Prior to pursuing his dream of being a musician, Aslam was a proficient cricketer and had been selected for the Pakistani under 19 cricket team trials. Having spent his college days singing in public at the insistence of his friends, Aslam later recorded the single “Aadat” using pocket money he’d saved up. Surprising all involved the single went viral as soon as it was uploaded and by the end of the month Atif Aslam was a household name across Pakistan. With the success of the single the singer returned to the studio and recorded his debut full-length album “Jal Pari”. Released in July 2004 the album became another hit, spawning the singles “Bheegi Yaadein”, “Ehsaas”, “Mahi Ve”, and “Ankhon Sey”.
By this point Aslam’s popularity had begun to spread out past the Pakistani boundaries to neighbouring countries including India and Nepal, aided by his sophomore album “Doorie”. The 2006 record topped the charts in both India and Pakistan led by the hit singles “Doorie”, “Ehsaas”, and “Hum Ki Gali”. The undoubtedly rock influenced album “Meri Kahani” followed in January 2007 silencing critics who claimed Aslam’s music was too commercially-orientated.
Despite this success Aslam was reluctant to rest on his laurels and instead turned his hand to soundtrack work. Beginning in 2005, Aslam contributed the songs “Aadat”, “Ehsaas”, and “Yakeen” to the Hollywood film “Man Push Cart”, and the songs “Bol Ke Lab Azaad Hain” and "Mori Araj Suno" to the film "The Reluctant Fundamentalist". Subsequently, the singer-songwriter crafted a huge collection of songs used in the Bollywood films “Zeher” and “Kalyug” in 2005, “Bas Ek Pal” in 2006, “Ajab Prem Ki Ghazal Kahani” in 2009, “Prince” in 2010, “Ramaiya Vasta Vaiya” in 2013, and “Badlapur” in 2015, among many others. As a result of these film credits and album releases Aslam’s popularity abroad, in the U.S. and the UK, grew substantially, and Aslam embarked on a North American tour in 2007. Following shows in New Jersey, New York, San Francisco, London, and Birmingham UK, Aslam performed in Dubai alongside Pitbull, Enrique Iglesias, Il Divo, Gotye, and Swedish House Mafia in 2012.
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Charli XCX
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