“I think nepotism is an issue that Pakistan needs to get rid of now”

INSTEPINTERVIEW

Abdullah Qureshi was introduced to Islamabad six years ago via popular concerts in the intimate Capital circle; he simultaneously emerged through putting out crisply recorded covers on YouTube. Now, he has successfully won himself massive fanfare, nationwide gigs and acclaim from the critics. Though Abdullah is yet to claim an identity in the music industry, he is undoubtedly a promising addition to the otherwise formula-driven and artificially sweetened vocals we get to see all too often.

In conversation with Instep, Qureshi opens up about his journey so far, his passion for music, how the industry functions and what he has in store next.

Instep: You started off your career with covers, moving onto originals with extensive music videos as well. How has the journey been and at what point did you realize that you wanted to pursue music professionally?

Abdullah Qureshi (AQ): The journey has been fun for me, honestly, and that’s only because I love what I do. It’s difficult when you’re doing something you don’t want to do, but in my case, my work is my passion. I was one of the first ones in Pakistan to start making studio recorded covers with good quality videos, these were the YouTube days (before it got banned), so I got a lot of attention in a very short span of time which led to us getting a lot of calls for concerts. These were paid concerts and I was only 16. It was a huge deal for me; I guess that’s when I decided that I want to do it professionally.

Instep: How forthcoming do you think the fraternity at large is to newcomers from the outside?

AQ: I think nepotism is an issue that Pakistan needs to get rid of now, not just in the music industry but in every field. However, with social media on your fingertips, it’s really easy to connect with your fans, release your music on your own and get business out of it. But let’s face it, Coke Studio is the biggest music show in Pakistan and if they use pretty faces in five out of twenty songs to get attention, they do get the attention they’re looking for. I just personally feel that it’s not the right thing to do when you’re this big a platform; you lose your credibility that way.

Instep: Do you think that the corporate sector’s involvement often overpowers the creative side of the craft? How important do you think it is for musicians in Pakistan to get certain brands on-board?

AQ: With no record labels left, you do need brands to invest in your music and music videos. But yes, they do sometimes play around with your creativity, not giving you the freedom to say what you actually want to deliver. That’s understandable, they have to take care of their brand image as well and if you’re an intelligent artist and you know what you want out of it, you do meet common points with the brand.

Instep: The band culture has been able to flourish again; do you have any experience of being a band-member in your early days or do you plan to group with musicians now?

AQ: My band members who play with me now are my best friends and we’ve been in different underground bands back in the days. I used to play the guitar in a few bands because I was shy to come out as a vocalist, although I’m singing since I was literally three. But the appreciation from the fans really gave me a confidence-boost and I was releasing covers under my own name so my band members decided to get rid of the band name and started promoting me as ‘Abdullah Qureshi’, which eventually really helped us getting offers. I’m thankful to them till date, and it’s a great feeling to play with your best friends on stage. I’m a solo artist for the world, but we’re a band of brothers.

Instep: A number of musicians have also worked towards reviving the album culture in Pakistan as well. Would that be financially viable considering the digital influx and piracy?

AQ: I think an album is a must-have for a musician. It’s a story, it defines who you are as an artist, but sadly our attention-span has become so short because of the excessive use of social media and that doesn’t allow the audience to sit down and listen to a whole album. So these days, you just need to spoon feed them, one song at a time. You give them a whole album and trust me, most of them will only listen to the title track and that would be it.

Instep: Lastly, what are you currently working on and are you planning on experimenting with genres or are there collaborations in store?

AQ: My New Year’s Resolution is to release, at least, four to five songs this year. Two are already recorded and will be out really soon. Yes, I’m experimenting on genres, the upcoming song has a very Punjabi, country feel to it, some of the others are chilled-out love songs and then some have the pop-rock craziness too. There are a lot of surprises, which I can’t wait to share with the fans.