Balle balle for the Yo brigade

Amarjot Kaur

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It was not so long ago when “Balle! Balle!”, the boisterous sound of Punjabi music, fell in love with “Yo! Yo!”, the swing music style of African origin. There was some sort of similarity... in beats perhaps, else why would region’s folk songs like Sunder Munderiye remind one of ‘rhythm and poetry’ with a constant cheer of ‘Ho’?

While that seems to solve the major part of the puzzle, a little assistance from region-based hip-hop musicians and rappers arranges the rest of the pieces of Indie rap-music scene in Punjab and Haryana.

That’s how we roll yo!

While most of the rap artistes started rapping a few years ago, most of them share that their music did not sit well with big labels, because of which they had to start their own labels. Desi Beam is one such band that started recording under their label, Dirt Records.

“I started off early in 2008, when I released my first song on Orkut and Myspace,” shares rapper, Sir D. He shares that the basic problem they have with the record labels was that they did not only want them to compromise on the lyrical content of the song, but also on the quality of music that they were producing.

Meanwhile, Mojo, an English rapper from the Desi Beam, says. “Most of the time, record labels ask you to get some money, put it on their tables and that’s the cost you pay for being famous. I decided to invest that money on a studio and music and come up with a record label of our own that has rappers from all regions and languages.” However, Pardhan (the Haryanvi rapper) shares that even though people who manage record labels have only a little knowledge of music, they are the ones who keep the business of music going.

“I have worked with several commercial and popular artistes, including Bohemia and Musical Doctors, and it is true that record labels try and manipulate the content and music of the songs according to their business requirements, but it is all right because artistes need to sell too. However, in the Indie music scene, the artiste has more scope and freedom to experiment,” he says.

Their desi swag!

While Desi Beam is one of the oldest desi hip hop crews from Chandigarh, its members are Daa Parv (music producer), Mojo (English emcee), G-Frekey (Punjabi emcee), Pardhaan (Hindi emcee) and Yung Hni aka Guru (Punjabi emcee) can rap in Hindi, English and Punjabi. Their first track Main Haan Desi, which was released in June 2009, helped them to gain popularity. The crew later came out with many tracks and also did a track with Bohemia called Bandookaan.

“It has been an emotional journey, especially while working with Bohemia,” says G-Frekey. Adding to his statement, Sir- D shares that they have recently released their new track called Daaru in March and it has already received more than 5 lakh views. “People who listen to us know their music and rap, especially. Also, now we are making our own videos also, since a band mate bought a new camera!” he gushes with joy.

While Sir D has collaborated with singers like Vickey Singh and Jolly Rahon for his songs Hurray and Bottle, he already has eight singles in the pipeline. Meanwhile, Freaky has an album titled Mix Tape to his credit and has collaborated with artistes like Babbal Rai, Musical Doctors, and Geeta Zaildar.

Also, soon to be seen on MTV Indies, Pardhan, who raps in Hindi shares, “I just like to write songs on ‘my feel’ trip. So, whatever inspires me or evokes strong feelings in me, I write about it,” he says. While talking about the content of his rap, Pardhan shares that he makes a conscious effort and takes utmost care that he does not offend anyone with his lyrics. “Even when it comes to rapping about women, I always refer to them as ‘aap’ in my songs and I don’t rap about their clothes or bodies or objectify them,” he says.

The rappers of the crew have not only collaborated with desi artistes, but some ‘power’desis too! “I have collaborated with UEFO of Poland, Zam, Loose Jeans, Black Zang from Bangladesh and I have a new track coming up. It’s called Ikka and here I have collaborated with a Mumbai-based band, Mumbai’s First,” says Mojo.

Cause it matters
From rap that creates waves, to the rap that storms a hurricane of social issues, rappers MC Azaad and Saahir sing about subjects like drug menace in Punjab to crime against women. Rap music is essentially the music of the oppressed and most of the songs sung by rappers like Tupac have often reflected the social and political issues of the black community. Known for his song Chitta, MC Azaad, who is based out of Khanna, shares that he feels strongly about the drug menace in Punjab. “Besides, I have written songs about rape titled India Di Kahani and on corruption in India, titled Insaaf, both of which have received as many as 20,000 views on YouTube,” he says. Meanwhile, Saahir, a city-based Punjabi rapper, has written songs like Chann Teh Daag is on crimes against women, Jamm Diyan Soolan is about caste system, and Inquilab Zindabad is on corruption and dirty politics in the country,” says Saahir.