Coke Studio Season 7 Official Artist Lineup

[Lahore: 28th August, 2014]
Coca-Cola Pakistan is proud to announce Season 7 of the nation’s most anticipated music platform – Coke Studio. Set to launch this September, Coke Studio’s new season is a celebration of Pakistani music, furthering the platform’s identity as that which explores newer influences while paying homage to our heritage and legacy, but this time within a new production context.

Coke Studio Season 7 welcomes Bilal Maqsood and Faisal Kapadia of the band STRINGS as the show’s producers. They bring forth a new season of live performances with a diverse line up of pop, rock, folk and sufi artists from different genres, emerging from a reimagined house band and accompanied by guest Pakistani musicians.

Speaking about Coke Studio Season 7, Rizwan U. Khan, General Manager of Coca-Cola Pakistan stated,“Our aim is to reinvent the way music can capture the spirit of Pakistan. Coke Studio Season 7 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”.

Ranging from traditional Eastern, Modern Western and regionally inspired pop, rock, sufi, folk and qawalli music, this season pays homage to the Sound of the Nation. In a series of firsts, Season 7 will delve into new unexplored genres while also touching upon the role that film music has had in defining our musical history by visiting quintessentially Pakistani film music within Coke Studio context.

With these new additions, Coke Studio endeavours to cultivate a sense of national pride and make the platform more accessible to a diverse audience of viewers. Season 7 also features 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.

Featuring this season is a line-up of some of Pakistan’s most prolific mainstream, traditional and upcoming artists including: Abbas Ali Khan, Abida Parveen, Abrar-ul-Haq, Akhtar Chanal Zahri, Asrar,  Fariha Parvez, Humera Channa, Javed Bashir, Jawad Ahmed, Jimmy Khan, Komal Rizvi, Meesha Shafi, Momin Durrani, Naseer Shahab, Niazi Brothers, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Rachel Viccaji, Rahma Ali, Sajjad Ali, Sanam Saeed, Sara Haider, Usman Riaz, Ustaad Raees Khan, Ustaad Tafu Khan, Zoe Viccaji and Zoheb Hasan.

The power house band this season includes: Aahad Nayani on drums, Babar Ali Khanna on dholak, Imran Akhoond on guitars, Jaffer Ali Zaidi on keyboard, Khalid Khan on bass, Sikandar Mufti on percussions with Momin Durrani, Rachel Viccaji and Sara Haider as backing vocalists.

Taking innovation in music to a whole new level, Coke Studio Season 7 also features a diverse range of guest musicians who’ve collaborated with the featured artists and the Coke Studio house band to create a new dimension to this Season’s performances with their signature sound. Coke Studio Season 7’s guest musicians include: Aamir Zaki, Adeel Bukhari, Arsalan Rabbani, Faraz Anwar, Ghulam Abbas, Hamza Jafri, Jaffer Hussain, Javed Iqbal, Kaleem Khan, Mubashir Admani, Omran Shafique, Sajid Ali, Saleem Khan, Shallum Xavier, Tanweer Hussain and Umer Daraz.

“Taking the reigns of the 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.” said STRINGS on producing season 7 of Coke Studio.