Kristiane Backer: From MTV to Mecca

As one of the first ever presenters of MTV Europe, Kristiane Backer had pretty much everything a young girl from Germany might want. Rubbing shoulders with the likes of Mick Jagger, Bono, Bob Geldof and Cat Stevens, her job brought her a cult following and took her to the very heart of the international music scene. However, at the height of her career, a chance encounter with cricketer Imran Khan took her to Pakistan and subsequently led her to convert to Islam. With her new book out today, From MTV to Mecca – How Islam Inspired My Life, she tells us more about her journey. 

Islam is a universal religion, it is not bound to Eastern culture. I am very comfortable in my identity as a European Muslim. 

There are no conflicts at all, in fact real European values such as human rights, environmental consciousness, honesty, professionalism, religious freedom etc are also Islamic values. I am writing about this in my book From MTV to Mecca because it is a subject close to my heart. Of course we need good will and open minds and hearts on both sides to transcend stereotypes, get to know one another and work together for the common good. [Kristiane Backer: From MTV to Mecca - Sugar Street Review].