Coke Studio (Pakistani season 7)


The seventh season of the Pakistani music television series Coke Studio premiered on 21 September 2014. 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. Season premiered under the tagline of Sound of the Nation.
Season seven is produced by Strings as previous seasons producer Rohail Hyatt quit on 22 January 2014. 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 :category:Coke Studio artists|featured artists in season one and season two, the duo took three months to complete the production of the series. Season featured twenty-three artists, twenty-two musicians and twenty-eight songs. Also season is revamped with new house bands which includes musicians, backing vocalists and guest musicians.

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.

Artists

Featured Artist

Following is the list of twenty-four Featured Artist Line-up, that will perform as individuals, duo's and with chorus:
For season 7, following is the list of backing vocalist that serves vocal harmony with the lead vocalist. 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.
With the departure of Rohail, House Band is almost completely revamped with new artists. The following is a list of featured line-up musicians:

House Band (Personals)

Following is the list of Guest musicians that will support the Season 7 primary musicians, many guest musicians are from previous seasons, Ghulam Abbas, Shallum Xavier, Omran Shafique and Javed Iqbal are among them who served as the main musicians in previous seasons and now have a guest appearance in season seven.
Following are the list of Strings band musicians, that contributed in this season along with Faisal and Bilal.
Coke Studio returns, after the sudden and abrupt ending of season six, because of copyright issues 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. 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".

Songs

Broadcast

Season Seven on airs its episode at following television channels and radio stations in Pakistan.

Television

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".

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."