Aman Yusuf is a creative force who has successfully blended two seemingly different worlds: music and architecture into one inspiring life story. Growing up surrounded by artistic influences, Aman Yusuf found his passion early and turned it into a career that spans continents and disciplines. His story is one of perseverance, innovation, and leadership, motivating many to pursue their dreams no matter how challenging the path.
A Childhood Fueled by Creativity
Music and art were part of Aman Yusuf’s everyday life from an early age.
The soft hum of a harmonium in his childhood home. The intricate beat of a Tabla seemed to slow time. Alongside those sounds were long stretches spent alone, hunched over a notepad, sketching cars, buildings, and imagined forms. Page after page filled with lines and ideas, drawn out of curiosity.
Creativity was part of everyday life. His father worked in film and advertising, immersed in visual storytelling. His mother, a physics teacher by profession, sang at home for the simple joy of it, often playing the harmonium in the evenings. Sound and observation quietly shaped the rhythm of the household.
A Tabla player would visit their home often, accompanying his mother during her singing lessons. Aman watched from nearby as rhythm filled the room, turning pauses into movement. Over time, those moments left an impression a growing awareness that expression could exist beyond words.
Outside those walls, the city around him was changing just as quickly. Dubai rose year after year, its skyline reshaped by glass, steel, and ambition. Long before he had language for it, Aman felt architecture’s presence. The city showed how space could inspire, overwhelm, and influence daily life. Music shaped his inner world; drawing sharpened his imagination; the city informed his sense of scale
Where Music Meets Architecture
Music and architecture grew side by side, guided by the same instinct.
Architecture became his professional foundation — structured, precise, collaborative. Music remained more intuitive and expressive. Both begin from nothing: a blank site, an empty timeline.
Aman first picked up a guitar simply because it was nearby. His cousin owned one, and without much thought, he began to play. He also spent hours watching his eldest brother produce music on a computer, observing how sounds were layered, adjusted, and reshaped. By thirteen, Aman started experimenting on his own, layering electronic beats and textures into simple tracks, learning by doing.
Architecture introduced discipline. Music introduced flow. Together, they continue to shape how he approaches creation, regardless of medium.
Making Waves with Music
Releasing music under the artist name ASY, Aman approaches sound as a space for memory, culture, and exploration. In 2021, he released Flower of the Cities (Zahret al Mada’en) a reinterpretation of the iconic Fairuz song that honored its origins while presenting it through a contemporary lens.
The response reached far beyond expectations. The track surpassed one million streams on Spotify, resonating across generations. For Aman, the moment was less about numbers and more about connection a reminder that cultural memory can evolve without losing its depth.
The same thinking carries into his architectural work: understand context, respect history, and design with intention.
Architectural Success Across Borders
Architecture has taken Aman from Dubai to Toronto, from early concepts to completed high-rise developments. Seeing ideas materialize into lived spaces reinforced his belief in the care designers bring to the work.
Today, Aman works in a developer’s office at Marlin Spring, where the focus is design excellence and innovation. His work centers on shaping experiences — creating spaces that foster connection, elevate daily life, and contribute meaningfully to the city.
For Aman, the work is about making thoughtful decisions that quietly shape how people live
Building Diversity with SOSA
Beyond buildings and music, Aman’s work extends into community-building.
As a co-founder of SOSA (Society of South Asian Architects), he helped establish a platform dedicated to equity, mentorship, and representation within Canada’s architectural profession. The initiative reflects a clear belief: architecture shapes society, and inclusive voices strengthen that process.
Through mentorship, advocacy, and networking, SOSA supports emerging designers as they navigate professional and cultural transitions within the industry.
Lessons Learned on the Journey
Aman’s journey includes relocation, reinvention, and uncertainty — particularly when building a career in Canada. These moments shaped his understanding of growth.
Progress comes from stepping into discomfort. From taking on challenges without having all the answers. From staying curious and open to learning. Perspective and unfamiliar territory became tools for refinement.
These lessons guide him as a designer, musician, mentor, and collaborator.
Vision for the Future
Aman’s vision continues to expand. Through SOSA, he aims to grow learning and leadership opportunities for emerging architects, while contributing thoughtfully to real estate development through his professional work.
In music, ASY continues to create and collaborate globally, connecting cultural stories with new audiences. Music remains a source of energy and exploration — a space led by curiosity.
Words of Wisdom: Embrace Discomfort for Growth
Aman Yusuf’s advice is simple, shaped by experience rather than certainty.
Find and pursue your passion.
Get comfortable being uncomfortable.
Take on things you don’t yet know how to do.
Stay curious.
He has learned that growth rarely announces itself in big moments. It shows up quietly — in unfamiliar rooms, early mistakes, and the choice to keep going without clarity. Predictability brings comfort, but learning begins elsewhere. Each time he stepped beyond what he already knew, something new took shape a skill, a perspective, a deeper sense of purpose.
For Aman, progress has never been about having all the answers. It has been about showing up, staying open, and trusting that movement, even when uncertain, leads somewhere meaningful.
Do follow him on Instagram
Also Read – Why UAE Business Travel Spending Will Rise in 2026
