Night Reign Arooj Aftab

• 1Aey Nehin05:44
• 2Na Gul05:27
• 3Autumn Leaves04:47
• 4Bolo Na06:12
• 5Saaqi06:44
• 6Last Night Reprise05:07
• 7Raat Ki Rani05:11
• 8Whiskey05:04
• 9Zameen04:16
• Total Runtime48:32

Info for Night Reign

Night Reign is the new album from GRAMMY-winner Arooj Aftab, an ode to the night as her primary source of inspiration and a vivid reflection of the creative community she has fostered in her home of Brooklyn, New York.

The track features an enchanting rhythm (closely related to the Brazilian maracatu) that drives the song forward. Aftab’s voice (teased with autotune for the first time) provides an evocative vision of this “queen of the night” AKA “Raat Ki Rani,” the intoxicatingly fragrant, night-blooming flower with which the track shares its name. The titular jasmine blossom also plays a significant role in the Thompson-directed visuals.

Arooj Aftab is set to release Night Reign, the follow up to her critically-acclaimed album Vulture Prince, on 31 May on Verve Records. Aftab makes the night the focus of this 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, candour and wit, Aftab lets us get even closer to her.

Arooj Aftab

Arooj Aftab
Since the beginning of her career, which followed her musical studies at Berklee, Arooj Aftab has tried to reconcile the different aspects of her life in her compositions. Her origins, the pain of seeing the treatment of immigrants by the great international powers and her new Western life are all intertwined in everything she does. In 2021 she gave us the beautiful Vulture Prince. Less deeply rooted than on her previous releases, the folk music of Asia still shines through in many aspects of this meeting of two worlds.

“Ethereal” is always a hard word to use, but for some reason, it crops up everywhere and for Arooj Aftab: It’s just impossible not to feel the full ethereal spirit of her music.

In my head there’s always a whole bunch of songs and ideas. And I’m sure that’s true of many artists. I feel like I’m just always like piecing things together, subconsciously, as I’m doing other stuff. Now that I’m touring, I’ve got all these disjointed conversations with myself happening about the next record so I’m just kind of thinking about it all the time. When more ideas start to feel good I feel like we should start going into the studio.

This album contains no booklet.