Mustafa Ahmed was born in Toronto, Ontario to Sudanese parents. When he was in grade 7, he performed an original piece, "A Single Rose", at Nelson Mandela Park Public School. The piece got a lot of attention, earning him high praises at Toronto's Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival in 2009. During this time, Mustafa was known for writing poems about poverty in Africa, and poverty in the Regent Park area. He had a rough upbringing in his hometown, located in Toronto's rough Regent Park area where he attended Regents Park School. Despite his young age, Mustafa was a witness to gun violence and street gangs.
Mustafa first gained recognition in 2014 at the age of 18, by featuring on Lorraine Segato's single "Rize Time", a remix of her band's own song "Rise Up", in which he performs a spoken word poem on the prelude. He then went on to produce the spoken word poetry film Spectrum of Hope in September 2014. It was a collaborative project between him and Thompson Egbo-Egbo. He was featured on CBC News in which he explores the connection between art and athletics in his Pan Am poem with Heather Hiscox. He gained national recognition for a poem that was shared by Drake on his Instagram in January 2015 in which he tagged Mustafa. With the death of Muhammad Ali, Mustafa wrote a poem to "honour his hero". Ahmed performed the poem that came from that writing on Metro Morning, a CBC Radio One local morning program in Toronto. As a member of Canadian hip hop collective Halal Gang, Mustafa has made appearances in a number of music videos for his associates, including the single "Feel" by Safe released in October 2016. He went on to provide background vocals and co-writing the song "Attention" by The Weeknd on the latter's album Starboy. In the same year, Mustafa was appointed to Justin Trudeau's Youth Advisory Council, advising the Prime Minister and the Government of Canada on policies and programs that are important to them. Mustafa was placed on Now's list of Toronto musicians to watch for in 2017.
Mustafa performed at the Fast in the 6 festival at Nathan Phillips Square held on June 1, 2018. In July 2018, he paid condolences to his deceased associate, Smoke Dawg, who had been gunned down on June 31, 2018, in front of a Toronto nightclub. In March 2019, Pierpaolo Piccioli collaborated with four poets, including Mustafa, for Valentino's autumn/winter 19 collections to celebrate love whose words were emblazoned in bright lights at the show. A transcript by Mustafa from his poem "From the Perspective of Black Love" read "In your eyes, I can see an eternity" as part of the collection. He describes attending the show as an emotional experience, seeing women in creations made for their bodies. Vogue described the event as "poetry back in fashion". The dress with his poem went on to be worn by Emilia Clarke.
Mustafa the Poet produced and released Remember Me, Toronto, a short Canadian documentary film about the hip hop culture in Canada. The film was released on 17 March 2019. The film was a project created for artists in this video and everyone in the Canadian hip hop communities It discusses the loss of people due to the increasing gun violence and homicide rates in Toronto over the past decade. Mustafa aimed to discuss the systemic structure working against the lower economies of Toronto and wanted to give these artists the opportunity to "rewrite their memories and the memories of those they lost." In the film, the artists reflect on the inter-generational nature of trauma and gun violence. Artists appearing in the short include Drake, Baka Not Nice, Gilla, Pilla B, TJin, Pressa, Loco City, Smiley, Top 5, Blockboi, Twitch, Jay Whiss, Puffy L'z, Rax, Booggz, Yung Lava, Mustafa the Poet himself and archival footage from the murdered artist Smoke Dawg. Noah "40" Shebib scored the movie.
Mustafa was noted as one of the 10 Canadian songwriters who are penning the biggest hit songs right now by CBC Music in April 2019. He went on to title all the songs in Frank Dukes Parkscapes sample pack released in June 2019. The sample pack went on to be used on Taylor Swift's album Lover in which the Regent Park School will get royalties every time the album is brought, streamed or sampled.
