The seventh season of the

Pakistani Pakistanis (, ) are the citizens and nationals of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Pakistan is the fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the second-largest Muslim population as of 2023. As much as ...

music Music is the arrangement of sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm, or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Music is generally agreed to be a cultural universal that is present in all hum ...

television series A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming plat ...

Coke Studio Pakistan ''Coke Studio Pakistan'' () is a Pakistani television programme and a part of the international music franchise, Coke Studio, which features studio-recorded music performances by established and emerging artists. It is the longest-running annua ...

'' premiered on 21 September 2014 and aired its final episode on 22 November 2014. Previously, it was scheduled to premiere on 7 September 2014, but was delayed due to an ongoing political crisis which caught the media attention everywhere. Season premiered under the tagline of ''Sound of the Nation''. The season was produced by

Strings String or strings may refer to: *String (structure), a long flexible structure made from threads twisted together, which is used to tie, bind, or hang other objects Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Strings'' (1991 film), a Canadian anim ...

, as the previous producer,

Rohail Hyatt Rohail Hyatt (Urdu: روحیل حیات) is a Pakistani record producer, keyboardist, and composer. As a record producer, Hyatt is largely credited with pioneering Pakistani pop rock music by incorporating western rock and pop influences. In ...

, had quit on 22 January 2014. while Coca-Cola returns as an executive producer. The band's members,

Bilal Maqsood Bilal Maqsood () is a Pakistani singer-songwriter, composer, music video director and painter, better known for being a founding member of the pop-rock band Strings (1988–2021). Early life and education Bilal Maqsood is the son of the popula ...

and

Faisal Kapadia Faisal Kapadia () is a Pakistani musician, Musical composition, composer, singer-songwriter, and a guitarist. He is best known as the lead vocalist and primary lyricist of rock music band Strings (band), Strings. After dissolution of Strings band ...

, produced the show for the first time. While they briefly appeared as featured artists in

season one Season One may refer to: Albums * ''Season One'' (Suburban Legends album), 2004 * ''Season One'' (All Sons & Daughters album), 2012 * ''Season One'' (Saukrates album), 2012 See also * * * Season 2 (disambiguation) Season 2 may refer to: ...

and season two, the duo took three months to complete the production of the series. The season featured twenty-three artists, twenty-two musicians and twenty-eight songs. The season featured a new

house band A house band is a group of musicians, often centrally organized by a band leader, who regularly play at an establishment. It is widely used to refer both to the bands who work on entertainment programs on television or radio, and to bands which ...

which included musicians, backing vocalists and guest musicians.

Season changes

Season 7 witnessed many changes, ranging from the production team to studio sets, from music closure to musicians and from last season's atypical music genres to the return of original music genres of show. After the quitting of ''Coke Studio Pakistan'' founder

as a producer due to the personal reasons, Strings' Bilal Maqsood and Faisal Kapadia took the charge of season, bringing back the

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk horror ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Fo ...

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...

and

sufi Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...

genres of ''Coke Studio'', with the season's Pakistani featured artists. Many artists reprised their appearances from the previous seasons. This season paid homage to the ''Sound of the Nation''. In a series of firsts, Season 7 delved into new unexplored genres while also touching upon the role that film music has had in defining the musical history by visiting quintessentially Pakistani film music within ''Coke Studio'' stage. With the change in appearance, Coke Studio logo's color were reverted as ''Coke'' was painted with White and ''Studio'' was Black, with the 'i' in Studio referring to

Coke bottle Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a cola soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. In 2013, Coke products were sold in over 200 countries and territories worldwide, with consumers drinking more than 1.8 billion company beverage servings ...

, painted with white. With many new additions, ''Coke Studio'' endeavored to cultivate a sense of national pride and make the platform more accessible to a diverse audience of viewers. Season 7 also featured locally and globally renowned Pakistani artists, popular Pakistani songs and performances that incorporate the use of traditional Pakistani instruments to create a tapestry of music that aptly represents the fabric of our nation.

Artists

Featured Artists

Following is the list of twenty-four Featured Artist Line-up, that will perform as individuals, duo's and with chorus: * Abbas Ali Khan *

Abida Parveen Abida Parveen (; ; born 20 February 1954) is a Pakistani singer, composer, musician of Sufi music, painter and an entrepreneur. Parveen is one of the highest-paid singers in Pakistan. Her singing and music have earned her many accolades, and s ...

Abrar-ul-Haq Abrar-ul-Haq () is a Pakistani singer-songwriter, philanthropist, and a politician. His debut 1995 album ''Billo De Ghar'' sold over 40.3million albums worldwide, which made him a household name and granted him the title of "King of Pakistan ...

Akhtar Chanal Zahri Akhtar Chanal Zahri (born 1954) is a Baloch people, Baloch folk singer. He is famous for his singing in ''Coke Studio Pakistan''. Career Akhtar Chanal Zahri was born at Khuzdar, Balochistan, Pakistan in 1954. In 1964, Akhtar Chanal started tak ...

Asrar ''Asrar'' () is a Persian-language reformist daily newspaper published in Tehran, Iran. Profile ''Asrar'' has a reformist political leaning.Fariha Pervez Fariha Pervez () is a Pakistani pop singer-songwriter, and a music producer. She is specially known for the rendition of various popular and famous ghazals (a form of romantic poem). She started her career anchoring and acting from a very youn ...

