Added: 02/28/2006 |
Famous Pakistani Singers - Nazia and Zoheb Hassan and HaroonAt least I was tight on one count: prior to the 1980's there was hardly any Pakistani pop music. The eighties were a real splash for various Pakistani singers and pop bands. Even if you take into consideration the bloom of Western culture in Pakistani music, particularly the duo of Nazia and Zoheb Hassan was a real singing sensation. By rights they were the pioneers of the Pakistani pop music scene in early eighties and one of the most prominent Pakistani singers.
In 1980, Nazia and Zoheb Hassan released their first album "Disco Deewane" which soon shot in local charts as number one. A year later the second album titled "Boom Boom" was released. It was even bigger sensation not only in Pakistan and South Asia but in the United Kingdom as well. The final hit that brought Nazia and Zoheb Hassan to stardom was the single "Aap Jaisa Koi" which was the cover song for the Indian movie "Qurbani".
However, the fame was not that easy in such a conservative state as Pakistan. Nazia and Zoheb had a lot of fans across the country as well as enemies especially among radical religious leaders. Some of them found the pair too improperly liberal especially after a nonchalant remark "had we not been sister and brother we might have married each other". After this controversial statement there were many protests against the duo sparked by the right wing in Pakistan. However having denied any rumors about such relations protests died down.
Nazia and Zoheb Hassan have released six albums with four being massive hits in the eighties. These were "Disco Deewane" (1980), "Boom Boom" (1981), "Young Tarang" (1985), "Hot Line" (1987), "Camera Camera" (1992) and Tonite (1994). In 1995, Nazia got married and Zoheb launched his solo career which however was short lived. Nazia Hassan tragically died of lung cancer in London in 2000 and Zoheb founded a charity foundation named after her to help create support for homeless Pakistani children.
The foundation also helps people by giving awards to persons building bridges between cultures helping make relationship between different peoples more harmonious. The recipients of these awards are selected from different fields varying from science, sports, arts, music, business, politics, humanities and charitable work. The Nazia Hassan Foundation endeavors to promote tighter fusion between various traditions, cultures and beliefs.
"Haroon" is one of the most popular Pakistani singers. Haroon was born in London to a Pakistani father and New Zealander mother. Haroon was the former lead singer for the patriotic Pakistani band "Awaz". Soon he left "Awaz" for launching his own solo career. His first self-titled album "Haroon" was released in 2000. His second album "Lagan" was released in 2002 and gathered many acclaims.
Haroon is well known for distinctive features found in his albums - he always tries to blend various genres such as Western rock and pop and Eastern motives and instruments. His music is heavily influenced by Western pop but songs are mostly performed in Punjabi, Arabic or Urdu such as his massive hit "Manbooba". Haroon is one of the most influential Pakistani singers still active.
Go figure. Thanks to Virgin Music stores and other outlets that carry international music, you can find and enjoy Pakistani music any time you want.
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