With no alias, he goes by his real name, Adil Omar, simply because he says he already has a unique name and there is no need for a gimmick for people to remember it. Adil is Pakistani born and raised who comes from parents that could not really be there for him growing up. Adil lost his father to alcoholism and his mother suffers from amnesia. Shortly after, Adil could not focus in his studies and was kicked out of school by fourteen. These events pushed him towards writing that he felt was the only way he could express himself and overcome isolation. Adil says turning to writing lyrics was the only outlet that was his therapy.
By age eight, Adil was exposed to rappers such as Tupac, Method Man, Redman and Wu-Tang Clan. After B-Real of Cypress Hill discovered the unusual talents of Adil, he became fortunate to work with names such as Xzibit, Kool G Rap and Everlast, House of Pain and Psycho Realm. This is when people started taking this hip-hop newbie more seriously. With his discovery, Adil has been able to learn from these stars “from just being around them and watching them work.”
Adil points out that the majority of Pakistani society may not appreciate hip-hop or rap music, because it is still a new genre in this part of the world. Becoming a rap artist is also an unusual career path for the majority of Pakistanis, however, once he was approached by B-Real of Cypress Hill, that is when people around him started to realize music making does not just have to be a hobby. Hip-hop music in Pakistan is an untapped market in Pakistan and has the potential to become a catalyst for empowerment for many of the youth in the region.
Though Adil comes from a conservative society, he says that he does not associate himself with religion because music goes beyond any “racial, nationalistic and religious boundaries.” The music he makes is where youth can share similar experiences with one another even if the music is not political; “the whole rebellious energy is something a lot of kids could relate to.”
In Adil’s latest music video, “Off the Handle” featuring Xzibit, he wears a traditional Pakistani shalwar kameez commenting that when he is outside Pakistan, he sometimes feels the need to “represent his people from back home,” but was really just having fun as well. In another video that received much accolade from audiences in both Pakistan and India as well as in America, “Incredible” features him in a Pakistani truck. Adil says, “People in the West don’t know what to make of it, they’ve seen nothing like it, and people in Pakistan and India are going nuts about it, they love it.”
Adil hopes to get involved with film in the next few years after the release of his debut album.
Adil’s debut album “The Mushroom Cloud Effect” is releasing in 2012, which features Xzibit, B-Real of Cypress Hill, Everlast, Kool G Rap, DJ Lethal of Limp Bizkit and others. Be sure to watch out for it!
Article originally published for Elan Magazine- http://elanthemag.com/rising-hip-hop-star-from-pakistan-adil-omar/
