Adnan Sami – born Adnan Sami Khan on August 15, 1971 in London, England – is an Indian singer, songwriter, and musician who has been nicknamed the ‘Sultan of Music’ by The Times of India thanks to his involvement in the Bollywood film industry. He can play more than 35 instruments, but his main instrument is the piano - Keyboard Magazine referred to him as ‘the fastest keyboard player in the world’. Raised and educated in the UK, his musical journey began at the age of five when he learned to play the piano. By the age of nine, he had composed his first song. During Sami’s vacations in India, he studied Indian classical music from santoor maestro Pandit Shivkumar Sharma. At the age of 10, popular Indian singer Asha Bhosle saw him perform in London and she encouraged him to pursue music as a career. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Rugby School in West Midlands before attending King’s College London and earning his law degree. His first release, recorded for UNICEF, was the 1986 single “Run for His Life”, which reached Number 1 in the Middle Eastern music charts. His 1989 debut album, The One & Only, was a classical recording. Sami’s first vocal album 1991’s Raag Time. He appeared as a lead actor in the 1995 Pakistani film Sargam, composing the music and working with Bhosle as the female playback singer. The film was a box office success and the score became the all-time best-selling album in Pakistan. This success led him to become one of the key musical figures in Bollywood cinema. As a lead artist and playback singer, Sami has sold more than 100 million albums in the world. His solo releases include Tera Chehra (2002), Teri Kasam (2004), Kisi Din (2007), and Press to Play (2013). He has been honored with awards from all over the globe including the Padma Shri in January 2020. This is the fourth highest civilian honor in the field of Arts and given by he Government of India.
