Saudi Arabia makes first music video

A Saudi production company is attempting to address youth through a music video that offers the message, "Being pious is not uncool." I don't fully understand the implications of this new pop culture phenomenon in Saudi Arabia, but I find it interesting that they are trying to reach youth through new media. Do they have other options, considering the prevalence and ease of access to Internet and satellite TV?

Saudi Arabia makes first music video

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - The first clip to be fully produced in Saudi Arabia has a message of a different kind: You can be cool and devout.

The video is unusual because it was made in a country where the religious establishment considers music un-Islamic and bans it in public places. And the main cast includes a Saudi woman, something rare in a work produced inside the kingdom.

But in a sign of Saudi impatience with the restrictions, "Malak Ghair Allah" or "You Only Have God to Count On" was a hit when it was launched at a popular mall in the western seaport of Jiddah last week. Hundreds of people showed up to watch it on a giant screen in the mall's main hall.

"You Only Have God to Count On" uses upbeat music to tell the story of a successful man who had strayed from the path of true Islam. He smokes, flirts with women even though he's engaged and doesn't join his colleagues at work in performing the five daily Muslim prayers.

Things slowly start to go bad: He has a flat tire and problems at work and his fiancee leaves him when she sees him talking to another woman. He then has a serious accident while recklessly driving his motorcycle. After he recovers, the man starts to pray, stops smoking, wins back his fiancee and excels at work.

"I wanted the youths to understand that it's not the looks that count. It's what inside that matters," al-Khatib said.

"The video also has this message: Don't give up and think, 'I sinned, therefore I'm going to hell,'" the director added. "Think that there's a God and he is always there to help you."

Dave Chappelle: Muslim?

If you're in the skeptics camp on this question, the story below provides some food for thought.

"Allah Made Me Funny - The Official Muslim Comedy Tour" which features three of America's top Muslim comics including Preacher Moss, Azhar Usman and Mohammed Amer will be made into a feature-length concert film that will showcase the comics' on-stage performances and shine a spotlight on their lives, announced Dave Chappelle, the project's executive producer.

Read on at: Earth Times