Awakening of Islamic Pop Music

Jonas Otterbeck is Professor of Islamic Studies at the Aga Khan University Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations, London. Prior to this, he was Professor of Islamic Studies at Lund University, Sweden, and Lecturer in International Migration and Ethnic Relations at Malmö University, Sweden. Over the last twenty-five years, he has engaged in research about contemporary Islam, often with political relevance. He has published on the situation of Muslim pupils in Swedish schools, the identity constructions of Muslim youth and their understanding of Islam, the representation of Islam and Muslims in Sweden, Islamic revivalist discourse, active citizenship among Muslims, and the relationship between European states and Muslim organisations. His research has also focused on music censorship and artists’ right to expression. Among his many publications are the books Muslims in Western Europe (together with J. Nielsen, Edinburgh University Press, 2016) and numerous articles in journals such as Popular Music and Society, Contemporary Islam and Ethnic and Racial Studies.

• Hi and Welcome to the FieldAwakening to the MusicAwakening Takes to the StageSetting the Stage, Ideas in ProgressThe Message and Its MediaPerforming an Ethical Islamic MasculinityThe Politics of EntertainmentCarefully Pushing AheadIslamic Discourses on Popular Music: A Historical Footnote

Jonas Otterbeck’s book is an ethnographically rich study of the rapid and massive emergence of a new phenomenon: Islamic pop music. [...] Overall, I believe Otterbeck’s work should be acknowledged by a wider readership than the sole circle of Islamic Studies.