How does one respond to someone who believes that the verses prohibiting music are interpretations by exegetes, doubts the authenticity of the hadiths, and questions the harm of music based on the principle that "Islam is a religion of intellect and logic"?

Your friend objected to the prohibition of singing, claiming it is merely an interpretation by exegetes, and he also expressed doubt about the authenticity of the hadith prohibiting musical instruments. Furthermore, he believes that singing does not cause harm.

The response to this is: The verse (And of mankind is he who purchases idle talk to mislead [others] from the way of Allah without knowledge and takes it in ridicule. Those will have a humiliating punishment) [Luqman/6] was used by the majority of exegetes and Companions as evidence for the prohibition of singing, which confirms their deep understanding of the Quran. As for the doubt about the authenticity of the hadith, it is unfounded, because the hadiths prohibiting musical instruments are authentic and widely transmitted (mutawatir). The four schools of thought have unanimously agreed on the prohibition of musical instruments. It is dangerous for a believer to reject religious texts and subject them to his own intellect. Finally, singing distracts from the remembrance of Allah, cultivates hypocrisy in the heart, and encourages immorality; it is the incantation of zina (unlawful sexual intercourse), and it has significant harms for both the individual and society, especially in this era.