Draft:Zain Zohaib

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Zain Zohaib
زین زوہیب
OriginLahore, Pakistan
GenresQawwali
Years active2009-present
LabelsRolla Rappa Records, Nescafe Basement, Coke Studio, Velo Sound Station, The Sufi Records


Zain Zohaib is a pakistani Qawwali band formed in Lahore, Pakistan by brothers Zain Ali (born May 27, 1992) and Zohaib Ali (born August 18, 1995).

One of the most well-known contemporary Qawwali groups, their party has performed internationally in many countries including the United States, United Kingdom, Norway, Rwanda and Australia.

Their musical style is that of traditional Qawwali, with modern elements like featuring western instruments an shorter track length.[1] Zain Zohaib often performs Qawwalis originally by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, as well as original music written and composed by the brothers.

The brothers grew up learning Qawwali from their grandfather Ustad Haji Rehmat Ali Khan, a harmonium player for Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and their uncle Ustad Faiz Ali Faiz.[2] They have been performing Qawwali publicly since at least 2009 with their family.[3]

Zain Zohaib garnered international attention in 2019 after being featured in the fifth season of Nescafe Basement with their song Haiderium[4]. In 2022 they were part of the 14th season of Coke Studio Pakistan, performing the song Thagyan featuring singer Quratulain Balouch. They would go on to in 2025 perform a third time on a music TV show, season 3 of Velo Sound Station, where their song Shayar in collaboration with rapper Faris Shafi achieved popularity, spawning a multitude of reaction videos on YouTube.[5]r As of 2025, they have over 5.2 million average monthly listeners on Spotify.[6] Their top 5 regions of listeners are all in India.

Zain and Zohaib have known members of Fanna-Fi-Allah since their youth[7]. In 2018, they performed a jam session with Tahir Qawwal,[8] who named them as his "favourite next generation qawwali ensemble".[9] In 2020 they were featured in Fanna-Fi-Allah's documentary Music of the Mystics as examples of modern performers of the Qawwali tradition.[2][10]

History

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Zain and Zohaib Ali were born into a family of qawwals and grew up playing Qawwali from a young age. They learnt from their grandfather Haji Rehmat Ali Khan, who had been the second harmonium player for Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan as well as from their uncle Faiz Ali Faiz.[11] Zain began playing tabla in 2004 at age 12.[3] They have been performing since at least 2009 along with their cousins, among which was Ehsan Ali, who still is one of their leading members.

Starting in 2017 they began posting videos of the group performing to YouTube. These were filmed in various locations in and around Lahore, with producer Harris Irshad mixing and mastering the audio.[12] Some of the performances featured only the brothers with Zain on tabla and Zohaib on harmonium, while others featured the larger group.

From 2018-2020 they released the singles Haiderium, Noor-e-Khuda, Ishq Hularay, Mere Dil Mein (featuring poet Tehzeeb Haafi), Laal Qalandar, Khair and Sara Jahan Hussain Ka, and Ranjheya Ve with label Rolla Rappa Records. Each of these singles was released with a music video showing the group performing. Ranjheya Ve remains the groups most popular single on Spotify and YouTube.

In 2016, Zain Ali was featured on the fourth season of Nescafe Basement, performing vocals in a rendition of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan's Tum Eik Gorahk Dhanda by Asfar Hussain and Zaryab Sultan[13]. This led to the group auditioning for the fifth season in 2019, in which their performance of Haiderium garnered international attention, giving them their breakthrough.[14][4]

In 2022 they were part of the 14th season of Coke Studio Pakistan, performing the song Thagyan featuring singer Quratulain Balouch. This led to them releasing their track Qalandar in collaboration with her.

