 This led him to form the group Zahar, meaning ‘luck’, whose music fused elements of rock and jazz with African styles.With the ensemble, Hakmoun recorded his first album featuring electric instruments and continued to perform around New York City.One such instance occurred during a performance at the Knitting Factory, whose audience members included Miles Davis, and Daniel Lanois, who proceeded to introduce Hakmoun to an important future collaborator, pop musician Peter Gabriel.