In the early 2000s, Arooj Aftab participated in the revival of independent Pakistani music. Her new 2021 album Virtual Prince made her the first Pakistani singer ever to grab the Grammy Nomination for “Best New Artist” and “Best Global Music Performance”.
And Back in 2014, she released an Album Bird Under Water, which introduced a new music genre to the world – “Neo Sufi,” which she told in her interview was inspired when she listned to Abida Parveen live in New York and spent time under Abida Parveen.
Perviously, in an Interview, she talks about how she got attracted to the Sufi genre of music. She said:
“I was listening to a lot of Begum Akhtar, Bade Ghulam Ali — just a lot of Thumris and Khayal gayaki (modern genre of classical singing), in general. It felt very grounding, gave me a sense of peace. In my own music, I was building a style that reflected that peace, using minimal and simple music techniques. I wanted to create a music that was calming and simple. To me that is Sufi music.”
Sharing a story about her attraction to sufi music, she said:
“When I moved to New York, Abida Parveen came to perform that year and I had the pleasure of spending some time in her company. That was a very special and an important moment for me. She is so Sufi, and everything she says, how she moves, and my God, when she sings. It definitely tugged at my heartstrings and I knew that I wanted to delve deeper into Sufi music and poetry, Kaafi etc.”
Arooj Aftab also said that she gets inspired by Rumi, Bulleh Shah, and generally any folks or art that has a message of simplicity and kindness.
Neo-sufi is making something new that’s both musically and politically resonant for the contemporary moment. She explains Sufi as The Lightness of Being.
