The Musical Journey of Nazia and Zoheb Hassan

In a recent guest appearance at Star and Style, Pakistani singer Zoheb Hassan, half of the iconic pop duo Nazia and Zoheb, revealed his unexpected journey into the music industry. The singer discussed the humble beginnings of his career alongside his sister Nazia Hassan and the challenges he faced along the way.

Nazia and Zoheb burst onto the music scene in 1980 with their hit single Aap Jaisa Koi for the Indian film Qurbani. This track served as a precursor to their debut album, Disco Deewane, released in 1981 and produced by renowned Indian producer Biddu. Its infectious tunes resonated with audiences globally, propelling Nazia and Zoheb to international fame, with fanbases extending to countries like Brazil, Russia, South Africa, and Indonesia.

Rising Up to Fame  

“We never looked at the commercial side, at how successful we would get. We were just doing something that we loved,” he remarked during the interview. “It’s very important, I think, that when you’re doing something creative, you should just concentrate on that and not the success, fame and all.”

Given the longevity of the pop duo’s sonic catalogue, Zoheb counts himself lucky but has a simple formula to explain their enduring fame. “As a songwriter, if you have a good melody, it lasts forever,” he said simply. “A good melody is always a good melody. Nazia and I wanted to focus on the music. If you do that sincerely, whatever you make does last. If you’re doing something for commercial reasons or fame, then it doesn’t work.”

To everyone’s surprise, the Dosti singer harboured little fondness for music. He revealed, “I had no passion for music. When I was in school, I was nervous to tell people that I sing.”

A Reluctant Artist

Walking down memory lane, he furthered on, “I used to do Sohail Rana’s programme for kids. I would feel apprehensive about telling my friends about that because they would say ‘Oh, you sing? You know, this is not very macho.’ So I would reply that I don’t sing, I just go and sit [on the show]. Basically, it wasn’t the ‘in’ thing to do.”

The singer also reflected on one of his major hits with Nazia – Disco Deewane. “We did this song, Biddu was there. We were just jamming and coined the phrase ‘Disco Deewane’ because disco was very in at that time and we just came up with the song. It was written in 15 minutes.”

Unlike his sister, who was a natural performer, Zoheb’s journey to fame demanded a lot of dedication. Vehemently opposed to singing, he disclosed how he would have people searching for him around the house. “I would hide. I hated music… I don’t even like to go out and perform. I’m an introvert.”

Despite this, he soon realised he needed to overcome his hesitations. “When you’re an introvert, you have to put in a lot more effort,” Zoheb mused. “I had to work very hard because I didn’t personally have an affiliation with music. So I had to work extra hard on everything to be able to come to that stage but Nazia was a natural.” As per the artist, his sister “was a star” who “would come on the stage and perform and shine.”

Also Read: Zoheb Hassan threatens legal action against Nazia’s ex-husband