Abdullah Siddiqui and Meesha Shafi come together for ‘Magenta Cyan’

September 13, 2020

With his latest release, ‘Magenta Cyan’ in which the prolific Meesha Shafi is the featured artist, Abdullah has also released a music video that is stark and almost achromatic in hues.

For a young independent artist, Abdullah Siddiqui has managed some serious accomplishments in a very short period. In between releasing his debut album, Metannoya last year, he appeared on Nescafe Basement (‘Resistance’) and went on to collaborate with Fawad Khan for his song, ‘Uth Jaag’.

While those collaborations were corporate and included a bevy of people besides Abdullah Siddiqui, his latest record, Heterotopia leaves no room for anyone besides Abdullah Siddiqui and artists he wanted to feature on certain songs.

Unlike previous releases from his upcoming sophomore effort, Heterotopia (due to release very soon) such as collaborative singles with Zoe Viccaji, Shamoon Ismail and Maanu as well as a very creative single, ‘Preacher’ - none were backed by proper music videos.

With his latest release, ‘Magenta Cyan’ in which the prolific Meesha Shafi is the featured artist, Abdullah has also released a music video that is stark and almost achromatic in hues.

Speaking about the music video, Abdullah told Instep that ‘Magenta Cyan’ is co-directed by Meesha Shafi and Abdullah Siddiqui and shared that it was a great experience. He further explained that while Abdullah had Meesha Shafi in mind when he was writing this song, he didn’t expect her to say yes to the collaboration and was stoked when she agreed.

The fruit of this labour of love from Abdullah Siddiqui and Meesha Shafi is a) one of the strongest tracks on the album and b) one of the strongest collaborations in 2020.

If a bridge can be made between indie and mainstream music scene, Abdullah and Meesha are just the right candidates to take this idea forward and remove the distance between the two. With ‘Magenta Cyan’, they have floored critics while fans are just as impressed. The comments given to the music video on YouTube are mostly positive for Abdullah and Meesha with some calling the latter the most experimental musician in mainstream music at present. We totally agree. Abdullah has, meanwhile, knocked it out of the park, once more. Watch out for this song and Abdullah’s upcoming sophomore album, Heterotopia. He is truly the whiz kid of music.

Ali Azmat, Ali Noor, Ali Hamza, and Asim Azhar join forces

Like clockwork, every year on September 6, Pakistan marks the annual Defence Day. This particular day serves as inspiration to many-a-musicians.

2020 in that sense, is no different as three generation of musicians: Ali Azmat; Noori brothers and Asim Azhar joined hands to create a single called ‘Har Ghari Tayyar Kamran’ - dedicated to those who lost their lives for this country.

While some songs made for this day have often proven to be banal, this single is a combination of just the right musicians. After all, Asim Azhar is the star for the youth; Noori restarted the music scene after Junoon called it off and have been around for decades; Ali Azmat reinvented himself as a solo musician post-Junoon and is still considered the ultimate rockstar who is as relevant as he was during Junoon days.

When such prominent musicians come together, it does make an impact. Patriotic in its spirit, the single is produced by Ali Hamza – who is set to release his debut album this year. There’s energy, passion that the musicians bring to the table as they remind us of the soldiers on the borders, always willing to lay down their life for the country. Interesting collaboration with an anthemic vibe, this single works beyond Defence Day as well and that is a huge accomplishment.

Ali Tariq’s celebrity rises with new single, ‘Chaho Na

Ali Tariq, who first featured and inevitably caught attention during Nescafe Basement 5 for the excellent cover version of Haroon’s ‘Mehbooba’ has come a long way.

Since then, he has featured on the soundtrack of several OSTs including the colorful, star-studded film, Parey Hut Love. He has also played some public and private gigs to near-perfection.

But Ali Tariq is looking to move up in the music world. His 2019 single, ‘Ek Raaz Ki Baat’ fetched him a SEPMA trophy (Shaan e Pakistan Music Awards) in the category of best pop music - earlier this year. Whether he should have won or not can only be determined by the song and it’s a beautiful song.

With his newest single, ‘Chaho Na, Ali has cemented his position as a singer who has the ability to sing in different tones and the result is a good, pop song. It is not easy to make a good pop song that can appeal to a large number of people. But Ali has repeated his abilities to do so with ‘Chaho Na’.

Attached with a music video, for the song, Ali has played most of the instrument(s) himself, which bodes well for his future. This is one solo musician who is slowly entering mainstream and he must be encouraged for he has the talent and the hunger to make it. In the meantime, check out his cool new release. 


Abdullah Siddiqui and Meesha Shafi come together for ‘Magenta Cyan’