Ali Sethi

Ali Sethi
علی سیٹھی
Sethi performing at House of Blues, Chicago, January 2023
Born	Ali Aziz Sethi (1984-07-02) July 2, 1984 (age 40) Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan
Citizenship	Pakistan United States
Alma mater	Aitchison College Harvard University
Occupations	Singer songwriter composer author columnist
Years active	2010–present
Parent(s)	Najam Sethi Jugnu Mohsin
Family	Mira Sethi (sister) Moni Mohsin (aunt)
Musical career
Genres	Ghazal folk classical contemporary pop Sufi
Instruments	Vocals keyboards piano harmonium
Labels	True Brew Mainstage Productions Other People Records
Musical artist
Website	alisethi.info beacons.ai/alisethiofficial

Ali Aziz Sethi (Urdu/Punjabi: علی عزیز سیٹھی; pronounced [əˈliː ˈseːʈʰiː]; born July 2, 1984) is a Pakistani-American^[1][2] singer, songwriter, composer, and author.^[3][4][5] Born to journalists and politicians Najam Sethi and Jugnu Mohsin, Sethi rose to prominence with his debut novel, The Wish Maker (2009). Although Sethi received some musical training as a child, he did not begin to formally train in Hindustani classical music until after graduating from college. He trained under the tutelage of Ustad Naseeruddin Saami (widely considered a master of both the qawwali and khyal forms of singing) as well as under noted ghazal and classical singer Farida Khanum.

In 2012, Sethi began focusing on his musical career and made his film debut as a singer in Mira Nair's 2012 film, The Reluctant Fundamentalist, with the song "Dil Jalaane Ki Baat Karte Ho."^[6][7] He followed this up with numerous independent covers of popular ghazals as well as traditional Punjabi folk songs. In 2015, Sethi made his debut on Coke Studio Pakistan with the well-known Punjabi folk song "Umraan Langiyaan" for which he received significant praise, quickly establishing himself as a millennial practitioner of traditional folk and classical music. Sethi has since appeared on several seasons of Coke Studio where he has performed covers as well as original music. His most recent single for Coke Studio – "Pasoori" (2022) – became the first Pakistani song to feature on Spotify's "Viral 50 - Global" chart,^[8] eventually climbing to the top of the chart in May 2022.^[9] With over one billion views on YouTube as of January 2025, "Pasoori" is currently the most watched Coke Studio music video of all time and the first Coke Studio song to reach this milestone.^[10][11][12]

Sethi is particularly associated with the ghazal format of singing and is often hailed for attempting to revive the ancient art form by experimenting with it and repositioning it as a young person's genre. He collaborates frequently with Grammy-winning music producer Noah Georgeson and has performed at Carnegie Hall, Harvard University, Brown University, Georgetown University, and the Royal Geographical Society among others. Sethi is noted for his ability to blend Hindustani classical ragas with contemporary Western arrangements^[13][14] and for his flair for lending new-age contours to older melodies.^[15] In his live performances, he often combines his songs with historical and cultural context, critical commentary, and etymological roots of Urdu words.^[16][17]

In September 2022, Sethi was included in Time magazine's Time 100 Next list and was recognized for his ability to use ancient classical ragas "to challenge and expand notions of gender, sexuality, and belonging."^[18][19][20] In September 2023, the Saxena Center for Contemporary South Asia at Brown University announced that Sethi would serve as its first Artist in Residence as a visiting scholar.^[21][22][23] According to data released by Spotify in 2022 and 2023, Sethi is among the most streamed Pakistani artists in the world.^[24][25][26]