Junaid Jamshed

Junaid Jamshed Khan (3 September 1964 – 7 December 2016) was a Pakistani singer-songwriter, television personality, fashion designer, actor, engineer, and preacher.

Jamshed first gained nationwide and international recognition as the vocalist of Vital Signs.

Although the band Vital Signs began in early 1986 in Rawalpindi by Keyboardist Rohail Hyatt and bassist Shahzad Hasan (Shahi), it was not until later that Jamshed, then a young engineering student from UET Lahore, joined them as their lead singer.

They began performing in different parts of the country after having secured a place in the underground music industry in Islamabad and Lahore.

In a live concert in Islamabad, the band got noticed and approached by the music officials of the PTV, and a record deal was awarded by Rana Kanwal, a student of the National Academy of Performing Arts.

Kanwal was given an assignment in which she wanted to make a music video and she wanted to make one of a music band.

The band moved to Islamabad and began working on the first album for Kanwal, then-known as "Chehra" (lit. Face).

According to Hyatt, "the song we created for her was Chehra. It was the first song we wrote as an entity and it was also a part of our first album."

During this time, the band caught the attention of record producer and broadcaster Shoaib Mansoor who also taught at the National Academy of Performing Arts.

Mansoor became acquainted with the band and worked on their first album, spearheading the writing of a patriotic song.

"We looked around and then we thought of Junaid, who was in a mediocre band and he was the best part about the band, he was a very good singer and with his good looks and great vocals, was the bona fide front man."

Finally, their first album, Vital Signs 1, was released nationwide and aired on PTV.

Their 1987 album, Vital Signs 1 included the hit singles "Dil Dil Pakistan", and "Tum Mil Gaye".

The commercial success of the album helped develop Pakistan's rock music industry.

Their debut hit singles, "Dil Dil Pakistan" and "Tum Mil Gaye", released on 14 August 1987, gave them national fame and prominence.

Both songs were big commercial hits and garnered high critical acclaim.

The songs in the first album were an instant Sleeper hit and quickly gained a huge nationwide success, which completely shocked the band.

In an interview given to PTV, Jamshed said it was not something that would turn him into a professional musician.

Jamshed maintained that his plans were to gain a degree in engineering to work for the Pakistan Air Force, initially he didn't want to have anything to do with music other than just treat it as a hobby.

In 1990, Jamshed gained a Bachelor of Science degree, graduating in mechanical engineering.

After graduating with a degree in engineering from the University of Engineering and Technology in Lahore, Jamshed briefly worked as a civilian contractor and engineer for the Pakistan Air Force before focusing on a musical career.

In 1990, Jamshed graduated with an engineering degree, and worked in the air force as a civil contractor for a short time before resigning from the air force.

However, Rohail and Shahzad soon managed to convince him otherwise.

In 1994, he released his debut solo album, Junaid of Vital Signs followed by Us Rah Par in 1999 and Dil Ki Baat in 2002.

After a string of chart-topping songs and albums, the band split in 1998 and Jamshed began a solo career, achieving increasing commercial success.

Their first album contained many hit songs and the band was approached by several international companies to write songs and advertise their products to the Pakistani public.

Their success lifted the underground rock music industry to national level, and they are widely credited for boosting the Pakistani music industry.

In 2004, Jamshed left both his engineering and music careers and, afterwards, focused on his religious activities for Islam and reciting nasheeds on TV and releasing them on CDs.

Jamshed also owned a clothing boutique with the name "J."

(read as "Jay Dot"), which has several outlets throughout Pakistan and some abroad.

In November 2014, Jamshed was accused of blasphemy and in December 2014, in a video message, he apologized for offending people and making mistakes.

Junaid Jamshed and his wife died on 7 December 2016 when PIA Flight 661 crashed in Havelian.

The flight was en route to Islamabad from Chitral.

He was in Chitral for a Tablighi Jamaat mission and was returning to Islamabad.

Junaid Jamshed was born in a khattak Pathan family in Karachi to Jamshed Akbar Khan (d. 2016), a group captain in the Pakistan Air Force from Nowshera, and Nafeesa Akbar Khan, the granddaughter of the nawab of Loharu State.

His maternal uncle Sahibzada Jahangir, nicknamed "Chico", is a businessman based in London who has been one of the founding members of Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, and whose son Sherry Jahangir was an actor better known for his role as M.A. Jinnah in PTV classic drama Jinnah Se Quaid, while another son, Kafeel Jahangir, was an England-based domestic cricketer who has played as an all-rounder for Hertfordshire.

Other relatives include politician Fauzia Kasuri, who was his aunt, and actor Alyy Khan, his cousin.

After graduating from an international boarding high school in Yanbu' al Bahr in Saudi Arabia, Jamshed wanted to join the Pakistan Air Force to become a fighter pilot.

However his weak eyesight prevented this.

He then entered the University of Engineering and Technology in Lahore, where he took mathematics and physics before declaring his major in mechanical engineering.