Baha’i Blogcast with Rainn Wilson – Episode 27: Shadi Toloui-Wallace

Hello and welcome to the Baha’i Blogcast with me your host, Rainn Wilson.

In this series of podcasts I interview members of the Baha’i Faith and friends from all over the world about their hearts, and minds, and souls, their spiritual journeys, what they’re interested in, and what makes them tick.

In this episode I’m joined by my dear friend, Shadi Toloui-Wallace, a singer and songwriter who also hosts her own podcast called ‘Cloud 9’. We talk about striving to be coherent in our everyday lives while trying to be a professional artist, and the creation of Baha’i-inspired music versus secular music. She tells me about the music she’s been working on, the exciting things happening with the youth in her neighborhood, the importance of service, and she shares a little about her family and upbringing, plus some exciting news in her personal life. We talk about Baha’i Blog’s Studio Sessions and the need for Baha’i-inspired grassroots music, and Shadi sings a beautiful song for us at the end of the podcast, so press ‘play’ and tune in to this fun conversation!

To find out more about Shadi Toloui-Wallace, and some of the things we covered in this episode, check out the following links:

* Find out more about Shadi Toloui-Wallace, her albums, videos and tour dates, by going to: www.shaditolouiwallace.com

* Shadi’s podcast called ‘Cloud 9’on BahaiTeachings.org can be found here: Cloud 9

* Check out Shadi’s band called ‘Tiny Havoc’ here: www.tinyhavoc.com

* You can read the following interviews with Shadi Toloui-Wallace here on Baha’i Blog:
– Verdant Isle: An Interview with Shadi Toloui-Wallace
– Shadi Toloui-Wallace’s ‘Daughters of the Kingdom’

* You can read this article by Shadi Toloui-Wallace here on Baha’i Blog: Making “Non-Secular” Music in a “Secular” World

* Shadi talks about her mother, Shidan Toloui-Wallace, whom we’ve also interviewed here on Baha’i Blog: Phoenix of Love: An Interview with Shidan Toloui-Wallace

* Shadi talks about her family serving at the Baha’i World Centre, which you can learn more about here.

* Shadi mentions how she worked for the Sarah McLachlan School of Music, and that one of her favourite bands is Neutral Milk Hotel.

* Shadi calls herself a ‘Third Culture Kid’, a term coined by the book: Third Culture Kids: Growing up among worlds

* Shadi mentions Rainn’s not-for-profit in Haiti called LIDÈ: www.lidehaiti.org

* Shadi and Rainn talk about working with youth and the Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Program (JYSEP), which you can learn about from this short animation: What is the Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Program?

* Rainn shares a quote from the Writings of Baha’u’llah: “Let deeds not words be your adorning”.

* Rainn shares a quote about music from Abdu’l-Baha: “…although sounds are but vibrations in the air which affect the ear’s auditory nerve, and these vibrations are but chance phenomena carried along through the air, even so, see how they move the heart. A wondrous melody is wings for the spirit, and maketh the soul to tremble for joy.”

* Rainn shares quote about music from Shoghi Effendi: “It is the music which assists us to affect the human spirit; it is an important means which helps us to communicate with the soul.”

* Rainn and Shadi talk about the importance of grassroots music and Baha’i Blog’s Studio Sessions series, which you can check out here: Baha’i Blog Studio Sessions

* You can view some of the Baha’i Blog Studio Sessions produced by Shadi in Vancouver, Canada below:
– “Blessed Is the Spot” by Friends in Vancouver
– “Beloved Friends” by Friends in Vancouver
– “Find Me” by Sahar & Hoda
– “I Adjure Thee” by Shadi, Hoda & Leif
– “O That I Could Travel” by Sarah & Nava

* At the end of the podcast, Shadi sings the song ‘Kindle’ from her album ‘Daughters of the Kingdom‘, based on the following prayer by Baha’u’llah:

“I know not, O my God, what the Fire is which Thou didst kindle in Thy land. Earth can never cloud its splendor, nor water quench its flame. All the peoples of the world are powerless to resist its force. Great is the blessedness of him that hath drawn nigh unto it, and heard its roaring.
Some, O my God, Thou didst, through Thy strengthening grace, enable to approach it, while others Thou didst keep back by reason of what their hands have wrought in Thy days. Whoso hath hasted towards it and attained unto it hath, in his eagerness to gaze on Thy beauty, yielded his 53 life in Thy path, and ascended unto Thee, wholly detached from aught else except Thyself.
I beseech Thee, O my Lord, by this Fire which blazeth and rageth in the world of creation, to rend asunder the veils that have hindered me from appearing before the throne of Thy majesty, and from standing at the door of Thy gate. Do Thou ordain for me, O my Lord, every good thing Thou didst send down in Thy Book, and suffer me not to be far removed from the shelter of Thy mercy.
Powerful art Thou to do what pleaseth Thee. Thou art, verily, the All-Powerful, the Most Generous. “

Be sure to ‘subscribe’ to the Baha’i Blogcast for more weekly episodes on iTunes, Google Play, Spotify and Soundcloud.

Thanks for listening!

-Rainn Wilson

Posted by

Naysan Naraqi

Naysan is passionate about using the arts and media to explore the teachings of the Baha’i Faith. Back in 2011, Naysan started up the Baha’i Blog project, channeling his experiences in both media and technology companies to help create a hub for Baha’i-inspired content online.