Persuading immigrant parents to forgo education for the arts is difficult, and breaking into pop as an Indian-American teen is almost unheard of. Aaryan Shah defied the odds. 

When he dropped out of school at 15, he captivated listeners with his brooding, dark take on R&B. However, with an onslaught of attention came a wave of racist vitriol. To shield himself, Shah wore a mask—not only to cultivate mystery but to protect his identity from critics. “People just weren’t ready for a brown artist,” he says. “The same music did better when people didn’t have my face attached to it.”

After three years of releasing music from behind the mask, Shah revealed his true self in 2021, empowered by a loving fanbase that supported his evolution prior to his mainstream success. “At least if you don’t like me now, that’s fair. You’re making that judgment based on who I actually am.” 

With a focus on self-preservation rather than self-protection, Shah’s music is markedly more cathartic — reflecting his own maturation and shared resilience with his fans. His album Do You See Birds, Too? Is his first project in the wake of a long-untreated bipolar diagnosis –– exploring the intersection of chaos and peace, and the freedom in finding stability between extremes. 

Now, Shah’s fandom grows larger by the day,  witnessing the birth of an underground superstar. He aims to build a legacy that encompasses Coachella or The GRAMMYs, inspiring a generation of South Asians in the process. Whether it takes 2 years or 10, the singer-songwriter is carving a path to greatness with every project, performance, and each new chapter. No mask, no shield — just Aaryan Shah, unapologetically himself. Take it or leave it.