Shabir is a national award winning singer-songwriter, record producer, music composer and performer from Singapore whose works are predominantly in Tamil. He is the winner of the inaugural singing competition Vasantham Star 2005. The talent quest was hosted by MediaCorp Vasantham TV Channel. Shabir's Yaayum song from the upcoming film Sagaa became a sleeper hit in India and all around the world. In 2012 he wrote and composed "Singai Naadu", the National Day Parade 2012 Tamil song that won praise from the Prime Minister of Singapore, Lee Hsien Loong. Shabir was awarded the Singapore Youth Award, the highest national honour given to young achievers by the Singapore government. He was the first artist of Tamil/Indian descent to win the award.
Shabir is born in Singapore. His father's origin is Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu. He is of mixed heritage from an Urdu speaking father and a Malay/Tamil mother. Shabir started songwriting at an early age and wrote and composed his first song at the age of 12.
Shabir started songwriting and song composition when he was 12 years old. Starting out as a self-taught keyboardist, he went on to learn Hindustani Classical Music under the tutelage of violinist Sri Veereshwar Madhri and guitar from Steeve Vatz. Shabir also graduated with a bachelor's degree in music production and composition and is an alumnus of SAE Singapore.
Shabir remains one of the leading recording artiste in Singapore with a strong fan following in the region having released three albums to date 'Alaipayuthey', 'TraffiQ' and 'Swasam-Scents of Prose'. Shabir's music is known to be an eclectic concoction of various genres and influences that includes pop, indie, alternative rock and world music. Shabir's lyrical style consists of wordplay, metaphor and he often experiments with cadence. His edgy vocal rendition marks a distinct style that owes itself to his early metal and rock influences such as Rage Against The Machine and Metallica.
Film Music
Shabir started his film music career in Tamil cinema as a playback singer and songwriter. Shabir sang two songs in the Indian film Vathikutchi produced by A.R Murugadoss. He also wrote lyrics and recorded a rap based on a ragaa for one of the songs. Shabir received positive reviews from critics for his rendition of the song Ari Unnai. The audio of the film launched on 13 Feb 2013 in Chennai. Shabir recorded a song for Drums Sivamani titled "Yaaro Yaar Aval" from the movie Arima Nambi In 2016 Shabir wrote and sang for the Venkatesh starrer Telugu film Babu Bangaram. He is now making his debut as a film composer for a Tamil film called Sagaa. The film is slated for a late 2017 release. The song titled "Yaayum" from Sagaa became a hit upon its release, receiving acclaim from critics and fans. Shabir signed 3 more films titled Sangu Chakkaram produced by the makers of Naduvula Konjam Pakkatha Kaanom and Idharkuthane Aasaipattai Balakumara, Neeya and an untitled film starring new actors. Sangu Chakkaram released on Dec 29 in 2017 to good response. Shabir's music for Sangu Chakkaram won praise unanimously from critics and audiences.
Independent Music
Shabir was one of the first few to drive the international Tamil independent music movement. His first album "Alaipayuthey" was released in 2005. Shabir's independent music from his later albums TraffiQ (Dejavu & Nagaravaytai) received regular airplay on both local and international channels including MTV Asia and Channel V. which garnered him a good following in South East Asia.
"Swasam – Scents of Prose" produced by High Breed Media was released on 7 April 2012 to positive reviews. The album has an eclectic combination of various musical styles and features poetry recitations by prominent personalities and luminaries from Singapore such as the nation's 6th President S.R Nathan, Minister S Iswaran, former NMP Viswa Sadasivan and many others.
Shabir is currently the CEO of Shabir Music Academy, a music school based in Singapore, which is affiliated with Rockschool UK.
