| Mumzy Stranger | |
|---|---|
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Muhammad Mumith Ahmed |
| Born | January 18, 1984 Plaistow, Newham, East London, United Kingdom |
| Origin | Plaistow, Newham, East London, United Kingdom |
| Genres | Hip-Hop, Grime, R&B, Bashment, Pop |
| Occupations | Singer-songwriter, Rapper, Record producer, Dancer |
| Years active | 2005-2011 present |
| Labels | Tiffin Beats Records (2008-present) |
| Associated acts | Rishi Rich, Preeya Kalidas, Abbas Hasan, Yasmin, Wiley, Karen David, Sonu Kakkar, Junior Giscombe |
| Website | Official website |
Muhammad Mumith Ahmed (born 18 January 1984), better known by his stage name Mumzy Stranger, is a British MC, singer-songwriter and record producer. He made his mainstream recording debut in the summer of 2009 with his debut single "One More Dance," which topped the UK Asian Charts, as did the follow-up singles, "Showgirl" and "Fly With Me". He is the first artist of Bengali descent to have entered the mainstream music industry and is one of the latest prospect of British-Asian R&B artist in Britain.[1]
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Mumith was born and raised in Plaistow, Newham in East London to Bengali Muslim parents. He is of Bangladeshi origin and was raised in a traditional Islamic home.[2]
He started out in the Infamous UK Garage scene in 2000 at an early age of 16, and was involved in pirate radio until 2003 when he left as he felt like a stranger (from which he derived his stage name).[3]
Stranger was one of three finalists in BBC Asian Network's Unsung competition in 2005 with his song "Jump Up,"[4][5] after a friend of his sent in Stranger 's demo tape,[6] which caught the attention of Rishi Rich, a Bhangra-fusion producer that was one of the judges for the competition.[7]
Two years later, as a graduate from the University of Westminster, achieving a BA Honours in Business Information Technology,[1] Stranger finally went into the studio with Rishi Rich. With the help of Rishi Rich, he released his promo single, "Let's Party" in 2007, which Rich produced along with a next single, "Stranger". He performed in the UK at the Royal Festival Hall in South Bank, London and at the 2008 Baishakhi Mela, a concert of Bangladeshi musicians. He also performed at the award show for the UK Asian Music Awards in 2008.
Stranger's debut single "One More Dance" was produced by Rishi Rich and was released in July 2009.[8] The single was set to be titled "One More Chance" but was later changed to "One More Dance", according to Rishi Rich.[9] It fail to reach the mainstream charts but topped the UK Asian Charts on its debut.[10][11] His second single, "Showgirl," was released in August 2009.[6][12] Mumzy is heard on two tracks on The Streets of Bollywood 3, a remix album by Rishi Rich, Hunterz and Kami K, mainly focusing on bringing Indian and urban music together.
Stranger collaborated with several UK and international desi artists, such as H-Dhami, Preeya Kalidas, Abbas Hasan and Malkit Singh.[13]
Mumzy supported Sean Kingston at the 02 Arena on November 18.[14]
Stranger released his debut mixtape, No Stranger To This, which was put together in the course of seven days and officially released on December 11,[15] a day before his debut album, Journey Begins. Stranger and Stereo Nation are heard on the soundtrack of It's a Wonderful Afterlife. The track is a remix of a hit song by Stereo Nation, "Larl Larl Buleeya (Remix)". The track is Stranger's debut on a British film soundtrack. He is also heard on the soundtrack of Toonpur Ka Super Hero, making his debut on a Bollywood film soundtrack.
