Arooj Aftab

Born in Rihad and raised in Lahore, Pakistan, Arooj Aftab was the child of music loving parents. Her viral cover of Leonard Cohen’s ‘Hallelujah’ at the age of 18 helped her to enrol to the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston as a student of Jazz. Brooklyn, New York became her next and most fruitful workplace to create her genre-bending music.

Arooj Aftab is the first Pakistani woman who ever won a Grammy. Her breakthrough album “Vulture Prince” (2021) was the reason for it. With “Vulture Prince”, Arooj made an ethereal, gorgeous album on which her voice leads listeners through a heart-wrenching yet hopeful tribute to her brother Maher who died while she was working on the album.

Gijsbert Kamer (Volkskrant) wrote the following: “with her third album “Vulture Prince”, the Pakistani-American singer Arooj Aftab manages to appeal to an audience that’s wider and more diverse than fans of eastern songcraft, jazz and folk alone ever would.”

In 2023, she collaborated with Vijay Iyer and Shahzad Ismaily on the album “Love in Exile”. It once again led to many positive reviews, responses and a nomination for a Grammy. On her new album “Night Reign” (2024), Aftab’s voice acts as a beacon in the night, surrounded by smoky jazz instrumentation and sprawling ethereal production – which showcases her constant evolution as an artist that always manages to push boundaries and ignores conventions.

Arooj Aftab was hailed by UNCUT magazine as “the coolest rock star anywhere on the planet right now.” She is travelling the world non-stop to perform in theatres, pop venues and festivals. She was a guest at NPR’s Tiny Desk, Jools Holland, Mahogany Sessions at many others.