Formation (2000–2007) Zebunnisa Humayun Bangash has been singing since age eight and has been training as a vocalist since 1998 with acclaimed Ustad Mubarak Ali Khan. Her fellow musician and first cousin,
Haniya Aslam, was a guitarist, vocalist and songwriter. Zeb and Haniya was conceived while the pair attended college in the United States; Zeb studied Economics and History of Art and Haniya studied Computer Science and Anthropology. Chup, their first song, came to life in sessions at an abandoned café in the basement of Zeb's dorm. After a positive response from the college community, Zeb and Haniya recorded a rough version of Chup and another song titled Yaad with
Mekaal Hasan (of
Mekaal Hasan Band). They spread via the internet and soon found their way onto Pakistan's
City FM 89 radio waves. After the success of Chup and Yaad, Zeb and Haniya began performing live. The first performance was commissioned by the American Consulate in
Islamabad, followed by their first full-length concert in
Lahore.
Chup! (2008) In 2007, the girls began the process of recording their debut album, releasing
Chup! in Pakistan in July, 2008. Nine of the album's 10 songs are original compositions. Produced by
Mekaal Hasan, the accompanying musicians included: former Noori drummer, Louis 'Gumby' Pinto on percussion,
Shallum Asher Xavier of
Fuzon on lead guitar, and bass by Kamran 'Mannoo' Zafar. Mauj's Omran Shafique contributes blues lead guitar on one song, and Co-Ven's Hamza Jafri, Sikander Mufti and Sameer Ahmed feature on the album's closing number, a high-spirited fusion track. The Norwegian jazz trumpeter, Hildegunn Øiseth, makes an appearance on five tracks. In addition to recording the album and shooting for videos, 2007 and 2008 were marked by a multitude of appearances on Pakistani television networks, including
Geo,
Dawn,
Aaj, and
CNBC. After the album launch, Zeb and Haniya toured Pakistan, promoting their album with live shows and media appearances. Zeb and Haniya also graced print media, with multiple appearances in local Pakistani newspapers and magazines, including
The News International,
Dawn News, The Friday Times, Newsline, and numerous others, including a feature in the cover story of The Herald's 2008 Annual Issue. The band also appeared in international publications, including
Newsweek International,
BBC Online World Service, Khaleej Times and The Hindu. They were also featured in their respective alumnae magazine,
Smith College and
Mount Holyoke College, as well as on an NPR radio show, The World. On 14 August 2009, The group performed at the last Coke Studio Session with their song, "Rona Chor Diya". On 15 May 2010, they featured in the third season along with
Noori,
Aunty Disco Project,
Karavan,
Entity Paradigm, and
Abida Parveen. On 1 June 2010, Zeb & Haniya recorded and released a soundtrack, also named "Daam", for the Pakistani TV serial Daam. On 6 June 2010, at the third season of Coke Studio Zeb and Haniya performed among with artists Arieb Azhar,
Abida Parveen,
Meesha Shafi (of
Overload), Karavan and
Arif Lohar, playing an Afghan folk song, "Bibi Sanam Janem". On 20 June 2010, Zeb & Haniya performed a duet "Tann Dolay" with Noori on the third season second episode, "Will". On 18 July 2010, Zeb & Haniya performed "Nazaar Eyle", a cover of a song sung by Turkish singer
Barış Manço, at the Coke Studio third season fourth episode, "Form".
The Happy Song (2011–present) On 7 April 2011, while talking to
NPR Music, the band discussed music in a time of extremism in Pakistan. The duo concluded regardless of the country situation they are fully focused on their work and are working on releasing an album. "It is relevant to us, this is the world that we are living in, this is the situation that we are surrounded by and we are responding in someway or the other. This song we just wanted it to be a lovely pleasant song that makes you smile and makes you feel good", said Haniya Aslam. Zebunnisa Bangash added "Despite everything, there are beautiful things happening in this country, there are moments of happiness, there's happiness all around, so we thought it might actually be nice to bring that together into a song". On 11 May, in an interview with the newspaper
The Express Tribune, Zeb and Haniya confirmed that they would be releasing a seven track extended-play,
The Happy Song, in fall through the record label True Brew Records. Bangash said: "We are feeling a bit more confident, so we are taking a few experimental steps here and there, kind of pushing our envelope a little bit", and in regard to the album said "It's going to be a collaborative effort, and several known as well as lesser known people will be involved. Aslam added: "It's going to be exciting because the writings are being done without the aim of releasing an album, so the spirit in which things are being done has excited us". The band stated that they were looking forward to making a career in India; Bangash said "India has a huge classical music tradition, which is one of my passions". Bangash contributed to "Sooha Saha" for A.R. Rahman's Highway Hindi film music in 2014. In 2016, Bangash released the previously recorded, but unreleased track, "Dadra". Haniya died from cardiac arrest on 11 August 2024, at the age of 46. ==Discography==