On March 10, 2020, Mustafa released his debut single "Stay Alive". The single was dedicated to those he's lost to gun violence and was known for capturing Regent's Park resiliency. The single was produced by Frank Dukes and James Blake. The single featured numerous cameos from Toronto rappers including Halal Gang members Puffy L'z and Mo-G as well as Lil Berete. It was known for including lyrics about resilience, community, and the bleak realities of living on the fringes pair perfectly. The single prompted Complex to list Mustafa on the list of Best New Artists of March 2020.
Come Back
Mustafa Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
She may lose the softness in her hands
Maybe I can still make it come back
The oak tree, my old TV, the friend who passed
Oh, I miss when the night was made for rest
When my heart was more than glass
I miss the days I was warm
Please come back
Please come back to me
Please come back
At least in my dreams
At least in my dreams
At least in my dreams
At least in my dreams
Please come back
Please come back
Awhoolay!
Awhoolay!
Awhoolay!
Awhoolay!
Awhoolay!
In Mustafa's song "Come Back," the lyrics convey a sense of yearning for a nostalgic past that is now out of reach. The opening lines use a metaphorical image of a woman running her fingers through the singer's past, suggesting an attempt to reconnect with a time and place that has since been lost. However, the second line warns that this attempt at revisiting the past may result in losing the "softness" in her hands, which could be interpreted as a loss of innocence or purity.
The next line appears to show an attempt to bridge the gap between the past and present, with the singer expressing a desire to "make it come back." The following lines offer specific reminiscences of the past, including an oak tree, an old TV, and a friend who has passed away. These specific memories add a poignancy to the song, suggesting that the singer is trying to hold onto something that is slipping away.
The chorus repeats the phrase "Please come back" four times and ends with the lines "At least in my dreams / Awhoolay!" This repetition of the plea for things to return to the way they once were highlights the depth of the singer's longing for a lost past. The use of the word "awhoolay" is interesting as it is a term often used in African and Middle Eastern cultures to express excitement and enthusiasm. In this context, it seems to suggest a kind of desperate hopefulness, as if the singer is trying to will his desires into existence.
Line by Line Meaning
If she runs her fingers through my past
If she delves into my history
She may lose the softness in her hands
She may be hurt or affected by what she discovers
Maybe I can still make it come back
Maybe I can recapture what is lost or gone
The oak tree, my old TV, the friend who passed
These are things or people from my past that I miss dearly
Oh, I miss when the night was made for rest
I miss the simplicity and quietude of the past
When my heart was more than glass
When my emotions were not so fragile, like being made of glass
I miss the days I was warm
I miss the comfort and coziness of the past
I miss not knowing I was poor
I miss the ignorance of being poor and not realizing it
Please come back
I'm pleading for the past to return
Please come back to me
I want the past to return to me specifically
At least in my dreams
Even if it can't happen in reality, I want it to happen in my dreams
Awhoolay!
An expression of longing or yearning
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: ADAM FEENEY, JAMES LITHERLAND, MUSTAFA AHMED
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@justtina9264
If she runs her fingers through my past,
She may lose the softness in her hands...
Breathtaking and heartbreaking at the same time.
@thebrotherhood1675
you have to know that i feel most things in the modern world are impermissable for a muslim, but i have literally listened to you day and night since i became aware of your existence, may Allah bless your talent and help the world with your message of love
@manicphase7996
My favourite song from this heartfelt project. I think this song is about the fight we all have, trying to hold onto the remnants of the days where everything seemed to be perfect.
@aidanvela
I agree with every word
@f4frost
I miss not knowing I was poor.
@rkosurvivor
Thank you for the art you're putting out. Blessed to be able to experience it.
@SpeaksTheTruth69
Your music to me is like when I accidentally found The Weeknd back in his homeless days when nobody knew what he looked like. Keep making music your talent is unmatched
@conceptualizing
when I found this in july i was taken aback. this album deserves a word better than beautiful
@PelletierProducedIt
straight poetry
@MultiAlex426
Please come back ..At least in my dreams
At times it’s the dreams that haunt me. People and the memories I think I have long forgotten comes back and I sit here wondering why . Feeling happy that i could relive those good old memories but it still hurts deep inside .