Jumping on the bandwagon : Parties go big on campaigning anthems

Anthems, through their poetic lyrics and memorable melodies, are a discreet yet enterprising way of delivering a captivating political message to the balloting citizenry.

Thus, in recent times, a large number of mainstream parties in the country have fervidly invested in the composition of catchy campaigning tracks that are sure to have brainwashed voters subconsciously dancing to their tunes come Election Day.

With the preparations for the General Elections 2024 in full swing, many political parties including the Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N), Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) have followed suit of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) by orchestrating an expansive music production arrangement, which includes live and recorded song performances by renowned singers and lyricists like Sahir Ali Bagga, Malkoo, Farhan NTF and Mazhar Rahi, whose quirky hip-hop party anthems played repeatedly during election gatherings, rallies and advertisements, hold the potentiality to not only elevate the spirits of the listeners but also to surreptitiously alter their political allegiances with striking subtlety by leaving them in a partially hypnotic state.

“Since music is a highly effective tool for brainwashing people, it has been used extensively across time and space by leaders and revolutionists, who hoped to unite people under a special cause or social movement. A look back at history shows that music has played an important role in the success of many revolutions and movements in the world,” analyzed Dr Hannan, a psychologist.

According to sources of The Express Tribune, special arrangements have been made by parties for playing the anthems in their rallies and campaigns at the appropriate time in order to amplify the effect of a particular word or phrase spoken by the leader during their speech.

Adeem Anwar, a connoisseur of the arts, expressed his belief that tunes and melodies have a profound effect on the human mood. “There is a reason that music is called the food of the soul.

If a person listens to a sad song, they might start feeling depressed. Conversely, if someone listens to an upbeat song with a fast melody, a transfer of energy occurs, and the person feels uplifted. Hence, it is seen how the loud music and sentimental lyrics of songs played during election rallies, keep the supporters ‘charged’ for the elections,” observed Anwar, who felt that music was a smart way of attracting the youth of the country, which comprised 63 per cent of the population, to the polls.

Precedent supports Anwar’s assessment when one looks retrospectively at the PTI’s journey towards gaining popularity among the youth of the country. Indeed, PTI was the first mainstream party to introduce the use of originally produced music in Pakistan’s politics during its rally in October 2011 at the Minar-e-Pakistan and from there on it has continued to produce several party anthems featuring the voices of famous musicians like Abrarul Haq, Salman Ahmad and Ataullah Khan Esakhelvi.

Imtiaz Sheikh, former President of PTI Lahore proudly rejoiced that PTI had given a new color to political rallies and processions in Pakistan through its usage of revolutionary songs.

“Initially, people were criticizing PTI for promoting the music and dance culture (indecency), but now all major parties are using a similar strategy,” scoffed Sheikh.

Talking to The Express Tribune on the matter, Khawaja Imran Nazeer, the central leader of PML-N Lahore, which has organized the biggest music campaign this year, said, “Playing songs during election campaigns helps in increasing the enthusiasm of the voters, especially the youth.”

Published in The Express Tribune, February 5^th, 2024.