Zain Zohaib performed on the soundtrack for Mrs. & Mr. Shameem, as well as being featured in episode 6 as Qawwals. They also composed and performed multiple tracks for the soundtrack of the 2024 series Abdullahpur ka Devdas, these being praised for enriching the narrative.[15] The Netflix series Super Rich in Korea features Zain Zohaib performing as an example of Pakistani culture.[16]

In 2025 they released their first Album Back to Live, which consists of Qawwali tracks recorded in one take with all members together in one room.[17] Around the same time the band collaborated with The Sufi Records to create a Qawwali with orchestral accompaniment.[18] Later that year they appeared on the third season of Velo Sound Station with the song Shayar in collaboration with rapper Faris Shafi.[5]

Musical Style

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Members

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The Lineup of the group varies, with some performances featuring fewer or additional members. Generally the group consists of:[19] [20][21]

Zohaib Ali - Lead Vocals

Zain Ali - Secondary/Lead Vocals

Ehsan Ali - Secondary Vocals

Sameer Ali - Pump Vocal & Lead Harmonium

Ruzam Ali - Harmonium & Vocals

Abdul Waheed Ali - Tabla

Muhabbat Ali - Supporting Vocals (Humnawa)

Mudassar Ali - Supporting Vocals (Humnawa)

Arslan Ali - Supporting Vocals (Humnawa)

Sharafat Ali - Supporting Vocals (Humnawa)

Kaleem Akhter - Supporting Vocals (Humnawa)

Raheel Abbas Anwar - Supporting Vocals (Humnawa)

Balaj Hussain - Guitar & Electric Guitar

Zameer Hussain - Keyboard

See Also

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References

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  1. ^ "Surrendering to Qawwali with Zain Zohaib". SBS Audio. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  2. ^ a b Zain Zohaib (2020-12-03). Ni Main Jana Jogi De Naal | Music of the Mystics Ep7 | Qawwali Documentary Series. Retrieved 2025-08-05 – via YouTube.
  3. ^ a b "A MAESTRO IN THE MAKING: An interview with Zain Ali | Lafz Magazine". www.lafzmagazine.com. Archived from the original on 2017-05-20. Retrieved 2025-08-05.
  4. ^ a b "The Visionaries behind Nescafe Basement's Haiderium- The Z Brothers". The Nation. 2019-08-09. Retrieved 2025-08-05.
  5. ^ a b "Episode 1: Shayar | When Rap Meets Qawali". World of Velo. 2025-04-11. Retrieved 2025-10-26.
  6. ^ "Spotify – Web Player". Spotify. Retrieved 2025-11-07.
  7. ^ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2025-08-05.
  8. ^ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2025-08-05.
  9. ^ Fanna-Fi-Allah (2018-03-04). Tahir Qawwal & Zain Zohaib - Lahori Qawwali Jam. Retrieved 2025-08-05 – via YouTube.
  10. ^ "Music of the Mystics". www.samaschoolofmusic.com. Retrieved 2025-08-05.
  11. ^ "Rhapsody Of The Soul – The Musical Odyssey Of Zain Zohaib – Mindful". 2025-07-31. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  12. ^ Zain Zohaib (2025-02-05). Back to Live | The Untold Story Behind the Album | Zain Zohaib. Retrieved 2025-11-07 – via YouTube.
  13. ^ Ramzan, Abdullah (2016-03-17). "NescafeBasement4 Revisits NFAK's Iconic Gorakh Dhanda With Episode 4". PMR - Pakistani Music, Film, Fashion & Entertainment. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  14. ^ "Haiderium | Zain Zohaib | Nescafe Basement 5 | pakmediarevolution.pk". PMR - Pakistani Music, Film, Fashion & Entertainment. 2019-02-22. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  15. ^ News, City Air (2024-02-08). "Zindagi Breaks Boundaries with 'Abdullahpur Ka Devdas' – A Tale of Love, Sacrifice, and Friendship Set to Captivate Indian Audiences". Cityairnews. Retrieved 2025-09-03. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  16. ^ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2025-09-03.
  17. ^ "Spotify – Web Player". Spotify. Retrieved 2025-09-03.
  18. ^ The Sufi Records (2025-02-14). Raaz by Zain Zohaib x The Sufi Records | Orchestral Qawwali. Retrieved 2025-08-05 – via YouTube.
  19. ^ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2025-08-05.
  20. ^ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2025-08-05.
  21. ^ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2025-08-05.