Coke Studio (Pakistani season 7)

Coke Studio
Season 7
season 7 logo
Starring	Featured Artists
Country of origin	Pakistan
No. of episodes	7
Release
Original release	21 September (2014-09-21) – 22 November 2014 (2014-11-22)
Additional information
Website	cokestudio.com.pk/season7/
Season chronology
← Previous Season 6 Next → Season 8
List of episodes

The seventh season of the Pakistani music television series Coke Studio premiered on 21 September 2014.^[1] and aired it finale 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 has caught the media attention everywhere.^[2] Season premiered under the tagline of Sound of the Nation.^[3]

Season seven is produced by Strings (band)^[4] as previous seasons producer Rohail Hyatt quit on 22 January 2014.^[5] while Coca-Cola returns as an executive producer. The band's duo, Bilal Maqsood and Faisal Kapadia produced the show for the first time. While they briefly appeared as featured artists in season one and season two, the duo took three months to complete the production of the series.^[6] Season featured twenty-three artists, twenty-two musicians and twenty-eight songs.^[7] Also season is revamped with new house bands which includes musicians, backing vocalists and guest musicians.^[8]

Season changes[]

Season Seven witnesses many changes ranging from 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's Rohail Hyatt as a producer due to the personal reasons, String's Bilal Maqsood and Faisal Kapadia took the charge of season, bringing back the rock, folk, pop and sufi genres of Coke Studio, with the season's Pakistani featured artists, many artists reprise their appearances from the previous seasons. This season pays homage to the Sound of the Nation. In a series of firsts, Season 7 delve 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, painted with white.

With many new additions, Coke Studio endeavors 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.^[9]

Artists[]

Featured Artists[]

Following is the list of twenty-four Featured Artist Line-up, that will perform as individuals, duo's and with chorus:^[10][11]

Musicians[]

With the departure of Rohail, House Band is almost completely revamped with new artists. Momin Durrani and Sara Haider are the first artists who make their debut as a featured artist and also served as a back singers while Rachel returns to season 7 with her third appearance as a backing singer.^[12]

Production[]

Coke Studio returns, after the sudden and abrupt ending of season six, because of copyright issues^[13] and bids the farewell to longtime producer Rohail Hyatt. After Rohail departure, Coca-Cola approaches Strings band duo, Bilal Maqsood and Faisal Kapadia who had appeared as a featured artists in first two seasons. Shooting of Season 7 begins from May to July, while editing, development and progressive stages completes in July.^[14] In an interview with Dawn, Bilal said:

"We're going to stay true to the CS feel and continue to merge elements of folk with modern music. There are so many untapped musical treasures in Pakistan and we're looking forward to exploring into them. At the same time, we're hoping to bring back the oomph that has been missing from the show during the past few years. Coke Studio was spectacular up till Season 3 but after that, it lost out on its element of surprise. We plan to bring it back."

— Bilal Maqsood – Dawn News.^[15]

While talking to Instep Magazine, answering to a question Faisal said:

"We had no idea how Rohail worked. Our interaction with the show, in the first two seasons, was restricted to our performances. During the first season, we weren't comfortable with the arrangement and requested Rohail if we would play with our own band and it was just such a generous reaction on Rohail's part to let us play with our band. Because now that we’ve worked with this CS7 house band for months, if someone comes in and wants to bring in their own band, we may not agree. Rohail said yes, but apart from that we didn't know what else he did or how he ran the show. We made our own system…"

— Bilal Maqsood, Instep Magazine, 17 August 2014.^[16]

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".^[17]

Episodes[]

#	Release Date [N 1]	Song(s) performed		Artist(s)	Language(s)	Ref.
		Title	In Nastaʿlīq [N 2]
Episode 1
1	20 September 2014	Sab Aakho Ali Ali	سب آکھو علی علی	Asrar	Punjabi	[18]
2		Tum Naraz Ho	تم ناراض ہو	Sajjad Ali	Urdu
3		Lai Beqadaraan Naal Yaari	لائی بے قدراں نال یاری	Niazi Brothers	Punjabi
4		Mein Sufi Hoon		Abida Parveen & Ustad Raees Khan	Braj, Punjabi & Urdu
Episode 2
5	27 September 2014	Washmallay	وش ملّے	Komal Rizvi, Akhtar Chanal Zahri &	Balochi & Brahui	[19]
6		Phool Banro	پھول بنڑو	Humira Channa & Abbas Ali Khan	Marwari
7		Chehra	چہرہ	Zohaib Hassan	Urdu
8		Charkha	چرخہ	Javed Bashir	Punjabi
Episode 3
9	4 October 2014	Jhoolay Laal	جھولے لال	Sajjad Ali & Fariha Pervez	Punjabi	[20]
10		Balori	بلوری	Meesha Shafi	Punjabi
11		Nadiya	ندیا	Jimmy Khan & Rahma Ali	Urdu
12		Dost	دوست	Abida Parveen	Urdu
Episode 4
13	11 October 2014	Shakar Wandaan Re	شکر ونڈاں رے	Asrar	Punjabi	[21]
14		Ambwa Talay	امبوا تلے	Humaira Channa & Javed Bashir	Braj
15		Dheeray Dheeray	دھیرے دھیرے	Zohaib Hassan	Urdu
16		Bone Shaker
Episode 5
17	18 October 2014	Mujhay Baar Baar	مجھے بار بار	Abbas Ali Khan	Urdu	[22]
18		Pehla Pyar	پہلا پیار	Jimmy Khan	Urdu
19		Mitti Da Pehlwan	مٹّی دا پلوان	Jawad Ahmad	Punjabi
20		Kheryaan De Naal	کھیڑیاں	Niazi Brothers	Punjabi
Episode 6
21	15 November 2014	Yaad	یاد	Javed Bashir	Siraiki	[23]
22		Chaap Tilak	چھاپ تلک	Abida Parveen & Rahat Fateh Ali Khan	Braj
23		Jaana	جاناں	Zohaib Hassan & Zoe Viccaji	Urdu
24		Descent to the Ocean Floor
Episode 7
25	22 November 2014	Suth Gaana	گانا سٹھ	Sajjad Ali	Punjabi	[24]
26		Pani Da Bulbula	بلبال دا پانی	Abrar-ul-Haq	Punjabi
27		Za Sta Pashan Na Yam	یم نه پشان سته ځه	Naseer And Shahab	Pashto
28		Hans Dhuni		Ustad Raees Khan

Reception and review[]

Before the episode hitting to 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 previous seasons Drummer Gumby was heavily demanded and appreciated for his work. Despite the abrupt ending of season six, people still admire Rohail and willing to see him back.

Bilal Masood the producer of series said:

"Taking the reigns 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".^[25]

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."

The 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."

See also[]

• Pakistan Music Stars
• Music of Pakistan

Notes and references[]

Notes[]

References[]

External links[]

• Official website
• Coke Studio at IMDb