JEDDAH — Maher Zain has been in the Kingdom since Oct. 19 to perform Haj. The Swedish Muslim spiritual singer has been posting updates of his pilgrimage on his social media accounts. On Monday, he tweeted (@MaherZain): “I strongly recommend that you do Hajj ASAP if you have the ability to do so.. It's such an Iman Boost :))” Photos of the Ka'ba that he posted on Facebook have proved popular, getting hundreds of thousands of likes and thousands of comments. Zain's family, who is of Lebanese descent, moved to Sweden when he was eight. He was producing mainstream music in New York in 2006 before going back to Sweden and renewing his religious fervor. He now sings and writes contemporary inspirational music rooted in his Islamic faith. His debut album, Thank You Allah (2009), and sophomore album, Forgive Me (2012), are both internationally successful. — SG
