“My greatest achievement is Feedback” - Foad Nasser Babu

Photo: Collected

Foad Nasser Babu has been the leader and keyboardist of Feedback for 40 years, a crowning achievement in the band music arena of the country. As a composer, he has also created countless memorable jingles, as well as kick-started many young musicians’ careers with his tunes. On the occasion of his birthday yesterday, the humble legend talked to The Daily Star about his musical journey, plans, and more.

We wish you many happy returns of the day. What are your plans for today?

I don’t have many plans, I hit the studio for some work earlier in the morning. Some of my friends are coming over in the evening. Honestly, I treat it like any other day, but I appreciate the wishes and good thoughts that I receive.

Feedback celebrated its 40^th birthday recently, which is a huge achievement. Where do you see yourself after this?

It was indeed a very emotional day. However, we don’t intend to stop here, and we will keep doing what we have done for the past 40 years: make music. Yes, the music industry has changed, there are far less tangible audio albums out here, and more singles are being released nowadays. However, we will keep making music amidst the changes.

How do you see the newer artistes in the music industry today?

Of course, there are many talented musicians in the industry, and they have an edge over us, as they have everything at the touch of a button. When we started out, there were very few materials and references to follow. We had to figure things out as we went, although that was an exciting journey on its own. Music recording software, tutorials, videos of live performances, theories are all very easy to find now, but we have to be careful so as to keep our originality intact.

What is your biggest achievement in your illustrious musical career?

Undoubtedly, my greatest achievement is my band, Feedback. I have given it my all over the years. I am also very lucky to have been under the guidance of the great Alauddin Ali, who was a treasure of knowledge for me. I feel grateful to have started music when the likes of Azam Khanm Samar Das and Satya Saha were playing, I learned a lot from them as well.