Astrology chart of Cat Stevens (Yousouf Islam)

Yousouf Islam (Cat Stevens) is an artist. The talent is obvious in his chart:

1. Neptune is conjunct Ascendant for prominent sensitivity
2. Cancer is the sign of the Midheaven and Cancer is one of the signs in the artistic pattern
3. Neptune is square Midheaven, relating the career to the 'amorphous' (like arts, movies, religion)
4. The Sun is 'calling' in the tenth house for drawing public attention at any kind of level
5. Venus is conjunct Uranus for sense of rhythm
6. Neptune is semi square ASC/MC for the crucial importance of arts (and spirituality)

Mercury is conjunct Midheaven for the crucial importance of communications (the voice) for the career. Also notice that Venus is 112.5 d from Jupiter/Pluto, for succesful entertainment.

What more information does an astrologer need? The Mercury-Neptune square on the angles refers to 'telling tales'. He is a poet. Mercury is in Cancer and Neptune is in Libra. The dispositors of Cancer and Libra are Moon and Venus. The square between Mercury and Neptune can be read as telling tales in an artistic way, because Cancer and Libra (as Moon and Venus) are the combination of sense of arts, style and beauty.

CONVERSION: Uranus in the 9th house
Cat Stevens was born with the name Steven Demetre Georgiou (a Greek Cypriot name). In the 70'ies Cat Stevens had a quest for spiritual truth, including the study of astrology. For this: see Moon in Aquarius in the 3rd degree of Aquarius, close to Algiedi, biquintile Uranus and the Midheaven semi square Jupiter/Uranus.
In the end of this quest he converted to Islam. Since then there were a lot of controversies (see Wikipedia). Note the placement of Uranus (planet of reverse, conversion and controversy) in the ninth house (the house of conviction). Uranus is the first outer planet rising before his Sun. This reflects rebellion, controversy and being 'different' from the rest. Uranus is semi sextile Sun and 15d from Midheaven. The fact that he drew the attention of the public (Sun and Midheaven) attributed to the upheavel, of course.

URANUS ORIENTAL
Noel Tyl names the first outer planet (or the Moon) rising 'oriental'. The oriental Uranus is frequent in the charts of those who become very old. See Astromarkt.net, the article about getting old.

CHANGE OF (ARTIST) NAME
With Neptune on the Ascendant the use of an artist name doesn't come as a surprise. Neptune is the symbol of 'hidden things' and of fantasy, too. The presentation or name (Ascendant) goes together with (conjunction) fantasy (Neptune)...The name of his wife is not known. Maybe that can also be contributed to Neptune (keeping things a secret, discretion).

When he became a muslim, he altered his artist name in Yousouf Islam. That was with the progressed Ascendant (symbol of presentations and nicknames or names) changed sign. When the Sun, the Ascendant or the Midheaven change sign in progression, vital changes in life are to be expected, like when a new 'Morning has broken'.

NEPTUNE
Neptune is an important planet for artist and in religion or in any other field that requires empathy, belief, fantasy or vision. Interested in the effect of Neptune? Click and open this file from Astromark.net.