I was a huge Slim Shady fan. My bedroom wall was full of Eminem's posters who I believed to be just a phenom: for the bars, yes, but also the odd combination of self-awareness and bad-boy arrogance, the irreverance, the wit; I was charmed to say the least. Over the years my love held up. He was still the GOAT, adored everytime he snuck back into the playlist, invincible. Until maybe last year, when Mariah Carey's 'Obsessed' hooked onto to my mind. The track was a direct response to Eminem who had repeatedly and wrongfully claimed that they dated. In the video, Mariah is dressed up as Em — an anonymous stalker obsessed with a celebrity clearly out of his league. I mean this is the guy who allegedly made MGK quit rap with his diss track. A cutthroat adversary such as himself taken out by a cunty 'uh-uh-uh-uh-Obsessed' hook?
Yup, best believe it. His reply to this, I discovered, was a forgotten track called 'The Warning' with great jabs at Nick Cannon, Mariah's husband at the time but nowhere near the cultural juice, so-to-speak, and style, as 'Obssesed'. Even as an Eminem fan, I had to take the L, on his account.
When the "Divine Feminine" warriors of the internet speak of the "softness," of women, this is what I picture. Not some cute finger-biting daintyness, but finnesse; a sweet touch that's intelligence-driven. Call it manipulation if you will; I think it goes back to fawning, an evolutionary skill we developed to escape predators. Mariah didn't need the triple entendres or 257 words per minute; an "eww" from a baddie holds the power of a thousand suns.
A lot of pop music today, is a similar subversion of both phallocentric ideals and markers of excellence, especially when it comes to music and art, which is reason enough to stop invalidating it. "Girly shit" is political. Ask the late great icon Dolly Parton who was universally considered 'a real G'.
Delhi-based electronic artist Hrithik Arora, who performs as SYEYL, returns with ‘limer’, the first single from his upcoming five-track EP 'Music Is The Answer.' The track takes its name from 'limerence', a state of intense romantic fixation for a rich, luscious house track with glimmering synths and a very Rüfüs Du Sol-esque entrancement that comes with being besotted with someone.
Mumbai singer-songwriter Nupoor Khedkar takes on Faiz Ahmad Faiz’s famous ghazal ‘Aaye Kuchh Abr’, previously popularised by Mehdi Hassan, giving the nearly 75-year-old poem a new indo-electronic melody. Produced by IP Singh and Yash Desai, the track contrasts melodic synths and punchy electronic drums with a driving bass agaisnt Nupoor's Ghazal-leaning voice into an almost sensual intoxication of longing . Accompanying the track is a video with a hazy, romantic world inspired by Wong Kar-wai’s films.
Killa K and Paal Dabba, two longtime friends and exciting voices in Tamil hip-hop, team up on ‘Adada’ produced by Urban Thoza and released via Def Jam Recordings India. The track takes its cue from Thillana Mohanambal, the 1968 Tamil film about a nadaswaram player and Bharatanatyam dancer, where Kacheri — a formal, classical Carnatic concert becomes a rap showdown. In the video, the pair are seen in a face-off, trading witty punchlines as their crowds size each other up.
Delhi-based composer, producer and visual artist Sijya follows her EP 'Leather & Brass' with ‘Turbine’, released through London label One Little Independent Records. First performed at Tate Modern’s Turbine Hall during her first show outside India, the track takes its name from the old-machine sounds Sijya imagined while making it. Distorted synths, immersive textures and shifting atmospheres create an industrial edge, while Sijya's vocals bring a haunted, gothic softness to the track. The release also comes with a music video by longtime collaborator Tito, continuing the eerie visual world of the 'Leather & Brass' era.
Punjabi artists Kunwarr, BIR, and DAAKU team up for their latest single ‘Laapata’, released via IndieA Records. Produced by DAAKU, the track is a soft, melodic R&B song with an afrobeats-inspired percussion. 'Made for full volume, late-night drives, and the dance floor,' the track reflects the evolving sound of contemporary Punjabi music, one that draws inspiration from global sound cultures and genres while remaining rooted in its own emotive storytelling through song.
Mumbai-based curator and sound architect Makāra works across deep and progressive electronic music with minimal, indie and organic sounds to create moody, slow-burning sets that aim to bring the listeners to a primal instict of love. Makāra is also interested in the relationship between electronic music and spaces, curating sets that suit everything from elevated listening rooms to the dancefloor. His latest track ‘Heat’, featuring sultry vocals by rising talent Zazu, brings that sensibility into a dark deep-house groove.
New Delhi-based melodic house producer Blu Attic known for bringing Indian classical influences into dance music, returns with ‘Out of Reach’ via New York label and collective Indo Warehouse. The track features as old Braj Bhasha vocal hook against driving tech-house rhythms, melodic writing and a dark harmonic palette. The song comes from the feeling of watching someone important leave and then having to deal with everything that follows. Blu Attic calls it “the closest I've come to making music that truly sounds like me”, built around his attempt to move away from the pop-sounding chord progressions and overused clichés he finds common in dance music.
Mumbai-based producers Valay and Neuse came together after meeting at Lost Stories Academy, eventually building their EP k-li through two years of sending projects back and forth and experimenting with Indian instruments, samples and found sounds. The EP grew out of unfinished ideas, including a live class recording and a phone recording of Neuse’s mother reciting a poem, giving each track a new life along the way. The one to check out here is ‘Mishri’, a colourful pop track that brings together free-flowing flute, mandolin, santoor and violin with a story about youthful love and the warmth of being around someone who feels like home.
Achint, the Mumbai-based composer, songwriter and producer known for scores across Scam 1992, Rocket Boys, Monica, O My Darling and Jigra, returns with ‘Laapata’, the second single from his upcoming album Juhu Leopard Vol. 1. Inspired by a frantic search for his missing dog in Goa, breezy melodies, shimmering guitars and Achint’s cinematic sound makes a story about a furry friend into a larger reflection on our search for love and the fear of losing someone close.
Jaipur-based hip-hop artist Silent Attack brings an old-school approach to Hindi and English rap, drawing from West Coast sounds to themes of politics, social issues and everyday realities. His latest track ‘Versatile’ is about keeping your head down, staying focused and letting the work speak for itself. Produced by nuvoices, the track pairs a clean, polished production with dense bars on ambition, self-belief and the idea of 'moving in silence.'
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