Every song has its fate, and Ishq's journey has been wholesome: Faheem Abdullah

“My album Lost;Found is just the tip of an iceberg, I want to explore so much more as an artist,” musician and poet Faheem Abdullah tells us in a chat. Basking in the success of his latest track Ishq , with Rauhan Malik and Amir Ameer, Abdullah believes that while the track took years to see the light of the day, the journey couldn’t have ended on a better note.

Here, he talks about how he carries Kashmir within him as an artist, making music in the era of reels and more.

1) Please tell us more about the creative process of working on your latest track Ishq?
About four and a half years ago, I decided to compose a melody around this beautiful poem that I had come across online. The moment I listened to that poem, there was a connection, a relatability. That's when I decided that I wanted to transform it into a song. My friend Rauhan came on board. I wanted this song to be a part of a short film, but that didn’t pan out. I feel every song has its fate. This one did too. It took a little too long to come out, but it's been a wholesome journey.

2) What kind of themes do you prefer to explore through your music?
Since I’m a newly discovered artist for a lot of people, I get asked this question very often and I love to answer it this way. The themes are endless because there's so much to feel, to explore. I would really like to write a song per emotion, be it love, sorrow, rage, guilt, regret, or gratitude. I don’t want to confine myself to a certain theme or genre.

3) In what ways have your Kashmiri roots influenced your music style?

Growing up in Kashmir has really influenced my style of music. The Sufi culture and music left a mark on me subconsciously. This place holds some beautiful emotions in it, be it love, hospitality, or pain. I feel, for artists, it is necessary to embody the place that you're from. And I've been trying to do that. So when I walk out of Kashmir, wherever I am, I should be seen as a part of it.

4) Social media has allowed a lot of players to enter the music industry independently. Which means there's a lot of music being produced. Do you think this affects the longevity of tracks?

Social media has really opened doors for a lot of people who were not able to put out their music otherwise. Longevity depends on the quality of the track. If you are honest, and have a story to tell, longevity will follow. If they’re able to relate to it, the song will make it to their playlists. As artists, we're not supposed to consciously focus on longevity, we can only ensure it sounds good lyrically, musically and then vocally.

5) How crucial is storytelling for you as an artist?

As a writer and musician, storytelling is very important for me. I believe God has really chosen artists to say things for other people who are not able to articulate what they feel. Feelings are universal, and when you are telling a story, either you've lived it, you have imagined it, or seen it happen to somebody. That is the hook which grabs people’s attention. With Ishq, we're telling the story from the beginning to the end, unlike the viral music these days where only 3-4 lines tell a tale and the rest of the song doesn't sound good.

6) You're also a poet, what's your writing process like?
I don't really have one. I just see something, create a picture in my mind, and it starts moving. Now it's a film. I see it in different ways, and just write what I see. Mostly it’s reality with a hint of imagination, and sometimes it is all imagination with a hint of reality. The paper is a place where I can take all the liberties of saying whatever I want to.

7) Beyond Lost;Found, what do you wish to explore?
I think this album is one of the most beautiful journeys that I've ever set out for. Making an album really teaches you a lot. I want to stay with Lost;Found for a little more while because I want to feel it from the audience's perspective as well. I would really like to do an album tour and tell people what it is all about. Besides this, there's a lot of music coming. As an artist, this is just the tip of an iceberg!