Calgary teen guitar whiz hits the stage with new band
Awwab Paracha is only 16-years-old but when he plays the guitar, you wouldn’t know it. His skills have been praised for exceeding his years.
Inspired by his music teacher at school, the teen picked up his first guitar at the age of 11, and has since derived influence from music legends like BB King, John Mayer, Led Zeppelin and ZZ Top.
"I saw my music teacher playing in his room, and that was it," said Paracha. "I was like, 'That’s what I want to do too.'"
Paracha’s parents left Pakistan and landed in Canada in 2014 with dreams of their own.
"My wife and I came to Canada dreaming of a peaceful life in a peaceful part of the world," said his father, Rehman Paracha. "It would be difficult to support him in Pakistan the way we are supporting him here. I am exceptionally proud."
After making it to the finals of the 2019 Calgary Stampede Talent Search competition, Paracha formed his own band earlier this year — The Awab Paracha Band.
The trio debuted Wednesday, and are set to play again at the Blind Beggar on Sept. 19.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
Half of Canadians have negative opinion of latest Liberal budget: poll
A new poll suggests the Liberals have not won over voters with their latest budget, though there is broad support for their plan to build millions of homes.
opinion Why you should protect your investments by naming a trusted contact person
Appointing a trusted person to help with financial obligations can give you peace of mind. In his personal finance column for CTVNews.ca, Christopher Liew outlines the key benefits of naming a confidant to take over your financial responsibilities, if the need ever arises.
Teacher shortages see some Ontario high school students awarded perfect grades on midterm exams
Students at a high school in York Region have been awarded perfect marks on their midterm exams in three subjects – not because of their academic performances however, but because they had no teacher.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
Doctors combine a pig kidney transplant and a heart device in a bid to extend woman's life
Doctors have transplanted a pig kidney into a New Jersey woman who was near death, part of a dramatic pair of surgeries that also stabilized her failing heart.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
Ottawa injects another $36M into vaccine injury compensation fund
The federal government has added $36.4 million to a program designed to support people who have been seriously injured or killed by vaccines since the end of 2020.
An Ontario senior thought he called Geek Squad for help with his printer. Instead, he got scammed out of $25,000
An Ontario senior’s attempt to get technical help online led him into a spoofing scam where he lost $25,000. Now, he’s sharing his story to warn others.