Junaid Jamshed, once famous as the face of one of Pakistan’s most iconic pop/rock bands Vital Signs, died in a plane crash this evening. He was 51. He is survived by a wife, three sons and a daughter.
Junaid was on board Pakistan International Airlines flight PK-661, which crashed on the way to Islamabad from Chitral today.
Born on September 3, 1965 and educated at the the University of Engineering and Technology (Lahore), Junaid enjoyed a 17-year stint in the Pakistani pop music industry.
He shot to fame as the vocalist of Vital Signs, which emerged in 1987 as the project of reclusive TV producer Shoaib Mansoor. Mansoor wanted the band to record a patriotic song and video. The song went on to become the timeless track ‘Dil Dil Pakistan’.
The hit propelled the band into becoming one of the country’s biggest modern pop acts that would go on to record four best-selling albums and head dozens of concerts between 1989 and 1996. It also bagged the group a lucrative contract from Pepsi Co. Pakistan.
Coupled with his singing talent, Junaid’s good loocks earned him a huge female fan following.
Junaid went solo in 1994, releasing his debut solo album, Junaid of Vital Signs.
He followed that up with two more solo albums, Us Rah Par in 1999 and Dil Ki Baat in 2002.
But he was soon to wind up his musical career.
In 2004, Jamshed left the music industry after a spiritual awakening, choosing to devote his life to religious activities.
He released his debut religious album, Jalwa-e-Janan in 2005.
He followed that up with Mehboob-e-Yazdaan in 2006, Badr-ud-Duja in 2008, and Badee-uz-Zaman in 2009.
Junaid Jamshed made a brief return from his musical hiatus with the release of ‘Chand Sitara’ in August last year, a collaboration between Vital Signs and Junoon, another one of Pakistan’s most iconic pop/rock bands.
At the launch, Junaid Jamshed went on stage to perform ‘Dil Dil Pakistan’.
A video posted by Rai M Azlan (@rai_azlan) on
The event marked a coming together of old friends.
Before his unfortunate plane crash, Junaid was spending happy days “with (his) friends in the Path of Allah” in Chitral.
He was travelling to Islamabad when his plane crashed.
Courtesy to dawn.com
