''Coke Studio Pakistan'' () is a Pakistani

television programme 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 platf ...

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 annual television music show in

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

, airing annually since 2008. The programme's concept originated in Brazil and has subsequently expanded its reach worldwide. The show combines a myriad of musical influences, from traditional Pakistani classical,

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 ...

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 ...

, ''

qawwali Qawwali is a form of Sufi Islamic devotional singing originating in the Indian subcontinent. Originally performed at Sufi shrines throughout the Indian subcontinent, it is famous throughout Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Afghanistan and has ...

'', ''

ghazal ''Ghazal'' is a form of amatory poem or ode, originating in Arabic poetry that often deals with topics of spiritual and romantic love. It may be understood as a poetic expression of both the pain of loss, or separation from the beloved, and t ...

'' and

bhangra Bhangra may refer to: * Bhangra (music), a genre of Punjabi music * Bhangra (dance), a folk dance of Punjab region * ''Bhangra'' (film), a 1959 Indian Punjabi-language film See also * Bhangara, Nepal Bhangara, Nepal is a village development c ...

music to contemporary

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

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 ...

and

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 ...

music. It is noted for promoting Pakistan's multiculturalism by inviting artists from various regions and

languages Language is a structured system of communication that consists of grammar and vocabulary. It is the primary means by which humans convey meaning, both in spoken and signed forms, and may also be conveyed through writing. Human language is ch ...

to collaborate musically.

History

Coke Studio originated in Brazil in 2007 as a music project, initially named ''Estúdio Coca-Cola'', with the aim of blending the styles of two Brazilian artists. The concept was adopted by Nadeem Zaman, Marketing Head of

The Coca-Cola Company The Coca-Cola Company is an American multinational corporation founded in 1892. It manufactures, sells and markets soft drinks including Coca-Cola, other non-alcoholic beverage concentrates and syrups, and alcoholic beverages. Its stock is lis ...

, who partnered with

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 ...

, a former member of the Pakistani band

Vital Signs Vital signs (also known as vitals) are a group of the four to six most crucial medical signs that indicate the status of the body's vital (life-sustaining) functions. These measurements are taken to help assess the general physical health of ...

, to create a Pakistani version of the show in 2008. The inaugural season premiered with a live audience and was met with immense success. Production was handled by Hyatt, his wife Umber Hyatt, and Nofil Naqvi, a Pakistani cinematographer. Rohail Hyatt remained as executive producer for the show until season six, stepping down in 2013 after five years. He was succeeded by

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 ...

of the band

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 ...

, who produced the show until the end of season ten. Strings announced that season ten would be their last. In March 2018,

Ali Hamza H, or h, is the eighth Letter (alphabet), letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the English alphabet, modern English alphabet, including the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is English ...

and

Zohaib Kazi Zohaib Kazi () is a Pakistani musician, composer, lyricist, and record producer. Kazi started his media career at Hum Network Limited before serving as an associate producer at ''Coke Studio (Pakistan), Coke Studio Pakistan'' from 2009 to 2017. ...

were announced as the producers for season eleven, but they left after the season concluded. Rohail Hyatt made a comeback in 2019 to produce season twelve and continued at the helm for season thirteen as well. After season thirteen, Hyatt recommended

Xulfi Zulfiqar "Xulfi" Jabbar Khan (born 28 October 1980) is a Pakistani composer, singer-songwriter, music producer and a guitarist. Starting his career in 1994, Khan is the recipient of multiple awards in Pakistan. He is currently working on the te ...

to lead production for the fourteenth season, which aired in 2022.

Format

The show features artists in each episode, by a

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 ...

and guest artists. ''Coke Studio'' tracks are officially available on their

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

channels and various streaming platforms. The music is recorded live by artists at Coke Studio. The televisual style emphasizes frequent close-ups on various performers, highlighting the collective contributions of the ensemble, while primarily focusing on the lead singer or singers.

