Arooj Aftab: The first Pakistani artist to perform at the Grammys

Singer will perform her Grammy-nominated track Udhero Na, opposite Anoushka Shankar

Pakistani Grammy Award winner Arooj Aftab is set to make her return to the Grammys this year, not only as a nominee but also as a performer. The Mohabbat singer took to her Instagram to announce on Friday that she will be performing at the Grammy Awards premiere ceremony.

She shared a post featuring details of her performance. The caption read, "I simply cannot wait to play my Grammy-nominated jam Udhero Na featuring Anoushka Shankar with her live for you at the Grammys." 

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Arooj Aftab (@aroojaftab)

She asked her followers to tune into the live performance, set to be held on February 5 at 12:30pm Pakistan time. The event will be available for streaming on the Recording Academy's website and its official YouTube channel.

Aftab is nominated, once again, in the 'Best Global Music Performance' category for her single Udhero Na at the Grammy Awards. Aftab’s Udhero Na will compete for the Best Global Music Performance Award alongside Matt B and Eddy Kenzo’s Gimme Love, Burna Boy’s Last last, Rocky Dawuni, Blvk H3ro’s Neva Bow Down and Wouter Kellerman, Zakes Bantwini, Nomcebo Zikode’s Bayethe.

The singer, who made history last year by becoming the first Pakistani to win a Grammy, managed to secure the nomination in November. While expressing her excitement about Udhero Na bagging a nod, she had said, “Oh my God! Udhero Na has been nominated for a Grammy. Congratulations to me and to Anoushka Shankar, Maeve Gilchrist and Nadje Noordhuis.”

Recalling how four “badass women” came together to play the song that she wrote when she was merely 15, she added, “So, I’m very emotional and very glad and I’m really, really, just, I don’t even know. I’m in this hall of a ship, we’re about to perform in about 20 minutes or so. I don’t know how I’m going to do that but this is great. So, thank you.”

The annual event, in which the majority of this year's 91 Grammy Awards category winners will be awarded, will be co-hosted by current Grammy nominee Randy Rainbow. The opening act will be a performance by Blind Boys of Alabama, La Marisoul from La Santa Cecilia, and other surprise performers. Other artists set to perform include current nominees Madison Cunningham, Samara Joy, Anoushka Shankar, and Carlos Vives.

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