Aamer Rahman

Aamer Rahman
Born (1982-10-17) 17 October 1982
Saudi Arabia
Medium Stand-up, Television, Film
Nationality Australian
Years active 2007–present
Genres Observational comedy, Satire, Deadpan, Sarcasm
Subject(s) Racism, Racism in Australia, Political humour, War on Terror, Terrorism, Race relations, Immigration, Religion, Protest, Current events
Influences Bill Hicks, Chris Rock, Richard Pryor, Dave Chappelle, Russell Peters, Margaret Cho, Paul Mooney
Spouse Que Ali (m. 2012)
Website www.aamerrahman.tumblr.com

Aamer Rahman (Bengali: আমার রহমান; born 17 October 1982) is an Australian stand-up comedian of Bangladeshi descent. He is best known as one half of comedy duo Fear of a Brown Planet, along with Nazeem Hussain.

Early life

Rahman's parents, Rezina Rahman and Mushfiq Rahman, were both born and brought up in Bangladesh.[1]

Rahman's father is an engineer.[2] After Rahman's parents got married in Bangladesh they moved to the Middle East.[3]

Rahman was born in Saudi Arabia, although his family often travelled to Bangladesh. He lived in Saudi Arabia until the age of six when his family moved to Australia. They then moved to Oman when he was 10 years old, before returning to Australia when he was 13 years old.[3][4][5][6] He grew up in the western and eastern suburbs of Melbourne.[7]

His childhood was spent moving between Australia and the Middle East.[8] He has a younger sister, Rasha Rahman.[9]

Rahman graduated from Monash University with a degree in Law.[8] However he did not use his law degree, although during his time at university he became involved in political protests around issues such as mandatory detention, refugees, and cuts to higher education.[1]

Stand-up career

2004–2008

In 2004, Rahman met Nazeem Hussain at an Islamic awards function,[10] as a result of their support for asylum seekers and for anti-racism activism.[11] They became friends and did youth work together in Melbourne.[5]

In 2007, Hussain entered Triple J's Raw Comedy Award open mic competition at the Melbourne Comedy Festival[12][13] After seeing Hussain compete, Rahman also decided to enter.[5] They beat hundreds of other hopefuls to reach the Victorian State final together. Hussain reached the Victorian final.[14] Rahman won the state final and went onto the national finals where he was voted the runner-up in a performance that was screened on ABC Television.[8][15]

Due to the success of Raw Comedy they decided to develop their five-minute stand-up routines into a one-hour show together.[13] In five years, they established their own stage show Fear of a Brown Planet and sold out around Australia.[11] Their name plays on the Public Enemy LP, Fear of a Black Planet.[12][15]

Rahman and Hussain performed their first show in 2007 and their second show in 2008. They were then given a network development deal for a year and a half.[3]

In 2008, Rahman helped out the Allah Made Me Funny tour. In April 2008,[16] Rahman and Hussain first performed Fear of a Brown Planet at Melbourne Fringe Festival.[15] Prior this, Rahman had only been on stage three times.[17]

In 2009, Rahman and Hussain were among ten writers selected for an exclusive script-writing workshop hosted by UK indie film company Warp X, Screen Australia and Madman Entertainment.[8]

2010–present

In 2010, Rahman and Hussain performed their follow up show,[8] Fear of a Brown Planet Returns[18][19] at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, Sydney Comedy Festival, and the Adelaide Fringe Festival. In the same year, Rahman performed in the Oxfam Comedy Gala televised on Channel Ten, whilst Hussain performed in the Cracker Night of the Sydney Comedy Festival Gala, televised on The Comedy Channel.[20] In October 2010, they took part in a one-off concert with Azhar Usman, Preacher Moss and Mo Amer (Allah Made Me Funny) at the Athenaeum Theatre in Paris.[10][21]

