How Spotify Is Powering Music Discovery in Pakistan

Music discovery in Pakistan is becoming faster, more intentional, and increasingly local-led, and much of that shift is being shaped by how listeners are engaging with music on Spotify today.

To unpack what’s driving this, we sat down with Spotify’s editorial team for Pakistan to get their perspective — a series of insider takes on how discovery is evolving, from the genres breaking through to the behaviors shaping what people listen to next.

Discovery has become more active and more intentional

Music discovery in Pakistan today is no longer passive — it’s driven by curiosity. Over the past year alone, discoveries on Spotify have grown by over 30%, reaching more than 546 million discoveries in 2025, as listeners actively seek out new music rather than waiting for it to find them.

This shift is also reflected in behavior, with the average listener now streaming over 140 artists a year, pointing to a culture of exploration, where audiences are constantly moving across sounds, genres, and artists.

At the same time, the landscape itself has matured. With streaming providing artists a direct path to release music and reach new audiences, both locally and globally, there has been a noticeable increase in release frequency in the past 5 years, creating a more dynamic and competitive ecosystem where discovery is continuous.

Editorial and product surfaces are reshaping how music is found

From an editorial perspective, discovery today is closely tied to how music is surfaced and experienced. Playlists built around moods, moments, and cultural touchpoints are helping audiences discover music in more contextual and personal ways, allowing the same track to live across multiple listening moments and reach new audiences each time.

In Pakistan, this is particularly visible through playlists like “Fresh Finds Pakistan,” dedicated to raw emerging talent, as well as “nayi bars” and “New Pakistani Pop”, which spotlight the latest in local hip hop and pop. These sit alongside mood-led and everyday listening playlists such as “Chai & Chill” and “Gham Hour”, as well as personalized surfaces like “Discover Weekly”, “Daily Mix”, and daylist. Together, these create multiple pathways for listeners to encounter new music — often placing emerging artists alongside familiar sounds.

Local sounds are not just growing, they’re defining the moment

The rise of genres like Pakistani pop, with an increase of over 9,600%, and desi hip hop, with an increase over 2,800% since 2021, reflects a deeper shift in the country’s sonic identity.

Desi hip hop, in particular, has seen significant growth over the past five years. While the genre had an existing audience, its recent momentum is being driven by a distinctly local interpretation. Hip hop in Urdu places a strong emphasis on lyricism, storytelling, and relatability, often drawing comparisons to poetry, which has helped it resonate deeply with younger audiences.

This evolution has been closely supported by editorial curation. Spotify’s “A.S.L.I” playlist, dedicated to hip hop, has played a key role in shaping and amplifying the genre, spotlightingartists who are redefining what hip hop sounds like in a local context.

At the same time, Pakistani pop continues to remain at the forefront, driven by a steady stream of releases and its strong presence in local charts. Where international tracks once dominated, local music is now increasingly shaping what listeners discover and engage with.

A new wave of artists is emerging, faster than before

Lower barriers to entry have enabled more artists to release music and find their audience, creating a new generation of talent coming through the ecosystem. Editorial support plays a key role in this, helping surface emerging voices at the right moment and giving them visibility across playlists and on-platform touchpoints.

Programs like RADAR Pakistan and EQUAL Pakistan are also contributing to this shift, helping accelerate artist growth. Artists like Annural Khalid and Maanu have seen rapid increases in listenership and followers within weeks of being featured, reflecting how quickly momentum can build in today’s discovery landscape.

Annural Khalid saw an increase of over 2,250% in monthly listeners and nearly 250% growth in followers within 28 weeks of joining RADAR Pakistan, while Maanu saw an increase of nearly 800% in monthly listeners and nearly 600% growth in followers within 36 weeks.

Old and new are blending in unexpected ways

One of the most distinctive aspects of music discovery in Pakistan today is how legacy and contemporary sounds coexist. Artists like Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan continue to rank among the most-streamed in the country, with younger audiences rediscovering his music alongside newer releases.

This is not just nostalgia, it’s influence. Elements of qawwali and Sufi music, from vocal styles to instrumentation like harmonium and tabla, are increasingly being reinterpreted in modern pop and hip hop. Producers like Umair are incorporating these sounds into contemporary production, while tracks featuring full qawwali-inspired choruses such as Asim Azhar’s “Meri Zindagi Hai Tu” are becoming more prominent, creating a sound that feels both rooted and current.

Discovery is becoming global — starting with the diaspora

The path to success for Pakistani artists is also evolving. Rather than following a linear journey, artists today are building audiences across multiple markets simultaneously — particularly within diaspora communities in the UK, US, Canada, and the UAE. This shift is already visible in the data, with Pakistani music exports on Spotify growing by nearly 620% over the past five years, pointing to a rapid expansion of global listenership.

These markets are becoming key entry points for global discovery, with touring, streaming, and audience engagement helping music travel beyond borders. Over time, this is creating new opportunities for international reach and collaboration, as local sounds begin to resonate with wider global audiences.

Together, these shifts point to a music ecosystem where discovery is continuous — shaped not just by what is released, but by how it is surfaced, shared, and experienced by listeners.