New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Arooj Aftab shares "Whiskey," the second single from her forthcoming album, Night Reign, out May 31, 2024 on
Verve Records. Night Reign is the follow up to Aftab's critically acclaimed label debut Vulture Prince. To commemorate the single release, today Aftab is the featured artist on Apple Music's New
Music Daily. Last month, "Raat Ki Rani," the album's debut single and music video directed by actress
Tessa Thompson, garnered praise from NPR, Rolling Stone, The New York Times, and many more. The track was strongly positioned across digital platforms on flagship playlists such as Spotify's New
Music Friday and Apple Music's New
Music Daily, with inclusions spanning indie, folk, jazz, global and experimental, furthering Night Reign's mission to break the boundaries of genre.
Atmospheric and playful, "Whiskey" transports listeners to a melancholic display of intoxicated infatuation as Aftab sings in English: "Your head gets heavy and rests on my shoulder 'cause you drink too much whiskey when you're with me."
The track's freeform structure, jazz elements, and touches of '90s R&B showcase the range of Aftab's musical adventurousness. Collaborators on "Whiskey" include Kaki King and Gyan Riley on guitars, Maeve Gilchrist on harp,
Linda May Han Oh on bass and Jamey Haddad on percussion. While the band keeps up, TimaLikesMusic contributes retro Juno keyboard runs and a dreamy electric piano solo.
"'Whiskey' is about being out at night with someone you like, but the evening gets a little carried away," Aftab explains. "My friend has had too much, now I am tired, and I need to figure out how to get us both home. But overall somehow the night and the interaction is still pretty cute."
Aftab makes the night the focus of her latest nine-song collection. Entirely in her own voice and through her own story, she delves into the multifaceted, bold and fascinating realm that comes to life after dark. Some nights are for falling in love, some are for solitude and introspection, some are to be annoyed at a forced social gathering-and so go the stories of Night Reign.
The album features new friends like Cautious Clay shredding on flute, Moor Mother echoing Aftab's sentiment of how cruel the world is, and Chocolate Genius aka
Marc Anthony Thompson lending his tender sensibilities to a song about being grounded. Longtime collaborators Petros Klampanis and Maeve Gilchrist also continue their musical partnership as core members of Arooj's musical family. The resulting new music again showcases Aftab's striking ability to build a thing of beauty from distinct elements. Night Reign is a clear departure from tradition or the reinvention of ancestral music. It's a reflection of Aftab's 15 years living in New York City and her unapologetic commitment to stay true to herself. With open-heartedness, candor and wit, Aftab lets us get even closer to her.
In their review of her 2021 breakthrough, Vulture Prince, Pitchfork took special note of "Arooj's powerful voice, suffused in a sorrow so deep that it seeps into your bones." The album spurred a cultural shift and helped move music rooted in South Asian tradition into the larger contemporary modern music conversation. Vulture
Prince cast a wide net of admirers; everyone from
Elvis Costello to President Obama found a part of themselves in Vulture Prince. It would go on to earn two Grammy® nominations for Best New Artist and Best Global
Music Performance with a win for the latter. The following year, "Udhero Na," a collaboration with Anoushka Shankar from Vulture
Prince Deluxe, netted Aftab a second consecutive Best Global
Music Performance nod. In the three-years since her major label debut, Aftab has continued to wow fans and critics globally. Spotify selected her as one of their Equal Ambassadors. She's played festivals including Coachella and Glastonbury. Last year, she teamed up with Vijay Iyer and Shahzad Ismaily for
Love In Exile, which netted two Grammy® noms for Best Alternative Jazz Album and Best Global
Music Performance and won the Edison Jazz 2023 award in the Global category.
To support Night Reign, Aftab will embark on a string of live performances across North
America and Europe. She'll play dates here in the US alongside Khruangbin, and in
Europe she'll hit festival stops at Glastonbury, Lowlands, and Pitchfork London among many others.
