It’s an exciting time to be listening to music in Pakistan, whether it’s branded music shows like Coke Studio or anthems for the Pakistan Super League. But what’s most exciting, and what doesn’t get much attention, is that the indie music scene of Pakistan is popping!

First of all, what do we mean when we say ‘indie’? An indie musician is someone who puts out music independently, without the help of a record label. In Pakistan, the record label culture barely exists anymore, so artists get divided based on two broad categories: commercial/mainstream and indie.

Pakistan’s indie sound has definitely become a lot more distinct, we have a lot more genres now (rap, trap, ambient) and the production quality of the music and videos could easily give any international name a run for their money. If you’re someone who wishes to get better acquainted with local music but don’t know where to look, this list is for you!

‘Yaari’ – Taha G

Taha G is barely a small name anymore but he’s still underrated compared to the quality of music he’s been putting out lately. He’s very regular and consistent with his releases and we particularly enjoy his videos, especially of his latest release ‘Yaari’.

Naraaz – Misbah, Fatima Khan and e.t lone

This is one of our favourite videos on the list! If you’re familiar with Jungle, a British electronic music group, you’ll see that Misbah might have taken some aesthetic inspiration from them. This marvelously-shot, one-take music video has some of the best dancers we’ve seen in Pakistan recently. Also, the song itself is really progressive and has a very fun, futuristic sound.

‘Iraaday’ – Abdul Hannan and Rovalio

In the mood for something light-hearted? ‘Iraaday’ is perfect for that. Abdul Hannan’s vocals are soft and calming, and he’s complemented the song with a wholesome, home-video style music video which is sweet and cute and perfect if you’re also falling in love nowadays.

‘Pretty Lies’ – Annural Khalid

Annural Khalid has one of the most beautiful voices, and we first discovered her when she posted a cover of Asim Azhar’s ‘Ghalat Fehmi’ on YouTube and it went viral. In fact, we could sit and listen to Annural singing just about anything. However, here’s an original of hers, called ‘Pretty Lies’.

‘Weli Ho’ – Hasan Raheem, Talhah Yunus and Abdullah Kasumbi

Hasan Raheem is barely an indie artist anymore (based on the description we mentioned earlier). He’s done a successful Coke Studio appearance, is performing to sold out shows across Pakistan, has become a popular name among millennials/Gen Z members. Talhah Yunus, one half of Young Stunners, can’t really be considered an indie name either for the same reasons. In fact, Young Stunners are the go-t0 names for all big music productions nowadays. But here they are on our list anyway because all these classifications are somewhat subjective and fluid (and also because we’re listening to ‘Weli Ho’ this week!)

‘EZ’ – Maanu and Salor

Perhaps this is what’s fun about indie music: artists are constantly breaking rules and are always versed in slangs, Pakistani meme culture, and that’s what comes across in Maanu and Salor’s song ‘EZ’. The song, which is already fun to listen to, is layered with samples of viral videos of Pakistan. The song starts off with audio bits from a very famous viral video of Pakistani police officers interrogating a foreigner on whether he had been having alcohol or not. “You tunn?” (the most famous line from that video) plays in the background, making this song all the more fun and culturally relevant!