| Biography | Raihan (meaning "Fragrance of Heaven" in Arabic) is a Malaysian nasheed group originally composed of five members that took Malaysia by storm with the release of their debut album Puji-Pujian in October 1996. The group's original lineup comprised Nazrey Johani, Che Amran Idris, Abu Bakar Md Yatim, Amran Ibrahim, and Azhari Ahmad as the leader. Produced by Farihin Abdul Fattah, Puji-Pujian grossed sales of more than 750,000 units in Malaysia alone, with 200,000 units sold within the first two months after its launch, and 3,500,000 units have been sold worldwide, which makes them the most successful Malaysian artist in terms of album sales.
However, on 29 August 2001, one of the founding members, Azhari Ahmad, died of a myocardial infarction (heart attack) shortly after attending the Era Awards ceremony in Genting Highlands, Pahang.
The remaining four members, Nazrey Johani, Che Amran Idris, Abu Bakar Md Yatim and Amran Ibrahim, have continued releasing album after album. So far, Raihan has released a total of 11 albums and has won many awards in Malaysia. To date, Raihan has won AIM Anugerah Kembara three times for their extensive international tours.
Nazrey Johani resigned from Raihan and was replaced by Nordin Jaafar. However, in early January 2007, Nordin Jaafar himself resigned from Raihan. He was replaced by Zulfadli Bin Mustaza. Raihan's motto is 'Pray Hard, Work Smart'. |