It could be any Turkish pop video, but the music of the band FiRock is rather different because lead singer Ahmet Muhsin Tuzer is an Islamic imam.<br /><br />A fan of iron Maiden, Pink Floyd and Metallica, he sees no contradiction in being a musician and a religious man, describing his music as a “meeting of your soul with God”.<br /><br />“If the music you are creating is affecting people in a spiritually good way it might count as worshiping. That’s why the Sufi Mystic Rumi was advising people to listen to music and whirl with music. Whirling is a divine dance,” he said.<br /><br />During a recording session at a studio in Istanbul Tuzer sings a traditional Islamic song. It dates back 1,400 years but he is mixing it with rock guitar and percussion beats.<br /><br />He explained: “We want to show people in today’s world what Islam means. Islam is a global and very social religion that embraces, loves and respects all of humanity.”<br /><br />In his day job as a village imam, Tuzer sings the call to prayer.<br /><br />But while his followers are happy with his musical sideline, the religious authorities are less so.<br /><br />Ahmet Celik is in charge of the mosques in the region. The Sunni Islamic scholar said they are investigating: “It is not about his art but his official duties. He is an official and he gave a concert. We are investigating if he’s got the necessary permissions or not, as well to find out if he had financial benefits or not.”<br /><br />Following the success of single ‘Mevlana Gel’ on YouTube, FiRock’s first album ‘Time of Change’ is set to be released soon in Turkey and the band is also preparing for a tour in the United States.
