Food for thought: a Ramadan filled with new experiences for rapper Jehad Dabab

The 32-year-old rapper tells us about his first Ramadan in the UAE without his family and members of the Islamic inspired hip-hop group The Brothahood.

Jehad Dabab recently moved from Melbourne to Abu Dhabi. Ravindranath K / The National

For Jehad Dabab, the past two months has been packed with first-time experiences.

The Australian-Lebanese rapper recently moved from Melbourne to Abu Dhabi to take up a new job in telecommunications.

This is also the first holy month the 32-year-old has spent away from his wife and two kids, and the members of the Islamic inspired hip-hop group The Brothahood.

And on Monday, he became the first visitor to experience the suhoor at the new Four Seasons Abu Dhabi on Al Maryah Island.

“Yeah, it has been a bit weird,” he says with a wry smile. “There has been a lot of new experiences, meeting new people and friends, there has been a lot going on.”

We are sitting on a plush white leather couch in one of the many private booths outside the Al Maryah Ballroom where the suhour is served.

Unlike at most hotels, suhour at the Four Seasons features an expansive intercontinental buffet, rather than an à la carte menu. The only items served to order are the juices and hot drinks.

Settling down over plates of rice, grilled meats and rather spicy seafood noodles, Dabab reflects on the differences that he has noticed during Ramadan in the UAE.

“For the first time I am part of a majority when it comes to fasting,” he says.

“In Australia there will be people in the office always asking how I couldn’t even drink water. I didn’t mind that all. It’s a great way for people to know about my faith. But I feel like I have been explaining all my life.

“Now I feel like it is a break. I come to work and I know that everyone is in the same boat and saying Ramadan kareem. It’s a cool thing.” We return to the buffet, this time taking plates of spaghetti carbonara from the pasta station. By this time, a steady stream of customers has entered the ballroom.

Dabab says the move to the UAE is bittersweet for The Brothahood. Formed in 2008, the four-piece is one of Australia’s leading Islamic hip-hop crews and has toured internationally, including a gig in Abu Dhabi as part of the 2008 Mahaba Awards, in addition to shows in Indonesia and Malaysia.

With Dabab away and focusing on his new job, he says he will not be available to hit the road with the group anytime soon.

That said, his new home presented a chance to reunite with former Brothahood member Ahmed Ahmed — the Egyptian left the group in 2011 to move to Sharjah.

Dabab says the pair have already caught up and started working on new material that could result in Ahmed returning to the fold.

“We are working on a track that essentially talks about the 99 names of Allah,” he says.

“It’s kind of epic because we go through it all and it could be up to eight minutes long.”

Polishing off the last few mouthfuls of our Um Ali, Dabab credits his relocation as providing fertile inspiration for new lyrics. However, more importantly, he says that spending Ramadan alone has reminded him of those in similar predicaments.

“I do feel like I have more empathy,” he says. “The experience reminds me of my friends back in Australia, a lot of international students who spent their Ramadans away from their families. It made me appreciate those who take the time away from their families to hang out with me.”

• Suhoor at Four Seasons Hotel Abu Dhabi, Al Maryah Island, is Dh220 (excluding taxes), and runs from 10pm to 2am. For details, go to www.fourseasons.com/AbuDhabi

• Every Thursday during Ramadan, we sit down to iftar or suhoor with cultural personalities to discuss life lessons and reflections gleaned during the holy month