Humaira Channa Humaira Channa, also known as Humera Channa (born on 22 Jun 1966 at Hyderabad), is a 6 Nigar Award winning film playback singer from Pakistan. She has won 3rd most Nigar Awards in history, ranked only after Noor Jehan and Mehnaz. Early life ...

Javed Bashir Javed Bashir ( Punjabi, ; born 8 August 1973) is a Pakistani playback singer who mainly sings classical songs. Javed has sung songs for many Bollywood movies including ''Cocktail'', ''Kahaani'', ''Rush'', ''Bombay Talkies'', '' Bhaag Milkha ...

Jawad Ahmed Jawad Ahmed is a Pakistani pop singer and musician turned politician. Jawad Ahmed is currently chairman of Barabri Party Pakistan, a leftist party. Early life and education Jawad Ahmad was born on 29 September 1970 in Lahore, Punjab into a ...

* Jimmy Khan *

Komal Rizvi Komal Rizvi (; born August 3, 1978) is a Pakistani actress, singer, songwriter, and television host. She is famous for her songs at Coke Studio (Pakistan). Early life Rizvi was born in Dubai and raised in England and Nigeria. As a teenager, ...

Meesha Shafi Meesha Shafi () is a Pakistani-born Canadian singer, actress and model.Naseer & Shahab * Niazi Brothers * Rachel Viccaji *

Rahat Fateh Ali Khan Rahat Fateh Ali Khan (, ; born 9 December 1974) is a Pakistani Punjabi singer, primarily Qawwali, a form of Sufi devotional music. Khan is one of the most popular and highest paid singers in Pakistan. He is the nephew of Nusrat Fateh Ali Kha ...

Rahma Ali Rahma Ali is a Pakistani actress and singer. She is known for her roles in dramas ''Nail Polish'', '' Choti'', '' Mol'' and ''Rukhsati''. Early life Rahma was born on 15 September 1988 in Lahore, Pakistan. She completed her studies from Beaco ...

Sajjad Ali Sajjad Ali (born 1966) is a Pakistani semi-classical, pop and rock singer, poet, actor, film director as well as a film producer from Karachi, Pakistan.Ustad Rais Khan Ustad Rais Khan (‎; 25 November 19396 May 2017) was a Pakistani sitarist. At his peak he was regarded as one of the greatest sitar players of all time. He continued performing till his last days. He moved from India to Pakistan in 1986, wh ...

* Ustad Tafu *

Zoe Viccaji Zoe Viccaji () (born 1983) is a Pakistani singer-songwriter and actress from Karachi. She began her career as a backing vocalist at Coke Studio and later moved on to becoming one of the featured artists. Viccaji has released one studio album wh ...

Zohaib Hassan Zoheb Hassan (born November 18, 1966) is a Pakistani pop icon, singer, songwriter, producer, and was a part of the superduo Nazia and Zoheb, with his sister Nazia Hassan. Early career and breakthrough Zoheb and his sister Nazia spent their chi ...

Musicians

With the departure of Hyatt, the house band was almost completely revamped with new artists. Momin Durrani and Sara Haider were the first artists who make their debut as featured artists and also served as backing singers while Rachel Viccaji returned to season 7 with her third appearance as a backing singer.

Production

''Coke Studio'' returned, after the sudden and abrupt ending of season six, because of copyright issues and bid the farewell to longtime producer Rohail Hyatt. After Hyattt's departure, Coca-Cola approached Strings band duo,

and

, who had appeared as featured artists in the first two seasons. Shooting of Season 7 spanned from May to July 2014, while the editing, development and progressive stages were completed in July. In an interview with ''Dawn'', Bilal said: While talking to Instep Magazine, answering to a question, Faisal said: Coca-Cola GM Rizwan Khan said that their aim was to:

"reinvent the way music can capture the spirit of Pakistan. Coke Studio season seven will discover the talent and variance that this nation has to offer. Coke Studio has enabled and empowered Pakistani musicians to express their talents and skills. Many new stars have emerged and the initiative has provided a unique platform for the fusion and learning of music".

Episodes

Reception and review

Before the episode hitting the screens, the promos went enormously hits, as they depict the previous looks of sets, previous artists line up and studios previous music genres. Only the house band personalities were missed by audience. From the previous seasons, drummer Gumby was heavily demanded and appreciated for his work. Despite the abrupt ending of season six, people still admired Rohail and were willing to see him back. Bilal Masood, the producer of series said:

"Taking the reins of Pakistan's biggest music platform is a feeling that can't be expressed in words. This has been a magical ride for us, 23 artists, 22 musicians and 28 songs. As producers we couldn't have asked for more. It's all about celebrating Pakistani music and our artists".

Moreover, artists from the studio also shared their journey with Strings and their ideas of working with other producers. Keyboard player Jaffer Zaidi said

"I think Rohail Bhai and Strings have different strengths and weaknesses as producers, therefore the experience is entirely different. The most prominent difference this year has been the creative freedom, involvement, and dialogue being offered to all the musicians that were part of the project. God willing, season 7 has much to offer."

Bass player, Khalid Khan of ''Coke Studio'' said:

"The best thing about this season is the fact that no one is over playing a certain instrument and everything is being used to enhance the ensemble. We have paid special attention to the groove and rest I leave it up to the listeners to decide."

References

External links

* ' * {{Authority control Season 07 2014 Pakistani television seasons