Arooj Aftab
Blythe Thomas / Courtest of the artist
When World Cafe first spoke to Arooj Aftab, it was just over a week since she had won the Grammy for Best Global Performance for her beautiful, moving song “Mohabbat.” That victory was a lot of “firsts.” It was a new category, so she was the first artist to ever win it. It was her first Grammy. And she was the first Pakistani woman not only to win a Grammy — but to even be nominated for one! Her life, as you might imagine, was in a bit of a whirlwind. But she was able to take a moment between packing and catching flights to talk about the album that winning song came from — called Vulture Prince — and about her life. When Arooj was about 10 years old, her family moved to Lahore, Pakistan, from Saudi Arabia. You’ll hear how music brought her to America on this episode of the show — and also, of course, you’ll hear that Grammy-winning performance.
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