Music of Pakistan

The Music of Pakistan (Urdu: موسیقی پاکستان, romanized: Musiqi-ye Pakistan) is a fusion of Turko-Persian, Arab, North Indian, and contemporary Western influences, creating a distinct musical tradition often referred to as "Pakistani Music."^[1] The genre has adapted and evolved over time in response to shifting cultural norms and global influences. It has also been deeply shaped by Pakistan's tumultuous political and geopolitical landscape. The Islamization policies of the 1980s, which sought to align Pakistani culture with conservative ideals of Wahhabism, imposed strict censorship on music and musical expression.^[2][3][4] This period of repression was further fueled by the ongoing Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, during which Wahhabism was aggressively promoted with backing from the United States and Saudi Arabia as part of efforts to counter Soviet influence.^[5][6][7][8]

Although Pakistan as a nation emerged in 1947, the region it occupies has served as a historical crossroads for millennia. The Persian Empire, Turko-Persian dynasties, the Afghan Empire, Arab Caliphates, Indian dynasties, and British colonial rule, each era left defining imprints on the country's musical traditions, leading to classical forms like qawwali and ghazal, as well as vibrant folk music reflecting the country’s ethnic diversity—Punjabis, Pashtuns, Balti, Baloch, Hazaras, Sindhis, Wakhi, Shina and more.

In the late 20th century and beyond, globalization significantly influenced Pakistani music, with elements of Western popular music merging with local traditions to create contemporary genres. Diaspora Pakistanis in the West, such as Nazia Hassan, Zayn Malik (One Direction), Nadia Ali, and Annie Khalid, played a crucial role in introducing modern music to the Pakistani music scene. Their music resonated with younger Pakistani audiences, who saw in their success a representation of their own identity on the global stage, particularly at a time when that identity was under threat during the period of Islamization in Pakistan.

As of 2015, EMI Pakistan is the country's biggest record label, holding the licenses of some 60,000 Pakistani artists and around 70% of the total music of the country,^[9] while streaming service Patari has the largest independent digital collection, with some 3,000 artists and 50,000 songs.^[10]