At the UK AMA's Nominations Party held at the West Midlands’ super-club Gatecrasher, in Birmingham on the 1st February, Stranger was nominated for 4 awards, Best Album (for Journey Begins), Best Male Act, Best Urban Act and Best Video (for "Fly With Me"), the most for any solo act at the UK Asian Music Awards 2011.[16] He ended up winning Best Urban Act.[17] Fresh after the release of his debut album, he released his new promotional single, tilted, "Mama Used To Say", a collaboration with Grammy-Award winning British R&B singer, Junior, which was released on March 10.[18] Stranger performed the single at the UK AMA with Junior.[19] Mumzy's single "Heartbreaker" was released on 8 April, as a free download.[20][21] Mumzy's latest collaboration is with Junai Kaden[22] on the track, "Aaja Mere Naal". The track is Junai Kaden's debut single and produced by Mumzy himself. The singles official release date is April 14.[23] The track entered the UK Asian Download Chart at number 7, making his very first top 10 single.
Stranger is an ambassador for Newham Council's anti-violence campaign to prevent gun and knife crime.[24] Stranger took part in the Sky Ride Leicester, a free, family-orientated and fun traffic-free mass participation cycling event on August 29, 2010 in Leicester, England.[25]
Urban Music Awards (2009)
BritAsia TV Music Awards (2010)
UK Asian Music Awards (2011)
| Journey Begins | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Studio album by Mumzy Stranger | |||
| Released | December 12, 2010 | ||
| Recorded | 2009-2010 | ||
| Genre | R&B, Hip-Hop, Bashment | ||
| Length | 51:54 | ||
| Label | Tiffin Beats Records | ||
| Producer | Mumzy Stranger, Steel Bangelz, Rax Tymer, Diligent, Rishi Rich, THE ALiBI, Vee | ||
| Professional reviews | |||
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Journey Begins is Stranger's debut album, released on December 12, 2010 in the UK on Tiffin Beats Records.[26]
The albums lead single is "Fly With Me", produced by himself at his home studio. The single debuted at number 15 on the UK Asian Download Chart and stayed in the top 40 for more than 17 weeks but dropped off the chart at week 18. There are several remixes of "Fly With Me", a Grime Mix featuring Flo Dan, Gods Gift, KID & Roly, a Rishi Rich Kulcha Mix and a Bangla Mix featuring SH8S. Stranger's fourth and final single from the album is "Spaceman" featuring Wiley.
Stranger performed songs from his new album with a live orchestra to a close 600 fans and media at a one-off concert on December 18 at Stratford Circus.[27]
DesiHits rated the album 3/5, stating their description of the album as simply average. They stated: "Despite high expectations and many memorable collaborations and features, "Journey Begins" doesn't impress us."[28]
The album achieved moderate success, reaching number 4 on the iTunes Hip-Hop Album Chart on its debut, making the album the biggest success for Stranger to date.[29] The album was nominated for "Best Album" award at the UK AMA 2011.[30]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Fly With Me" | Mumzy Stranger | Mumzy Stranger | 03:53 |
| 2. | "Superwoman" | Mumzy Stranger | Rax Tymer | 03:33 |
| 3. | "Drop It" | Mumzy Stranger, THE ALiBI | Diligent | 03:35 |
| 4. | "Positive Vibe" | THE ALiBI | Diligent | 03:58 |
| 5. | "Spaceman" (featuring Wiley) | Mumzy Stranger | Steel Bangelz | 04:38 |
| 6. | "Schizophrenic" | Mumzy Stranger, THE ALiBI | Diligent | 03:23 |
| 7. | "Left With None" | Mumzy Stranger | Diligent | 03:22 |
| 8. | "Rainfall" | Mumzy Stranger | Diligent, THE ALiBI | 04:01 |
| 9. | "Can I Love Again" | Mumzy Stranger, THE ALiBI | 04:10 | |
| 10. | "Genesis" (featuring Yasmin) | Mumzy Stranger | Rax Tymer, Mumzy Stranger | 03:32 |
| 11. | "Promises" | Mumzy Stranger | Rishi Rich, Rax Tymer | 04:58 |
| 12. | "Fatal Attraction" | Mumzy Stranger | Rax Tymer | 04:33 |
| 13. | "Sexy Mama" | Mumzy Stranger | Rax Tymer, THE ALiBI | 04:18 |
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Total length:
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51:54 | |||