The sound is the familiar street rap
so popular with American teenagers. But the message is decidedly more upbeat than the dark themes of drugs and violence that permeate most rap. Consider the words from a song called "Intentions:"

"My intentions cannot bring the reward, when they're out of line. So I pray to Allah to help me, to do everything for him only."

Known as Muslim rap, this new musical phenomenon strikes a chord especially with African-Americans who make up about a third of all Muslims in the United States. The group behind the sound is Native Deen, three black men in the Washington, D.C., area who grew up as devout Muslims and want to use their talents to inspire other young people to keep the faith amid the pressures and temptations of modern life.

All three -- Joshua Salaam, 28, Naeem Muhammad, and Abdul-Malik Ahmad, both 26 -- are married and fathers of young children. When not making music, Salaam manages the civil rights division of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, Muhammad works for an information technology company, and Ahmad designs web sites and teaches martial arts.

As Native Deen, they perform at Islamic conferences, fundraisers, weddings, and holiday gatherings - any place, they say, "where wholesome Islamic entertainment is needed." They shun clubs, bars, and discos, or any venue where Islamic prohibitions against alcohol, dancing, and many forms of music are violated. Most of their songs deal with growing up Muslim in America, remembering to make morning prayers and practice the faith without getting too caught up in material possessions and "the TV shows and the music videos." A few numbers simply exhort listeners to avoid drugs, or sex, or cheating in school with no specific mention of religion.

The group is careful to craft lyrics acceptable even to the most sensitive parental ear. "We make sure we don't put stuff in our songs that we don't want a four-year-old to repeat," says group leader Salaam. "Our music is something that parents and children can enjoy together. In fact, the parents encourage the kids to listen."

Because many Muslims believe that the teachings of the prophet Muhammad forbid the playing of most musical instruments, Native Deen uses only traditional drums in its live performances. Their tapes and CDs include a wider variety of percussion instruments, but a message at the beginning assures listeners that they will hear no wind or string instruments, which are considered especially taboo.

The three musicians formed Native Deen in 2000 after years of performing together and separately at Muslim Youth of North America (MYNA) camps and other Islamic events. They and other artists recorded a series of tapes, called MYNA-RAPS, sales of which help support Muslim youth activities. "When we started traveling and performing together regularly, we decided, Let's call ourselves something," Salaam says. "Deen means religion or way of life in Arabic, so we picked the name Native Deen to signify the religion that's naturally in you."

Combining rap with Muslim themes wasn't a conscious decision, Salaam says. "Growing up Muslim and black in America, those were our experiences. That's naturally what came off our lips."

Word of mouth has been sufficient to land the young musicians gigs at Islamic events in California, Texas, and Illinois -- even an invitation to the United Kingdom, which they had to turn down because of a previous commitment. They attracted a following in Malaysia after a Malaysian television crew visiting the United States did a feature on them.

In the past few months, they've achieved a new measure of fame thanks to a radio show, "On The Scene with Native Deen," that airs every Friday evening on a local Islamic radio station and is broadcast worldwide via the Islamic Broadcasting Network (IBN) Web site. The program, a combination of music, patter, and live discussion, has been "very successful in attracting the younger crowd," mainly high school and college students, says IBN's acting program director Sohaib Elsayed. The performers "convey personality, they're engaging," he says. "They take the day-to-day issues of growing up Muslim in America and put them in a more humorous light."

The feedback the group gets from young fans is especially gratifying," Salaam says. "People come up and tell us how a song helped them get through ninth grade or inspired them to do different things by reminding them of their faith and that God is there -- and in a hip way."

With Native Deen, Muslims in the United States also "feel like they have something of their own," he adds. "They say now we can have entertainment at our events, and it doesn't have to be in Arabic. Our music is American, it's hip, and it's something everybody can be comfortable with."