Arooj Aftab Live:
North America:
May 30 - Brooklyn, NY - Baby's All Right
May 31 - New York, NY - Rough Trade in-store signing + performance SOLD OUT
July 22, 2024 Chicago, IL -
Millennium Park Summer Series
July 23, 2024 Ridgefield, CT - Ridgefield Playhouse
July 24, 2024 New York, NY - Central Park Summerstage
July 25, 2024 Saugerties, NY - Opus 40
Sept 19, 2024 Boston, MA - Paradise
Sept 23, 2024 Washington, DC - The Anthem (w-Khruangbin)
Sept 24, 2024 Washington, DC - The Anthem (w-Khruangbin)
Oct 2, 2024 St. Louis, MO - The Factory (w-Khruangbin)
Oct 3, 2024 St. Louis, MO - The Factory (w-Khruangbin)
Oct 9, 2024 New Orleans, LA - Saenger Theatre (w-Khruangbin)
Oct 10, 2024 New Orleans, LA - Saenger Theatre (w-Khruangbin)
Jan 20, 2025 Vancouver, BC - Hollywood Theatre
Jan 21, 2025 Seattle, WA - Washington Hall
Jan 22, 2025 Portland, OR -
Aladdin Theatre
Jan 24, 2025 San Francisco, CA - August Hall
Jan 25, 2025 Stanford, CA - Bing Concert Hall at Stanford Live
Jan 26, 2025 Los Angeles, LA - Fonda Theatre
UK/EU
June 28, 2024 Antwerp, BE - Live is Live Festival
June 28-30 Glastonbury, UK - Glastonbury Festival
July 13, 2024 Rotterdam, NL - North Sea Jazz Festival
Aug 9, 2024 Helsinki, FI - Flow Festival
Aug 13, 2024 Uppsala, SE - Uppsala Konsert & Kongress
Aug 15, 2024 Oslo, NO - Oslo Jazz Festival
Aug 17, 2024 Biddinghuizen, NL - Lowlands Festival
Aug 19, 2024 Zurich, CH - Zürcher Theater Spektakel 2024
Oct 12, 2024 Manchester, UK - Aviva Studios home of Factory International
Oct 19, 2024 Berlin, DE - Heimathafen
Oct 20, 2024 Hamburg, DE - Mojo Club
Oct 21, 2024 Heidelberg, DE - Enjoy Jazz Festival
Oct 22, 2024 Cologne, DE - Kulturkirche
Oct 23, 2024 Lille, FR - Aeronef
Oct 25, 2024 Paris, FR - Trianon
Oct 26, 2024 Nantes, FR - Le Lieu Unique
Oct 28, 2024 Lisbon, PT - Teatro Tivoli BBVA
Oct 29, 2024 Barcelona, ES - Sala Apolo
Oct 30, 2024 Madrid, ES - Festival de Jazz de Madrid
Nov 1, 2024 Bristol, UK - Beacon Theatre
Nov 2, 2024 Glasgow, UK - QMU
Nov 3, 2024 Leeds, UK - Project House
Nov 6, 2024 Brighton, UK - Mutations Festival
Nov 7, 2024 London, UK - Pitchfork Festival @ Roundhouse
Nov 8, 2024 Den Bosch, NL - November
Music Festival
Nov 12, 2024 Copenhagen, DK - Vega
More dates can be found at Aroojaftab.com - more to be announced!
Night Reign will be available on all major DSPs as well as CD, standard black LP, D2C exclusive purple LP, and in a limited signed edition available exclusively on Aftab's webstore, plus an indie exclusive silver LP available at indie retailers globally.
Tracklisting:
Aey Nehin
Na Gul
Autumn Leaves (ft.
James Francies)
Bolo Na (ft. Moor Mother, Joel Ross)
Saaqi (ft. Vijay Iyer)
Last Night (Reprise) (ft. Cautious Clay, Kaki King, Maeve Gilchrist)
Raat Ki Rani
Whiskey
Zameen (ft. Chocolate Genius, Inc.)
