdom Volume 1 |
| 2001 | Timeless Wisdom Volume 2 |
| 2001 | A Simple Guide to Prayer (with Yusuf Islam) |
| 2004 | Companions of The Prophet |
Music videos
| Year | Title |
|---|---|
| 2006 | You Can't Take It With You (With Zain Bhikha) |
| 2006 | Allah Knows (with Zain Bhikha) |
| 2006 | Midnight |
| 2011 | Out Seeing The Fields |
| 2013 | All Of Us |
Published Work
- Nasheed Artist (Books 4 Schools, UK, 2005, ISBN: 0-9543652-6-7) (author/co-illustrator)
- For Whom The Troubadour Sings (Kube Publishing Ltd, UK, 2009, ISBN: 978-1-84774-011-3) (author)
- A Picnic of Poems in Allah's Green Garden (Kube Publishing Ltd, UK, 2011, ISBN: 978-0-86037-444-2) (author)
- Colours of Islam (Kube Publishing Ltd, UK, 2013, ISBN: 978-0-86037-591-3) (author)
- A Whisper of Peace (Kube Publishing Ltd, UK, 2014, ISBN: 978-0-86037-534-0) (author)
Television and Video Appearances
- Muslim Network Television (2022 - Present) (Script Editor, Audio Producer, Segment Host)
- Come In On The Bridge (Deen TV, 2013/2014) (Host)
- As Salamu Alaikum! (Sound Vision, 2005) (Soundtrack and actor/puppeteer)
- A New Life in a New Land (Milo Productions/University of Saskatoon/NFB, 2004) (Soundtrack and host)
- BBC Schools – Watch Celebrations: Ramadan And Eid (BBC Scotland, 2003) (Host)
- Sing, Children of The World (Sound Vision, 2002) (Host)
- Stories Behind The Songs (Sound Vision, 2002) (Host)
- Rhythm of Islam (Sound Vision, 2002) (Host)
- Alif Is For Allah (Sound Vision, 2000) (Soundtrack and actor/puppeteer)
- The Humble Muslim (Sound Vision, 1999) (Soundtrack and actor/puppeteer)
- Ramadan Mubarak (Sound Vision, 1998) (Soundtrack and actor/puppeteer)
- To Catch A Thief (John Howard Society of Canada, 1990) (Actor)