During 2011, Rahman and Hussain performed their new show, Fear of a Brown Planet Attacks.[22] In August 2011, they performed at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.[23][24][25] On the way home from Edinburgh they performed an impromptu show in London,[1] after a friend of theirs organised a show in Brixton[9] with two days notice.[26] In the same year, Rahman performed at the Melbourne Comedy Festival.[27]

On 31 August 2011,[28] Fear of a Brown Planet Returns DVD and Blu-ray was released, which was recorded at the Chapel Off Chapel in Melbourne.[29] on 15 January 2011.[30] It features the "best of" material from their 2010 sell-out festival show, also entitled Fear of a Brown Planet Returns, as well as content from their debut shows.[31][32] In September 2011, Rahman started work on a one-man comedy show.[1] In December 2011[33] and December 2012, they performed on ABC2.[34]

In April 2012, Hussain and Rahman played at the second show of the Melbourne Comedy Festival.[35] In September 2012,[26] they toured the United Kingdom,[36][37][38] where they performed in cities including Manchester, Bradford, London, Birmingham and Cardiff.[26]

In April 2013, he performed his debut solo show, The Truth Hurts, at the Melbourne Comedy Festival.[4][39][40][41][42]

In 2013, Rahman and Hussain performed at Darwin, Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne.[43] In October 2013, they performed at the Sydney Opera House.[44]

From 10 to 21 June 2014, he performed "The Truth Hurts" Soho Theatre in London.[45][46]

Rahman is a regular contributor to Political Asylum, Melbourne's topical stand-up comedy night.[47]

Comedy style

Rahman and Hussain perform alone before handing over to their comedic partner.[48] Rahman has a cheerful, upbeat,[24] laid back but politically aggressive manner. The majority of his material is based on real-life observations and current events.[31]

Television and radio career

Rahman has written and performed for television[49] Rahman has worked on Channel 31's program Salam Cafe.[17] He has appeared regularly on ABC Radio National and Triple J, Channel Ten's Melbourne Comedy Festival Gala, The Comedy Channel's You Have Been Watching,[50] ABC1's Tractor Monkeys,[51] he has written for season one of[7] Balls of Steel Australia[37] and is currently developing projects for television.[50]

In 2011, Australian Story broadcast a documentary on the ABC about Rahman's and Hussain's lives in Australia as well as their debut performances in Edinburgh and London.[9]

Other activities

Rahman is also a part-time youth worker[10] for the Islamic Council of Victoria,[52] and a graphic designer.[8][9]

In November 2010, Rahman appeared in an advert for Oxfam Australia.[53]

Awards

In 2008, Rahman and Hussain were recipients of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival Best Newcomer Award for their debut show Fear of a Brown Planet .[8][20][54]

Views

In December 2014, in his Tumblr post "White Rapper FAQ", Rahman wrote "...A white rapper like Iggy Azalea acts out signifiers which the white majority associates with black culture – hyper sexuality, senseless materialism, an obsession with drugs, money and alcohol – as well as adopting clothing, speech and music – as a costume that they can put on and discard at will. It's a cheap circus act."[55] In January 2015, in the wake of the Charlie Hebdo shooting, he tweeted "As a random Muslim I'll apologise for this Paris incident if random white ppl will apologise for imperialism, drone attacks and Iggy Azalea."[56]

Personal life

Rahman is a Muslim.[13][54][57] In October 2011, he moved out of his parental home in Brunswick, Victoria[1] and now lives in Glen Waverley, Victoria.[58][59] On 9 November 2012, Rahman married Que Ali.[60]

