Our Top Picks From Coke Studio Season 13
Coke Studio is the biggest music platform for artists in Pakistan, giving them both a space and a voice to showcase their immense talent and potential to a vast audience. With songs ranging from classical to fusion, eastern, western and combinations of all the aforementioned genres, Pakistanis can enjoy tracks from our very own right here in the country!
With many successful seasons being released to date, season 13 is full of even more excitement and musical collaborations such as Ustaad Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and Zara Madani, Umair Jaswal and Sanam Marvi, and the whole girl gang including Meesha Shafi, Sehar Gul Khan, Wajiha Naqvi, Fariha Pervez, Sanam Marvi and Zara Madani. Although only 3 episodes have been released so far we have picked our favourites this season!
The Season Opener - Na Tutteya Ve
This Season 13 opener is started off with a bang, consisting of a group of powerful female artists including Meesha Shafi, Wajiha Naqvi, Sehar Gul Khan, Zara Madani, Sanam Marvi and Fariha Pervez. Na Tutteya Ve is all about empowerment. Producer Rohail Hyatt had shared earlier that this season will also be focusing on social messages, which is exactly what the all girl anthem does!
We can't help but move along to this catchy upbeat performance with a very serious message, highlighting the strength of a woman, and how her spirit will not break. What manages to hit the nail on the head is Meesha Shafi's rap performance for the first time in her career, which adds an edge to the passionate track, describing the resilience and admirable characteristics of a woman.
Har Funn Maula
The third episode features a song about spiritual love, with Umair Jaswal and Sanam Marvi's duo making this rock-dhamaal fusion a delight to listen to. Umair Jaswal's strong vocals bring in the rock edge element and Sanam Marvi's voice adds a serene, Sufi twist to the spiritual track. Speaking about prayer, longing for perfection, and to be a better human being, the song greatly emphasises on devotion, as indicated by its Sufi flair with a contemporary touch, ideal for the year!
Ishq Da Kukkar
Speaking about the song, Sehar Gul Khan professed that “As I sang the song, with each verse, I felt like I was being transported, elevated into a completely different world. I’ve tried my best to share that experience through the song.”
The global pandemic brought its share of devastation with it, but also gave us time to reflect and observe things about ourselves we may not have been aware of without spending time by ourselves and even realising what we are grateful for. Ishq Da Kukkar sends a beautiful message, with fusions of Urdu, Seraiki, Punjabi and the Middle East, the song is an early morning call to prayer by a bird, who is devoted to the Creator.
Composed by Asim Raza, the song's magical quality is shown through Sehar Gul Khan's majestic voice as it expresses gratitude, yearning and devotion to the Almighty, all the while describing the 'Bird of Love' and all there is to appreciate. For an elevating moment and spiritual experience, Ishq Da Kukkar is a must-listen!
Yaqeen
The harmony in season 13's latest episode is evident in Wajiha Ather Naqvi's original, Yaqeen. With serene vocals, classical elements and strong vocals, Wajiha manages to captivate the audience with a song about self love and trusting oneself, sending an important message.
The modern-raga track takes you on a journey of self-belief and empowerment, with a touch of pop music as well. Relying on yourself and remaining resilient needs to be discussed more often, and with Wajiha's solo that encouragement and hope is brought out beautifully.
Dil Tarpe
Nothing compares to Ustaad Rahat Fateh Ali Khan's unparalleled vocals, as he and the classically trained Zara Madani woo the audience by putting a modern twist on this Tarana, not to mention the Qawalli flavour adding to the fusion. With an experimental take on a classical track, this song is about emotions, where one implores his beloved to have mercy on their heart, also invoking help from the Almighty.
With spiritual inclinations and love, the modern Tarana explores a conversation a person has with his or herself, when longing for peace in their beloved's company.
Talented artists such as Ali Pervez Mehdi, Fariha Pervez, Ali Noor and Mehdi Maloof have performed on the latest season produced by Rohail Hyatt so far, as we eagerly await to see what it has in store for future episodes to groove to!