Daily Times

The promo for the show’s 12th season shows some of the Coke Studio roster speaking about what music means to them and why it is so important.

The score of the video already gives a glimpse of what to expect from the upcoming season and yes, we’re already getting the nostalgic vibes of the early Coke Studio days.

The Coke Studio roster for season 12 includes Abrar-ul-Haq, Aima Baig, Ali Sethi, Atif Aslam, Banur’s Band, Barkat Jamal Fakir Troupe, Fareed Ayaz and Abu Muhammad with Humnawa, Fariha Pervez, Hadiqa Kiani, Harsakhiyan, Kashif Din, Nimra Rafiq, Quratulain Baloch, Rachel Viccaji, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Sahir Ali Bagga, Sanam Marvi, Shahab Hussain, Shamali Afghan, Shuja Haider, Umair Jaswal, Zeb Bangash and Zoe Viccaji.

This season, there will also be a number of guest musicians dropping by to show off their musical abilities such as Sajid Ali on Flute, Omran Shafique on Guitar, Syed Saif Abbas on Bass Guitar, Sadiq Sameer on Rubab, Shahzad Ali on Harmonium, Fazal Abbas on Tabla, Shakoor Faqeer on Khamach, and Noor Baksh on Banjo as guest musicians.

Since its inception in 2008, Coke Studio has become Pakistan’s most popular TV music show and an international franchise with a huge following on social media. It is seen as something that promotes a positive image of Pakistan, a country that often makes headlines for all the wrong reasons.

Coke Studio started airing in broadcast syndication in 2008 with former member of popular Pakistani pop and rock band Vital Signs (1986-1998) Rohail Hyatt as executive music producer. It was a terrible time for the Pakistani music industry, with record labels going bankrupt, music channels shifting to foreign content and increased piracy.

In spite of all the chaos in Pakistan at the time, the masses found faith in Coke Studio, ultimately leading to critical acclaim for the show and Hyatt. Apart from the first season, which was performed in front of a live studio audience, from the second season and onward, the show took a different turn, with artists performing in a closed studio setting. Hyatt was the executive producer for seven seasons until he left and Bilal Maqsood and Faisal Kapadia, members of Strings, one of Pakistan’s most popular pop-rock groups, took charge from the seventh season.