Since its inception in 2009, Rahman has been involved with RISE: Refugees, Survivors and Ex-Detainees – the only refugee organisation in Australia that is run and governed by refugees and ex-detainees. He has been active in visiting RISE members currently in community detention and has been vocal supporters of migrant worker rights. He has developed projects in RISE's Music & Arts portfolio. He has also been involved in RISE's youth development projects including the RISE Music & Arts Festival (2010 and 2011) and RISE's Cypher Hip Hop Project (2011).[20][61] He is still involved in activism, mostly around refugees and immigration into Australia.[45]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "The Planet They're On – Transcript". ABC Online. 7 November 2011. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  2. ↑ "Fear of a Brown Planet – Workshops for Whitey". Fear of a Brown Planet. 15 February 2010. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  3. 1 2 3 Kamau (August 2011). "Episode 25 pt. 3 – Aamer Rahman: Fear of a Brown Planet". Podbay.fm. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  4. 1 2 Amal (23 May 2013). ""I wouldn't do it if I wasn't angry" – Aamer Rahman". The Vine. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
  5. 1 2 3 MacDonald, Leigh (29 July 2013). "Vulture Chirps with Fear of a Brown Planet". Vulture Magazine. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
  6. ↑ Vranjes, Emilia (13 July 2011). "Muslims in the mainstream". Perth: inMyCommunity. Archived from the original on 4 November 2013. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  7. 1 2 "Aamer Rahman : The Truth Hurts". Beat. March 2013. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Fear of a Brown Planet". Smartartists. 2009. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Fahmi, Asme (1 December 2011). "Fear of a Funny Muslim Returns". MuslimVillage.com. p. 1. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  10. 1 2 3 Ziffer, Daniel (14 October 2010). "Brown humour". The Age. Melbourne. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  11. 1 2 Barker, Arj (7 November 2011). "The Planet They're On". ABC Online. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  12. 1 2 Fahmi, Asme (30 November 2011). "Fear of a Funny Muslim". MuslimVillage.com. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  13. 1 2 3 "Interview – Fear of a Brown Planet". Heckler. 2 August 2013. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
  14. ↑ "Fear of a Brown Planet". Eurasian Sensation. 8 March 2010. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  15. 1 2 3 "Interview: Aamer Rahman, one half of Aussie comedy duo Fear Of A Brown Planet on politics, protest and why he's so bitter". TNT Magazine. 15 September 2012. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  16. ↑ Nader, Carol; Cooke, Dewi (5 April 2008). "We're not racist, but ...". The Age. p. 1. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  17. 1 2 Ziffer, Daniel (7 April 2007). "What's so funny about beards, jihad & understanding?". The Age. Melbourne. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  18. ↑ Broadbent, Penelope (27 March 2010). "Fear of a Brown Planet Returns". Australian Stage. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
  19. ↑ "Fear of a Brown Planet Returns". Melbourne International Comedy Festivale. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
  20. 1 2 3 "Our Patrons". RISE: Refugees, Survivors and Ex-Detainees. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  21. ↑ "Fear of a Brown Planet perform Fear of a Brown Planet Attacks". Beat. 28 March 2011. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
  22. ↑ Logan, Brian (10 August 2011). "Fear of a Brown Planet: the fast show". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  23. 1 2 Logan, Brian (16 November 2011). "Fear of a Brown Planet – review". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  24. ↑ Hawkins, Si (17 July 2011). "Muslim comedians perform at Edinburgh's Fringe". The National. Abu Dhabi. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  25. 1 2 3 Hamilton, Davina (19 September 2012). "'Is Australia racist? In a word, yes'". The Voice Online. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  26. ↑ Pavatich, Daniel (31 March 2013). "Aamer Rahman: The Truth Hurts". Sydney: What's on Comedy. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
  27. ↑ "Fear of a Brown Planet". JB HI-FI. 31 August 2011. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  28. ↑ "Nazeem Hussain". ABC Online. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  29. ↑ "Fear of a Brown Planet Returns – DVD recording". ABC Online. 16 January 2011. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
