Singer Arooj Aftab made history on Sunday after she became the first Pakistani female to be nominated for and win a Grammy award. The singer won in the category of Best Global Performance for her song Mohabbat. Arooj took to Instagram to mark the momentous occasion, posting pictures will fellow winners and artists including Jon Batiste, who took home the prize for Album of the Year, as well as global K-pop sensation BTS.
She wrote about her win, joyful over the diversity of music honoured at the Grammys this year, “Oh my gosh. I am so proud of this moment personally, but also for the industry itself. Tonight we celebrated music as a collective, unapologetically making what we want to make, in all its genre-less, limitless crossover glory. Thank you AND congratulations.”
For the ceremony, Arooj opted for a black and silver glitzy fringed blouse and tailored black high-waisted pants, pairing them with a long purple overcoat. The singer accessorised with a golden statement floral brooch, wearing her hair in a messy updo.
“I think I’m going to faint,” an ecstatic Arooj laughs onstage as she accepts her trophy. “Wow, thank you so much. I feel like this category in and of itself has been so insane,” she said in her acceptance speech.
“Burna Boy, Wizkid, Femi Kuti, Angélique Kidjo—should this be called Best World Music Performance? I feel like it should be called ‘yacht party category.’ But, anyway, thank you so much to everyone who helped me make this record, all my incredible collaborators, for following me and making this music I made about everything that broke me and put me back together. Thank you for listening to it and making it yours,” concluded Arooj.
Arooj was also nominated in the category of Best New Artist, with the award going to pop star Olivia Rodrigo.
"I am beyond thrilled," the artist told journalists backstage at the pre-gala ceremony, at which the vast majority of awards are handed out. "It feels great."
Born to Pakistani parents in Saudi Arabia, Arooj spent her teenage years in Lahore before relocating to Boston's prestigious Berklee School of Music to study music production and engineering.
She released her third studio album Vulture Prince to critical acclaim, and gained even more attention after former US President Barack Obama included the track Mohabbat on his 2021 summer favourites list.
Arooj has performed at a number of major New York venues including Lincoln Center and the Museum of Modern Art, also opening for Mitski at The Brooklyn Steel in 2018.
Speaking to AFP in the days leading up to the Grammys, she praised her fellow artists nominated for Best New Artist, a crop that includes favourite Olivia Rodrigo along with rappers Saweetie and The Kid Laroi.
"We're all so cool -- the group itself is kind of like a win," she said.
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