Posted at 8:00 a.m.
“I’m in London,” says Arooj Aftab. I have a show tomorrow at Glastonbury. I’m excited. »
There is what! For an artist, it is a feat of arms to take part in the mythical outdoor music festival of Glastonbury. In fact, Arooj Aftab has multiplied success since the release of his third album, Prince Vulturein April 2021. She was the first Pakistani artist to win an award, which is the best performance in world music for her magnificent song Mohabbat. She was also in the running in the category of best new artist alongside Arlo Parks, Olivia Rodrigo, Baby Keem or even FINNEAS.
On the occasion of the end of Ramadan, Arooj Aftab was also invited to the White House to recite in front of President Joe Biden The Promisea text by the great Persian poet of the 13the Rumi century.
Isn’t that quite an achievement? “We all want to have the recognition we believe we deserve,” says Arooj Aftab, who has a tongue-in-cheek sense of humor. We think the world is going to let us down, but sometimes things work out! », Launches the 37-year-old artist in his very beautiful voice.
A nomadic journey
Arooj Aftab, daughter of Pakistani diplomats, was born in Saudi Arabia, then spent her teenage years in Lahore. “I have always been interested in music and surrounded by music, and I learned to play the guitar on my own”, says the one who later felt the need to go to study in Boston at the prestigious Berklee College. of Music.
I really wanted to learn jazz theories and acquire the tools that would allow me to record the music I wanted to make.
Arooj Aftab
Several articles about Arooj Aftab emphasize that she reappropriates the old Persian poetic current ghazal, but she wants to set the record straight. “I never studied Pakistani classical music. […] I understand that people associate me with the ghazal because of where I come from, but my music is personal and has nothing to do with it. »
A poignant voice
If his third opus, Vulture Prince, garnered rave reviews and rose to the year-end charts in 2021, it’s because everything around us stops when Arooj Aftab sings in Urdu – his mother tongue – on the strings of a harp, a violin or a classical guitar. We are somewhere between folk and minimalist jazz, and even not far from reggae on the only song in English, last night.
Written while she was grieving for her brother, Vulture Prince is for its author a kind of androgynous avatar and “a mixture of several symbols”.
Arooj Aftab wanted to expose the fact that what we lose in life is inscribed in our memory and follows us…
There is the idea of death and rebirth. It’s dark, but it’s the continuation of life.
Arooj Aftab
Arooj Aftab sings the piece Diya Hai in duet with Brazilian singer and virtuoso guitarist Badi Assad. ” It’s a legend. I was a fan of hers for a long time and collaborating with her was a dream come true. […] My God she plays so beautifully. There is a depth and such a high caliber in his playing… He is one of the best guitarists in the world. She really elevates the song. »
As for the sublime song Mohabbat, its title refers to the most universal – and inexhaustible – theme in pop music of love. “It’s about loving someone you can’t find yourself with. You know, tea usual ! “says Arooj Aftab.
By being invited to festivals such as Coachella and Glastonbury, Arooj Aftab participates in opening the borders of pop in languages other than the one most spoken in the world.
“Language is not so important anymore, because the language of music is so strong”, she says so well.
Arooj Aftab will perform at Club Soda on July 5 and at the Festival d’été de Québec on July 7.