His background is very mixed and unique. Sami was raised in London by a music oriented family and a father who is a composer. He studied music at several music institutes in London. “I grew up seeing famous musicians coming to the house. I was exposed to the world of music starting from my home,” Sami says.

He hated this environment because it seemed fake and very money oriented to him. He could not accept that music could be artificial. “It has to be pure. It is something from the soul that is very deep.”

The possibility of becoming a singer never occurred to Yusuf before his early 20s.

“I never knew I was going to be a singer at all. I thought I would be a composer. I never knew I could sing until I was 14 when I started singing in the shower,” he says with a laugh. “My father used to say ‘Mash’Allah (as Allah wishes) you have a good voice. You should develop on that.’”

Sami belongs to different cultures. He is originally from Azerbaijan, born in Tehran and moved to live in London, England at the age of three. He also lived in Egypt for a few years. He had Arab neighbors and friends from different countries.

“Home for me is where I have my memories and where I find love. I went to Azerbaijan and I had a huge welcome. I felt like a hero coming back home. It was amazing.”

While English is his native language, he also speaks some Farsi, Arabic, Turkish, Azeri, Urdu and hopes to learn French and German for the sake of his German Muslim wife.

Before the “Al-Mu’allim” album was released in 2003, he was just producing music. He did not want to be involved in music anymore at that time. He wanted to live a quiet simple private life.

“[But] Allah had another plan for me. A friend of mine advised me that to use my music for a good cause.”

It was the post 9/11 period at the time and, according to him, there was a huge vacuum in the UK with regard to the British Muslim identity.

“There was a clash of allegiance. Are you a Muslim or British first? Al-Mu’allim was a project to define the British Muslims’ identity. You don’t have to choose whether you are a Muslim first or a British first. You are both.”

In 2009, Sami was chosen as one of the most influential Muslim figures. “I was honored to be among those 500 but it was not a big deal to me. There are so many people who are more important that we don’t know, like the companions of the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) ‘Sahaba’. Those people do not aim to be famous.”

Sami writes 90 percent of his songs, but is continuously asked if he is ever going to sing love songs, which are very popular in the music industry nowadays. He believes that everyone has a style and a character.

“Love songs are just not for me. I’m a loving person and my music is full of love. But it is a different kind of love, an eternal love like the love for Allah, the Prophet and also parents. My songs are open for interpretation, they can be love songs. It depends how you understand them.”

Sami does not only reach Muslims, he also has a non-Muslim audience in the West. He recently had thousands of fans attending his concerts in Denmark and Germany in spring this year.

He believes a lot of this has to do with the music. “Where I am now is not where I was in 2003. My music was quite exclusive to the Muslim world and did not invite everybody. My new album is inclusive for everyone. I follow the same principles and ingredients, honesty, sincerity and the rest is in His hands Insh’Allah (God willing).”

To him, a lot of the music that comes out in the West now is indecent. “I think, my God, where are we drawing the line, and that is when I feel that I am adding most value. This is when I wake up and think I am part of something that is really important.”

Sami’s biggest goal is to cross over into the West where he feels he is most needed. “I know the West and I’m from the West. I am not going to reach there as an Islamic preacher but as a singer whose music is spiritual or spiritually orientated.”

He sees himself as a part of a mission. He does not care about what “the creation” thinks, but about what “the Creator” thinks. That is what he wants to be focused on.

According to him, the way to gain money, power and influence is easy, but he wants his listeners to do whatever is expected from them and whatever makes people happy.

“If you want to do something revolutionary and make a difference, you will find people who wish to get in the way and disrupt your progress. I have a goal and a target. I cannot be the best in everything. My gift is music and I’m focused on being the best in that field. I love what I do, I love my music.”

Sami said that whatever he makes as an artist is reinvested into videos. He also plans to set up a record company to help artists and talents that are not supported.

“I want to help them get their music out there. I am an optimistic person and I believe a lot of good things are going to happen in the near future in the music industry.”

He is a very family oriented man. Being a celebrity did not change him. He prefers staying away from people who shower him with praise because it does not feel genuine.

“I love people to be honest with me even if I am wrong. I go to my father to criticize my songs because I know he will be true to me and he is a very critical man. He would say, ‘your music is rubbish,’ if he felt so,” says Sami.

Some advise Sami to sing without using musical instruments in order to increase the reach of his music to other segments of the Muslim world. “Music is beautiful, we need good art. ‘Allah is beautiful, He loves beauty.’”

He added: “I think people who choose not to listen to music are a small minority but they are loud and active about what they believe in. I respect different views but it cannot let me down. Imam Ghazali said that music is evocative and will get out the emotions in you.”

He added that music is about the words and the message he aims to deliver through his songs. “Music is like a pot, the food is the words. So it is about what you feed people.”

Sami has recently signed a contract with the British record company ETM International for his next five albums. “I am very glad to be working with ETM International, the company that cares about the work as opposed to a brand.”

He released his new single “Healing” in cooperation with the International Medical Center in Jeddah on Wednesday. His new album “Wherever You Are,” which will be released soon, is described as very personal. It covers many incidents that he went through, such as the people who let him down. “It does not show that everything is perfect and all people are happy. It is very connected to real life.”