Seasons overview

Reception

Following success in Pakistan after its first launch, ''Coke Studio'' has become an international franchise. The Pakistani show has amassed a large fan base in neighbouring country, India. The success of the show prompted Coca-Cola to launch the Indian version,

Coke Studio @ MTV ''Coke Studio'' is an Indian music series that's part of the international franchise, Coke Studio. It features live studio recordings by various artists, showcasing a diverse range of music. This includes classical genres from the Indian subcon ...

, with a similar format, which proved to be both critically acclaimed and commercially successful. The Indian version has been produced by

MTV India MTV is an Indian pay television channel specialising in music, reality and youth culture programming. It was launched in 1996 as the Indian version of the original American network and is owned by JioStar, under a license agreement with Par ...

. In April 2012, an Arab version of the show, '' Coke Studio بالعربي'' was launched in the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

featuring performances by various Arabic and international music artists, produced by the songwriter Michel Elefteriades. Following the successes of the Pakistani and Indian versions, a

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

i edition,

Coke Studio Bangla ''Coke Studio Bangla'', also known as ''Coke Studio Bangladesh'', is a Bangladeshi television series which is the local installment of the Coke Studio franchise, featuring studio-recorded music performances by established and emerging Banglades ...

, was launched on 7 February 2022. ''Coke Studio'' has also been seen as an economic process of

transnationalism Transnationalism is a research field and social phenomenon grown out of the heightened interconnectivity between people and the receding economic and social significance of boundaries among nation states. Overview The term "trans-national" was ...

and as a transnational

television production 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 ...

, with its production systems being created and augmented by global flows of artists, technology, distribution and economics. Within this process, economic structures are created, opened and even reoriented; influences are borrowed and music produced; communities and heritage discovered and remained – this is done intellectually and physically, and more importantly, transnationally.

Atif Aslam Atif Aslam (; born 12 March 1983) is a Pakistani playback singer, songwriter, composer, and actor. He has recorded many songs in both Pakistan and India, and is known for his Belting (music), vocal belting technique. Born in Wazirabad, Waziraba ...

's rendition of

Sabri Brothers The Sabri Brothers (Punjabi language, Punjabi, ) were a musical band from Pakistan who were performers of Sufi qawwali music and were closely connected to the Chishti Order. They are considered one of the greatest Sufi qawwali singers of all ti ...

Tajdar-e-Haram "Tajdar-e-Haram" () is a qawwali performed by the Pakistani musical group, Sabri Brothers. 1982 version In 1982, Sabri Brothers recorded this qawwali for Pakistani film Sahaaray. 2015 version In 2015, it was rendered by Atif Aslam, du ...

" in '' Coke Studio Season 8'' became the first video originating in Pakistan to cross 100 million views on YouTube, garnering views from 186 countries.

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 ...

and

Momina Mustehsan Momina Mustehsan (; born 5 September 1992) is a Pakistani singer. In 2017, BBC named her one of the 100 Women (BBC), 100 most influential women, and the following year, ''Forbes'' featured her among its "30 Under 30" Asia list along with nine o ...

's rendition of "

Afreen Afreen "Afreen Afreen" ( ) is a nazm (song) performed and composed by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan with lyrics written by Javed Akhtar. It first featured on their collaborative album ''Sangam'' in 1996. In 2003, a studio version of the song was recorded by ...

" from the ninth season also earned 100 million views on YouTube. Meanwhile, Ali Sethi and Shae Gill's “

Pasoori "Pasoori" (, ) is a Punjabi and Urdu-language single by Pakistani singers Ali Sethi and debutant Shae Gill. It was released on 6 February 2022 as the sixth song of season 14 (episode two) of ''Coke Studio Pakistan'' and was subsequently rele ...

” has crossed 800 million views on YouTube, making it Coke Studio Pakistan's most listened to song on YouTube.

Notes

References

External links

* * {{Authority control

2000s Pakistani television series 2008 Pakistani television series debuts Pakistani music television series Pakistani television series based on non-Pakistani television series