What are Pakistanis listening to on Spotify?

Following the completion of the second year of Spotify in Pakistan, the music streaming platform has released interesting data regarding which local and international artists are most popular among people across the country.

Indian crooner Arjit Singh is the most streamed international singer in three provinces — Balochistan, Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) — a statement from the platform said, while the singer that can be hailed as the unanimous king among local artists is Atif Aslam, who is the most streamed local artist throughout all four provinces. 

Sindh

With Aslam being the most streamed local artist, Young Stunners, Hassan Raheem, Asim Azhar, and Abdul Hannan completed the top five local artist list. In terms of tracks, Pasoori remained the most streamed track in Karachi and Hyderabad, while it was the fifth most streamed song in Sukkur.

According to data revealed by Spotify, once again, music transcended land borders with King’s Tu Aake Dekh Le being the second most streamed song in Karachi and Hyderabad.

While Iraaday and Bikhra, two stunning chart toppers from Hannan and Rovalio followed by AP Dhillon’s Excuses completed the top 5 list for Karachi, Hyderabad had Bikhra, followed by Excuses and Kaifi Khalil’s Kahani Suno 2.0 in the top 5 tracks.

Punjab

The love for Pasoori continues to be unflinching across Pakistan. It comes as no surprise then that the track is among the top five most streamed songs in Faisalabad, Gujranwala, Islamabad, Lahore, Multan, and Sialkot. Other tracks that completed the leading five list in most cities of Punjab included Excuses and Insane by Dhillon, 295 by Sidhu Moosewala, and Bikhra.

In local top tracks charts, Khalil’s Kahani Suno 2.0 has been a notable addition receiving love across the province. Ranked among the top five most streamed songs in Faisalabad, Gujranwala, Islamabad, Lahore, Multan and Sialkot. Other tracks that have garnered immense admiration from audiences across the province include Bikhra, Iraaday, Ghalat Fehmi by Azhar, and Gumaan by Young Stunners.

As for the most streamed local artists, Aslam at the top was followed by Young Stunners, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan (NFAK), Raheem and Rahat Fateh Ali Khan (RFAK).

Balochistan and KP

In both eastern provinces, songs from Pakistan’s western provinces were streamed the most. While Aslam reigned supreme as the most streamed local artist in Balochistan and KP, Hannan made his way to the second berth in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with Young Stunners, NFAK, and Azhar completing the lineup.

As for Balochistan, the list saw Azhar make an appearance at the third spot after Aslam and Young Stunners. RFAK and Hannan were the fourth and fifth most streamed local artists in the province.

Regarding top tracks, the local sensation, Eva B has made a mark for herself with Kana Yaari in Quetta, Balochistan.

Other most streamed songs in both provinces remain the same as what audiences from Punjab are listening to.

Love for K-pop

A surprising insight that Spotify’s recent data revelations showcased was an uptick in the number of people streaming K-pop. BTS in particular, are amongst the top 5 most streamed artists in Sindh, Azad Jammu and Kashmir as well as Balochistan. Cities including Islamabad, Gujranwala, Hyderabad, Karachi, Peshawar and Quetta all showcased immense love for the teen band. In Sukkur, three out of the top five most streamed songs are k-pop.

This trend underlines the diversity in the music of listeners across the country. At the same time, it demonstrates how audiences are changing perspectives especially when it comes to music consumption in Pakistan. Tracks like Yet to Come, Dreamers, the official FIFA Qatar World Cup 2022 soundtrack and Dynamite are among the leading k-pop tracks in the country.