Nazia Hassan honoured by Spotify’s Equal Pakistan Ambassador initiative for the month of August

To commemorate her 22nd death anniversary on August 13, it is befitting that Spotify chose this month to posthumously pay tribute to the nightingale voiced artist, who was truly a pioneer.

Nazia Hassan, a pioneering pop artist, often remembered as the nightingale of Pakistani pop as it was beginning, passed away in August 2000 at the age of just 35, succumbing to lung cancer on August 13. Born on April 03, 1965, she was a groundbreaking force in filmi and disco pop. With brother Zoheb Hasan and producer Biddu, her work in the ‘80s and ‘90s paved way for acts like Vital Signs and many others who came after her.

Apart from awards, Nazia’s discography is something marvelous.From a range of studio albums to playback singing across the border, she was a groundbreaking artist. Her popularity was not limited to Pakistan but across the border as well as Britain. Still known as the nightingale of Asia, her music left an indelible mark in the minds of fans, past and present.

Meesha Shafi covered her song ‘Boom Boom’ in what was a heartfelt tribute to the late singer backed by a thrilling performance on Velo Sound Station; FDVM, on their visit to Pakistan, performed a cover of her song, ‘Disco Deewane (Tri-bute Edit)’. Other artists such as Hussain Dossa have played at least one song from her extensive repertoire at a gig and Zoe Viccaji has covered her songs in concerts. In life and in death, Nazia Hassan remains a cultural, musical icon who continues to inspire and influence artists. For many fans, she will always be a fascinating figure for achieving so much at a time when the establishment was not exactly open to her brand of music, much less of a young wo-man who was musically, visually, sonically and intellectually ahead of her time.

So, this effort by Spotify to remind us of her as Equal Pakistan Ambassador for the month of August comes at the right time.

The Equal Pakistan Ambassador is part of the streaming site’s initiative to forward the contribution of female artists from Pakistan.

Nazia is being honoured posthumously. As part of the initiative, noted a press statement, “She will light up Times Square, NYC, by being featured on a digital billboard in one of the world’s most recognized locations.”

As part of the Equal Pakistan initiative, her music will once again appear before a demographic that’s younger and may or may not know her works, singles and her disco, filmi, pop pioneering ways. She will be featured in global and local playlists and could very well be introduced to a global audience including the millennial and woke generation. Once you hear her songs, Nazia enters the category of timeless music.

Said Zoheb Hassan, in a press statement, “I’d like to thank Spotify for nominating my sister Nazia Hassan as the [Equal] Ambassador for Pakistan and Global. As kids we’ve been sincere to our art and music. When we started, we filled the void for pop music for youngsters at the time when folk and traditional music dominated the music scene across South Asia. Our music eventually transcended across the world, proving that music does not have any boundaries. It is also important for artists to use their popularity for social changes as we tried when we were young, from looking after the environment to advocating peace.”

Nazia Hassan’s contribution to music, in a word is, unforgettable.Past Equal Pakistan Ambassadors include Natasha Baig (July), Zoha Zuberi (June), Hadiqa Kiani (May), Mehak Ali(April) and Arooj Aftab (March).