Arooj Aftab PP (Urdu: 毓乇賵噩 丌賮鬲丕亘; born March 11, 1985) is a Pakistani-American singer, composer, and producer. She has worked in various musical styles and idioms, including jazz and minimalism.
Aftab was nominated for the Best New Artist award and won the Best Global Music Performance award for her song "Mohabbat" at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards in April 2022. She became the first-ever Pakistani artist to win a Grammy Award.
On the 75th diamond jubilee anniversary of Pakistan, President Arif Alvi awarded Aftab the Pride of Performance Award, Pakistan's most prestigious award for excellence in the field of art and music.
Aftab was born to Pakistani parents expatriated in Saudi Arabia. When she was about 10 years old, they returned to their native Lahore, Pakistan. She taught herself the guitar and gradually acquired her singing style while listening to Billie Holiday, Hariprasad Chaurasia, Mariah Carey, and Begum Akhtar. At that time, Aftab lived in a country where access to Western online platforms was difficult, and the infrastructure for independent music was lacking. In this context, however, she promoted her music in Pakistan, being one of the first musicians to use the Internet in the early 2000s; her renditions of "Mera Pyaar" and "Hallelujah" went viral and launched the Pakistani indie scene.
Arooj Aftab PP (Urdu: 毓乇賵噩 丌賮鬲丕亘; born March 11, 1985) is a Pakistani-American singer, composer, and producer. She has worked in various musical styles and idioms, including jazz and minimalism.
Aftab was nominated for the Best New Artist award and won the Best Global Music Performance award for her song "Mohabbat" at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards in April 2022. She became the first-ever Pakistani artist to win a Grammy Award.
On the 75th diamond jubilee anniversary of Pakistan, President Arif Alvi awarded Aftab the Pride of Performance Award, Pakistan's most prestigious award for excellence in the field of art and music.
Aftab was born to Pakistani parents expatriated in Saudi Arabia. When she was about 10 years old, they returned to their native Lahore, Pakistan. She taught herself the guitar and gradually acquired her singing style while listening to Billie Holiday, Hariprasad Chaurasia, Mariah Carey, and Begum Akhtar. At that time, Aftab lived in a country where access to Western online platforms was difficult, and the infrastructure for independent music was lacking. In this context, however, she promoted her music in Pakistan, being one of the first musicians to use the Internet in the early 2000s; her renditions of "Mera Pyaar" and "Hallelujah" went viral and launched the Pakistani indie scene.