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- Ali Sethi returns for Chan Centre season finale
Ali Sethi returns for Chan Centre season finale
The record-breaking sensation has become a leading voice of the queer South Asian diaspora
The Chan Centre for the Performing Arts at the University of British Columbia will close its 27th season with Pakistani-American artist Ali Sethi as part of its Chan Centre Presents series on Sunday June 1, 2025 at 7PM. Sethi makes his triumphant return to the Chan Centre following his sold-out show in November 2024 with electronic producer Nicolás Jaar, where they premiered their collaborative album Intiha.
“Ali Sethi’s enthralling music and astonishing vocal range are a mesmerizing and powerful experience to behold. We are so happy to welcome him back to the Chan Centre to conclude our season.”
Chan Centre Curator-in-Residence Jarrett Martineau
Dubbed by BBC as “the king of the modern ghazal,” Ali Sethi has captivated global audiences with his mastery of microtonal singing and fresh approach to classical Hindustani music. Sethi’s music bridges generations and genres, drawing on classical forms like qawwali and ghazals while embracing modern sounds and themes.
Though Sethi, a Harvard graduate, first made his mark with his 2009 debut novel, The Wishmaker, it was his record-breaking 2022 hit song “Pasoori” that catapulted him to worldwide fame. Sung with fellow Pakistani singer Shae Gill, the song has now surpassed one billion streams, becoming the most watched Coke Studio session to date with over 800 million views on YouTube alone. That same year, Sethi was named one of Time Magazine’s “100 Next” for his ability to show us that “differences of culture, language, religion, and gender do not need to be antagonistic; they can, and always have, enriched us, and given us some of our greatest works of art.”
Following “Pasoori,” Sethi collaborated with electronic music producer Nicolás Jaar to create the critically acclaimed album Intiha. The Guardian named it one of the best albums of 2023 with Pitchfork calling it “a moving tribute to the multiplicity of identity.”
Ahead of Sethi’s new album set to release this year, he has released three new singles. The latest, “Maya,” imbues Sethi’s signature genre bending with its reggaeton groove and electro-house sensibility, playfully subverting the boundary between meditation and trance.
General public tickets for Ali Sethi’s performance at the Chan Centre will be available from Friday, February 28 at 10AM.
