Composing an Oppositional Discourse in Coke Studio Pakistan

Abstract

Coke Studio Pakistan (CSP) is a television show aired in Pakistan and available worldwide on digital platforms. The show features well-known and up-and-coming music artists alongside a studio band who cover contemporary and familiar songs. Some of the popular songs are fusions of traditional compositions and Western instrumentation. The Sufi renditions on the show are popular as well. The music produced on CSP is not necessarily unique to the nation state’s mediascape. Notwithstanding, the music is a novel presentation of Pakistani culture to a transnational audience. The following article positions the show in the dominant Western discourses that construct the nation as an intolerant and orthodox Islamic state harboring terrorists. The author argues that CSP composes an oppositional discourse by showcasing transgressively gendered performances and a mystical and subversive Islam.