  30. 1 2 Lamb, Lizzie (7 November 2011). "Fear of a Brown Planet Interview with Aamer Rahman". Australian Film Review. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  31. ↑ "Fear of a Brown Planet Comes To Dvd". Spotlight Report. 9 September 2011. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  32. ↑ "Fear of A Brown Planet". ABC Television. 2 December 2011. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  33. ↑ Galvin, Nick (2 December 2012). "Fear of a Brown Planet, Friday, December 2". The Age. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  34. ↑ Lan, Christine. "Political Asylum's Late Night Riot". Beat. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  35. ↑ "In Fear of a Brown Planet". The Times of India. India. 3 August 2012. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  36. 1 2 "WIN TICKETS: Fear of a Brown Planet". Asian Image. 15 August 2012. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  37. ↑ Rahman, Aamer (8 September 2012). "Fear of a Brown Planets' Bro Aamer Rahman's letter to Prince Harry". Son of Malcolm. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  38. ↑ "Review: Aamer Rahman in The Truth Hurts". ABC Online. 30 March 2013. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
  39. ↑ Razer, Helen (1 April 2013). "Aamer Rahman: The Truth Hurts". The Age. Melbourne. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
  40. ↑ Razer, Helen (1 April 2013). "Aamer Rahman: The Truth Hurts". The Sydney Morning Herald. Sydney. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
  41. ↑ Razer, Helen (1 April 2013). "Aamer Rahman: The Truth Hurts". Brisbane Times. Brisbane. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
  42. ↑ "Aamer Rahman The Truth Hurts". Melbourne International Comedy Festival. 2 August 2013. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
  43. ↑ Blake, Elissa (20 October 2013). "A challenging comedy about Muslims has attracted more attention than expected.". The Sydney Morning Herald. Sydney. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
  44. 1 2 Logan, Brian (4 June 2014). "Shock value: How Aamer Rahman's 'reverse racism' joke saved his career". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 June 2014.
  45. ↑ Logan, Brian (12 June 2014). "Aamer Rahman review – laconic comic on life in Australia, a 'Nazi beach resort'". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 June 2014.
  46. ↑ "Aamer Rahman". Overland literary journal. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
  47. ↑ Lan, Christine (8 April 2011). "Fear of a Brown Planet Attacks". Beat. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  48. ↑ "Interview with Hussain and Rahman, from 'Fear of a Brown Planet'". Australian Times. 11 October 2012. Archived from the original on 2 November 2013. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  49. 1 2 "Aamer Rahman". The Wheeler Centre. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  50. ↑ "Tractor Monkeys – Sam Simmons, Rebecca De Unamuno, Aamer Rahman & Genevieve Morris". ABC Television. 27 March 2013. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  51. ↑ "Melbourne Muslims on air". The Age. Melbourne. 26 October 2006. p. 1. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  52. ↑ "Aamer Rahman for Oxfam Unwrapped". OxfamAustralia. 22 November 2010. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  53. 1 2 "Award Winners". Melbourne International Comedy Festivale. Archived from the original on 30 September 2010. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  54. ↑ Eddo-Lodge, Reni (23 December 2013). "Azealia Banks vs Iggy Azalea: 'Privileged white people shouldn't steal hip-hop'". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 13 January 2015.
  55. ↑ Morrison, Aaron (8 January 2013). "Muslims Angered By Charlie Hebdo Attack Defend Religion In Social Media". International Business Times. Retrieved 13 January 2015.
  56. ↑ Hajaj, Nidal; Elliott-Cooper, Adam (24 September 2012). "Interview: Fear of a Brown Planet (Video)". Ceasefire Magazine. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  57. ↑ "Nazeem Hussain and Aamer Rahman's comedy". Immigration Museum. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  58. ↑ "Monash boys' success with Fear of a Brown Planet". Waverley: Waverley Leader. 6 October 2010. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  59. ↑ Moore, Ali (3 October 2013). "Brian Nankervis, Nazeem Hussain, Shelley Ware". 774 ABC Melbourne. Melbourne. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
  60. ↑ Visa (1 July 2013). "(Interview) Nazeem Hussain". Poached Mag. Retrieved 1 November 2013.

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