Raffan Imam, a Bangladeshi musician popularly known as Popeye, named his band after his stage name, Popeye Bangladesh. They have become yet another name of craze amongst the country's youth. Being a permanent resident of The United States, Popeye can hardly visit Bangladesh for concerts. But this time he arrived in Bangladesh for his first solo concert titled "Popeye: A Night to Remember", held at the Liberation War Museum of Agargaon in Dhaka on May 24 (Friday).

Organised by Eventholic, the gates to the show's venue were opened at 4pm. The concert then began at 5pm and ran until 8:30pm. Before the lionized singer took the stage, guest artistes Lisan and The Blindmen immersed the crowd with their outstanding performances. They commenced with their song "Shanti Amar", followed by the heavy metal "Heshe Jai" which mesmerised the audience. Addressing the '90s kids among the crowd, the lead vocalist of the band Lisan sang "Nikosh Kalo Ei Adhare" which made the crowd nostalgic. Another song of theirs, "Kichu Rong", was also performed. Lisan and The Blindmen left the stage after performing their last song "Akta Porichito Ghran" which describes the lazy moments during the mornings of a couple on a tour. 

Later, the second guest artistes, the band Frequency 2.0 took to the floor and expressed their excitement about sharing the stage with the band Popeye Bangladesh. To start their performance, the lead vocalist Anonto sang one of their unreleased track "Shob Bilin". This band refers to themselves as 'the experimental brothers' duo From Bangladesh.' Anonto and Promito, along with other band members, attempt to win the hearts of people by experimenting with and exploring different tunes. Receiving positive responses from the enthusiastic crowd yesterday, they dared to perform another unreleased track, "Ei Shohor". Frequency 2.0 wrapped up their performance on stage by singing one of their most popular tracks, "Bujhlina Tui".

After the departure of Frequency 2.0, the excitement of the houseful crowd reached another level when the most awaited Popeye took the stage. Being amazed by the exhilaration of the crowd, Raffan started his performance by singing the first song of his first solo album "Notun Shurjo". He performed some of his hits including "Ei Tumi Ke", "Bhoboghure", "Bhalobasha Baki", "Bishonno Shundor" and more on audience demand. 

Raffan Imam expressed his gratitude for having such an organised audience and proudly admitted, "The musical night has been an eye-opening show that wouldn't have been possible without the presence of the audience. Each of my songs tonight bears a story behind it." He shared the story of his early life when he went through a severe mental crisis. He suffered from depression when he couldn't find a job after graduation. On top of that, his then-girlfriend got married. He went on to portray every stage of his life through his songs. 

Popeye saved his most popular song, "Neshar Bojha", to sing at the end of the show and admitted that this is the song that made Popeye Bangladesh who they are today. The crowd went crazy when he initiated the song, and eventually, the audience participated enthusiastically with the artiste.

In a final gesture of appreciation, Raffan Imam called the organisers and volunteers on stage to take a selfie together and thanked them for making "Popeye: A Night to Remember" a success in such a short time.

Photo: Courtesy

During the Q&A session with the audience, this singer shared that composition is a reflection of personal sentiment. He tends to catch the tune first to then write the lyrics. "A little twist of words can change the appeal of a sentence, making it more relatable and meaningful," said Raffan Imam admitting that he has always tried to avoid love songs, but "Bhalobasha Baki" was a big hit and loved by many.

The band Popeye Bangladesh consists of an outstanding team: Raffan Imam is the vocalist, Robi is the drummer, Shafat and Talat as the guitarists, Promito is the keyboard player, and Rafi is the manager. Speaking about how they work harmoniously, Raffan mentioned that with the advancement of technology, he records his parts abroad and collaborates with the other members online. Since 2010, he has released a new song every year and wishes to maintain this passion until the end.

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A day before the concert, Raffan Imam, the soul of Popeye Bangladesh, announced that he would give five free passes in the general category to his followers. Kuheli Kantar, Apurbo Karmoker, Muntasha Nur, Asif Amin Rauf, and Tanmoy Jahan are the five lucky winners who earned free passes to the show by following certain terms and conditions.