In 2006, having launched his first single “Sitam” in a booming music industry, young Ali Ashraf made the decision to travel to England for a rather unconventional academic pursuit: a Master’s Degree in Filmmaking.
Passionate, ambitious and energetic, Ali Ashraf returned to Pakistan to chase his dreams and explore new avenues.
Little did he know, however, of how drastically things had changed in the land he held so close to his heart.
The Pakistan he knew, a Pakistan where the echoes of budding musicians graced television screens, a Pakistan where a structured music industry had given young artists a chance to spend their lives doing what they loved most, a Pakistan where legacy music platforms to amplify and project the voices of the country were aplenty, that Pakistan had changed.
The melodies of Pakistani music had been replaced by the thunderous rumbles of suicide bombs, and the incumbent Talibanisation which followed as a consequence had led to a complete shutdown of concerts and eventually music channels and labels.
In 2015 he recorded his first album “Paheli” and realized the absence of a platform that could help him deliver the content and create his audience.
With ten songs and three music videos from the album, he thought he would have to do everything. From concepts to talking to radio and television, PR, publishing, marketing, distribution – in an environment which was not at all conducive to the growth of music.
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Ali Ashraf realized that the secret to change is to focus his energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new. Combining his filmmaking and advertising expertise with his undying love for music, Echo Records was born to harness the untapped potential of Pakistan’s music industry by giving an end to end platform which covers the entire chain of music business and amplifies the talent of budding musician.
It started off small with gigs at local café’s of Islamabad and then caught a wave of connectivity between artists and newer audiences.
For Ali Ashraf it was never about the lack of music but it was about the revival of the audience. His efforts that started from café’ gigs lead to Echo Rock Fest, a very famous and Rock Festival of Pakistan held in Islamabad every year since 2016.
It was here that bands like Aarish, Balckhour, Jasim Haider & the Pindi Boys found a stage to amplify their sound.
Ali Ashraf still believes that there is a huge gap still felt which needs a lot of support, finding and government intervention to help the arts flourish in Pakistan.
An overwhelming response from artists across the country led to the creation of EchoMusic.tv, Pakistan’s first online music channel, which, in a span of two years, not only achieved the perfect mix of content and creativity, but has also, more importantly, filled the hearts of gifted musicians with a newfound hope.
Echomusic.tv is trying to fill the void left by Indus Music, Aag TV and the likes who promoted hundreds of bands and artists back in the day.
Having a background in film and a passion of music and an acute knowledge of industry practices, Ali Ashraf still believes there is a chance a Mainstream can be created with organic content from thousands of artists all over Pakistan flowing through a seamless process to find its audience. The key is to find that perfect equilibrium between creative and commercial so that the flow is seamless.
With crafty programming and content, it is reaching out to more musicians and larger audiences through live concert feed, rockumentaries, Web-shows, video podcasts, music videos and a lot more through its online channel.
In times when music has developed new arenas, Ali Ashraf is a breath of fresh air amidst a handful of organic artists who is not just thinking about himself and his music, but a bigger picture that benefits all. He needs our support and commemoration to keep alive the unique music he perseveres to uphold so sincerely and passionately.
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His collaborative initiative led to creating new audiences, venues and digital content for social media. Taking more artists on board and giving everyone an opportunity to be a part of this experience, led to bigger audiences, more venues and more music for everyone.
Meanwhile he started working on their digital platform and raised a team to cater to all ends of Echo spectrum. Today Ali Ashraf, along with Echo Records for distribution and Echomusic.tv as an online channel, is on a road to create a broad-based end to end platform for Pakistan.
His YouTube channel “Youtube.com/echomusictv” is currently showing 24/7 transmissions with following programming:
- Film-Shilmi: Find the best filmi songs of Pakistan’s Film Industry. Fresh releases and hit numbers Pakistan’s first online music channel All Things Music
- Retro-Pop: Cos’ they are the ever green tunes and grooves of Pakistan’s music scene.
- Folk Feels: Discover Pakistan’s musical heritage captured in its rich folk music.
- Live in concert: Find the best concert videos of Pakistani artists and bands as they fire up the stage.
- Echo Roundup: A weekly show where VJ Zainab shares the latest news on all things music in Pakistan.
- Café’ Jams: Live performance videos of various artists at Cafes around Islamabad.
- Rockumentaries: A weekly short film or documentary on various subjects relating to the music industry of Pakistan.
- MyCityJam: A musical travel show across Pakistan – discovering its cities and stories through its musicians.
Tune in to EchoMusic live on their website: www.echomusic.tv or their round-the-clock YouTube channel: www.Youtube.com/echomusictv. Also check out their Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/aliashrafmusic/.