Spotify’s signature programme, EQUAL Pakistan, dedicated to bringing some of the country’s best female musicians into the spotlight, celebrates its second anniversary in March. To celebrate, Spotify is treating its listeners to an exciting data mix that shows the evolving landscape of female representation in the country’s music industry over the past year. To date, Spotify has added more than 6,900 female artists to EQUAL playlists and supported more than 1,000 ambassadors in their home countries and beyond through editorial, partnerships and marketing. EQUAL artists received 1.3 billion editorial streams within the first month of joining the program. In total, the EQUAL Center generated over 31 billion editorial streams during 1 billion hours of listening. In 2023 alone, more than 14.8 million artist discoveries were made through EQUAL playlists, and EQUAL artists received more than 11,800 total editorial playlist additions. “EQUAL Pakistan’s anniversary is a celebration of the resilient, tall female creators who shape the fabric of our music industry, and with EQUAL Pakistan we aim to empower these creators to occupy more space,” said Rutaba Yaqub, Editor-in-Chief of Spotify. for Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.” “In the past year, there has been a more than 25% increase in streams for local female artists globally in 2023 compared to the previous year, while there has been a visible increase in local consumption female local artists experience a 44% increase in 2023 streams, highlighting their growing influence and appeal among local listeners.” According to data released by Spotify, Asteria has seen a staggering 408% increase and Hareem Rashid has seen a significant 281% increase in monthly listeners in just one month after being listed as EQUAL ambassadors in Pakistan for October and November 2023, demonstrating a significant amplification of some of the freshest voices emerging in Pakistan. Tina Sani, Aima Baig and Sanam Marvi also recorded the highest increase in listenership since joining EQUAL Pakistan. The programming of local female artists on Spotify playlists also saw a commendable 20% increase in 2023, reflecting EQUAL Pakistan’s concerted efforts to showcase and promote their talent to a wider audience. The presence of renowned names such as Momina Mustehsan, Nazia Hassan, Quratuluin Balouch, Abida Parveen and Hadiqa Kiani among the top local female artists worldwide for 2023 underscores the global impact of Pakistani talent and Spotify’s ability to bring these voices to an international audience. Continuing its mission to highlight some of the country’s most talented female voices through EQUAL Pakistan, Spotify announced Zeb Bangash as its ambassador for the month of March this year and featured her song “Lajpal Ali” on the EQUAL Pakistan playlist. With her captivating music, Zeb has gained more than 100,000 listeners per month in many countries, India, Pakistan, USA, UK and Canada being the best among them.
