Riz Ahmed congratulates Arooj Aftab for her first Grammy

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Web Desk
Riz Ahmed congratulates Arooj Aftab for her first Grammy
Riz Ahmed congratulates Arooj Aftab for her first Grammy

Riz Ahmed has congratulated Brooklyn-based Pakistani vocalist Arooj Aftab for scoring her first Grammy on Sunday.

Taking to Instagram stories, Oscar winner Riz Ahmed shared a photo of Arooj from the Grammys and said, “Congrats on your first grammy!!! Yeaaassss!!! followed by a heart emoji.

Riz Ahmed congratulates Arooj Aftab for her first Grammy

Arooj Aftab won the prestigious trophy for her song "Mohabbat" in the Best Global Performance category.

The 37-year-old -- who has lived in New York for some 15 years -- has been steadily gaining global attention for her work that fuses ancient Sufi traditions with inflections of folk, jazz and minimalism.

"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."

"I´ve been very nervous all day. And we´re off to a good start."

Born to Pakistani parents in Saudi Arabia, Aftab spent her teenage years in Lahore before relocating to Boston´s prestigious Berklee School of Music to study musical 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 favorites list.