Up For a New Sound? 4 Indian Musicians You Need to Hear in 2016
A R Rahman was once the unknown Dileep Kumar. Who among these 4 new musicians will be the next rising sensation?
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Dileep Kumar was shy, talented and loved music. There was a time when the musician from Madras had to rent out his deceased father’s instruments to provide for his family. Today, we know him as AR Rahman.
So who will be the next Rahman?
You may get a hint from some of the upcoming musicians listed below.
Sikander Kahlon
First up is a young rapper from Mohali, Punjab. Sikander Kahlon has been laying verses on beats for a while now. Having burst on to the scene with much promise in 2010, Kahlon at the time sounded raw – unseasoned even.
Fast forward to 2016 and Sikander sounds like the new and polished version of himself. His verses tell stories and he’s quite the wordsmith.
Kahlon has a purposeful vibe to him that is truly refreshing. Affiliated with the Kala Kurta Gang (KKG), Sikander Kahlon looks ready to take his rap game several notches higher in the near future.
Listen to one of his standout tracks, Ik Din:
Shadow and Light
Singer Pavithra Chari and composer Anindo Bose together call themselves Shadow and Light. Pavithra composes the melody and pens the verses, while Anindo arranges the tracks. The duo dabble in both English and Hindi music.
The end product? An amalgamation of high and low sounds that would’ve been difficult for anyone to pull off, but that fit snugly around Pavithra’s scintillating vocals.
When you’re still a rookie in the music biz, starting well is paramount – their new album titled “Elements” will be out end of February. It’s only a matter of time before their music makes mainstream waves.
Listen to their standout track Arzoo here:
Peepal Tree
Gautama Buddha attained enlightenment after meditating for 49 days under a peepal tree. The latter’s musical namesake is making sure it lives up to the standards set by the sage.
Based in Bangalore, this electronic and folk rock band has played at more than 1,500 music gigs globally. They exhibit minimal inhibitions in their sounds. They may not be the hottest right now but it’s not every day you come across a band that has the potential to inspire music consumers globally. Yes, that’s right – who knew layering classic Indian melodies over funky guitar riffs could sound this fine?
Listen to one of their standout tracks – Roshan E Kaafile:
Naezy
“When I rap I turn into Naezy. It’s my alter ego”.
Naved Shaikh hails from the area of Kurla in Mumbai. The rapper, who is quickly becoming a sensation, grew up in a chawl where he was exposed to the gritty side of life – a side that finds fascinating representation in his music. Being the clever wordsmith that he is, Naezy interwove his circumstances into his music, painting vivid pictures of the ghetto life.
What follows is a verbal waterfall of beats in Hindi and Urdu that have an audience rapt and asking for more.
Naezy can be found spitting bars at fashion shows for the upper echelons of society. While your average rapper might look ill at ease fitting even five words into a line, Naezy effortlessly raps in heavy Urdu – punctuated with Bambaiyya slang.
Long story short? He’s like the Gulzar of Indian rap. No hyperbole.
You need to listen to his beauty of a track Aafat now:
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